Impact of Radiopharmaceuticals in Healthcare System

Abstract

The radioactive agents used in the nuclear medical field are called radiopharmaceuticals. A radiopharmaceutical is a drug, that contains a radionuclide in the form of a simple salt or a complex.  It may exist as a solid, liquid, gas or a pseudo gas. It is used in nuclear medicine for the diagnosis and therapy of many diseases. The chemical and physical identity and a form of a radiopharmaceutical are very important because in each case, once administered the radiopharmaceutical is intended to target certain tissues, binding sites, biochemical pathways. As the use of image has been increased, so has the use of prescription medications. These trends increase the risk of interactions between medications and radiopharmaceuticals. Many of the radiopharmaceuticals used for the diagnostic purpose, like C14 for pancreatic study and breath test, Cr51used for red cell volume and GFR measurement, Co57 used for gastrointestinal absorption. In radiopharmaceuticals, technetium has a versatile activity due to its large usage.  This review article describes the production of radiopharmaceutical, types of radiation source used in healthcare, diagnostic imaging technique, therapeutic application as well as advantage and disadvantage of radiopharmaceuticals or radiation therapy. The main aim of this review article is to describe how radiation source or radiopharmaceuticals affect the healthcare system.