Rosatom State Corporation is taking part in the First International Forum on Nuclear Medicine of the BRICS countries, which opened on June 20, 2024 in St. Petersburg. The forum was organized by the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation and Rosatom State Corporation.
In the year of Russia’s presidency in the association, the forum brought together more than 250 representatives of the BRICS countries (Ethiopia, China, Brazil, India, South Africa and others). The event is attended by heads of executive authorities in the field of healthcare, national societies of nuclear medicine and other professional associations of the BRICS countries, heads and leading scientific specialists of organizations for the production of radioisotope products, development and production of radiopharmaceutical drugs, heads of large oncological clinics, cardiological centers and other medical institutions engaged in the practical application of nuclear medicine methods. The State Corporation is represented at the forum by employees of the Health Technologies division.
The Minister of Health of the Russian Federation, Mikhail Murashko, welcomed the First BRICS International Forum on Nuclear Medicine: “Today, we are witnessing a new direction forming in the BRICS interstate group – BRICS nuclear medicine. The BRICS countries have significant potential in the development and application of atomedical methods and tools, and I am glad that we continue to interact and exchange our best practices. Our effective cooperation will contribute to the implementation of joint achievements in healthcare,” noted the Minister of Health of Russia.
The importance of nuclear medicine as one of the most important areas of healthcare development in Russia was emphasized by Yuri Olenin, Deputy Director General for Science and Strategy of Rosatom State Corporation: “Nuclear medicine is one of the priorities in Rosatom’s activities. The State Corporation develops infrastructure for medical care, manufactures and supplies medical isotopes and radiopharmaceuticals, creates equipment for diagnostics and therapy, and develops solutions for ionizing treatment of medical products. Russia aims at mutually beneficial cooperation in the development of nuclear medicine in the BRICS countries. I am sure that the Forum will contribute to the development of the human, intellectual, scientific, technical, industrial and market potential of the participating countries for the benefit of the health of citizens.”
During the Forum, experts from the BRICS countries will continue to discuss and develop a set of proposals and recommendations for effective cooperation and interaction within the framework of the BRICS for the benefit of the common goal of improving the quality of life and reducing the mortality of patients with oncological and non-oncological diseases. In particular, the issues of the development and production of effective radiopharmaceuticals used for the diagnosis and therapy of various diseases in oncology, cardiology, endocrinology, and psychiatry will be discussed. In addition, the participants of the event will discuss the current challenges facing all national health systems in terms of education and training in specialized specialties, faster implementation of advanced technological solutions in the field of radiopharmaceuticals and specialized equipment into medical practice.
As a result of the event, it is planned to publish a Review of the best practices in BRICS nuclear medicine, which is planned to be presented and distributed at the sites of the United Nations (UN), the World Health Organization (WHO), the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In addition, the results of the forum will become the basis for discussing issues of cooperation in nuclear medicine within the framework of the BRICS summit in Kazan, which will be held on October 22–24, 2024.
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Today, nuclear medicine is the most important direction for the development of a high-tech personalized approach to the diagnosis and treatment of various oncological and non-oncological diseases. That is why the Russian Ministry of Health and Rosatom State Corporation, together with the BRICS countries, have begun to form a new area of cooperation – BRICS nuclear medicine.
Earlier, at the initiative of the Russian Federation, a BRICS Working Group on Nuclear Medicine was established by the decision of the BRICS summit held in South Africa in August 2023. In 2024, within the framework of the Forum of Future Technologies, held in Moscow, the first meeting was held, during which the participants of the multinational working group discussed topical issues of the development of nuclear medicine in the BRICS countries, the format of more effective interaction to achieve a common goal – improving the quality and increasing the life expectancy of citizens. The participants of the Working Group managed to develop and agree on a provision on joint work within the framework of this development tool, identifying the most popular topics for cooperation and events for 2024.
Russia ranks first in the world in terms of the range of isotope products and is among the top-5 isotope producers on the world market. Rosatom’s radioisotope products make it possible to carry out about a million diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in Russia annually. The flagships of the development and application of radioisotope products are the Federal State Budgetary Institution ‘NMIC of Radiology’ of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation, the Federal State Budgetary Institution ‘NMIC of Oncology named after N. N. Blokhin’ of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation and the Federal State Budgetary Institution ‘Russian Scientific Center of Radiology and Surgical Technologies named after A. M. Granov’ of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation. Russian medical isotopes are in high demand abroad – in China, India, Brazil and other countries.
The activities of the Rosatom State Corporation include the isotope complex and the production of radiopharmaceuticals, the production of high-tech medical equipment, the processing of medical products with ionizing radiation, and its own medical infrastructure facilities. Rosatom is currently building Europe’s largest radiopharmaceutical manufacturing plant in the Kaluga Region, which will ensure import substitution and fully meet the needs of Russian doctors and patients in such drugs.
Rosatom State Corporation produces a wide range of medical equipment of its own design. The devices ‘Brachium’, ‘Tianox’ and others are highly appreciated by the Russian medical community and foreign experts. In 2027, it is planned to begin serial production of domestic magnetic resonance imaging scanners with a magnetic field strength of 1.5 tesla. Rosatom is also building medical infrastructure facilities in various regions of the country in order to increase the availability of high-tech care to the population using nuclear medicine techniques.
Russia is actively developing scientific cooperation with all interested countries. The implementation of major international projects continues. Rosatom and its divisions are actively involved in this work.
