We built the Molecular Imaging Research Centre as a radiopharmaceutical research and clinical production facility to discover and manufacture the latest in diagnostic radiotracers.
Materials are radioactive simply because their atomic structure is unstable, and through releasing energy (i.e. radioactivity) they achieve the stability they desire. This means that a radioactive atom “expires” after releasing its energy (or signal) and therefore, over time, they become less radioactive. We use a term called “half-life” to describe the length of time a material remains radioactive, and it is defined as: the of time it takes for half of a radioactive substances to lose its radioactivity.
Most radiotracers currently used for PET scans are known as “short half-life” tracers; they cannot be stored and must be produced and used on the day of a patients scan. The most commonly used PET tracer is called [18F]fluorodeoxyglucose, or [18F]FDG for short which has a half-life of just 110 min, which is produced in facilities around the UK in large batches and distribute to scanning centres, like the Jack Brignall PET-CT Scanning Centre.
[18F]FDG is a great radiotracer, but it only tells doctors certain information. The field of radiotracers is expanding, and our understanding of how new radiotracers can improve patient care is growing day by day. However, the facilities and infrastructure to produce this variety of tracers is lacking in the UK; there is also great inequity in the location of facilities which are capable of producing new radiotracers, which tend to favour the South of England.
To combat this, we built the Molecular Imaging Research Centre (MIRC), a state-of-the-art radiopharmaceutical production facility right here at Castle Hill Hospital, to manufacture the latest in diagnostic radiotracers, so that patients in our region and beyond can benefit from cutting edge medicine.
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans are a way of imaging body functions in 3D using specially designed radioactive molecules.
100% of the donations received go to fund vital lifesaving research and provision of medical scanning facilities.
Please note all funds are used in full by the charity to further its objectives.
The Hull and East Yorkshire Medical Research Centre
A Charitable Company Limited by Guarantee in England and Wales. Company No. 4017833
Registered office: Daisy Building, Castle Hill Hospital, Castle Road, Cottingham HU16 5JQ Registered Charity No. 1095652
