Lok Sabha Question No. 1826 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-07-30
Subject: Use of Nuclear Energy in Health Sector
Ministry: ATOMIC ENERGY
Asked by: Shri Rajeev Rai

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF ATOMIC ENERGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO - 1826

ANSWERED ON  30/07/2025

## USE OF NUCLEAR ENERGY IN HEALTH SECTOR

## 1826.    SHRI RAJEEV RAI

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:-

- (a) whether it is a fact that  nuclear energy can be applied in the health sector for advance treatment of various ailments and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether the Government has initiated measures to augment research and development of nuclear medicine in our country and if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) whether the Government has initiated any measures to spread the use of advanced nuclear medicine in hospitals and diagnostic centres in rural areas particularly in areas of Eastern Uttar Pradesh and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS AND PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

- (a) Yes,  Nuclear  energy  has  potential  to  be  applied  in  the  health  sector  for  advanced treatment  of  various  ailments.  In  many  of  them  diagnostic  and  therapeutic  nuclear medicine can be practiced. In India, Single Photon Emission Computerized Tomography (SPECT), Positron Emission Tomography (PET), Computerized Tomography  (CT)  are  the  devices  through  which  diagnostic  nuclear  medicine  is practiced.  They  help  in  staging,  restaging,  response  evaluation  of  cancer.  There  is availability  of  nuclear  medicine  facilities  in  the  country  in  Government  and  private sector. There are more than 500 such facilities available. Nuclear medicine imaging provides unique information by helping doctors view how organs are  functioning,  which is  different  from  X-rays  or  CT  scans  that  show  only anatomical structure.
- (b) The Government has taken several initiatives to augment research and development of nuclear  medicine  in  the  country.  R&D  is  ongoing  in  radioisotope  production, purification, and development of new technologies to ensure enhanced and uninterrupted supply of medical radioisotopes in the country. Bhabha Atomic Research Centre  (BARC)  has  developed  and  launched  several  indigenously  produced  radiopharma products for applications like radiation synovectomy, therapy of neuroendocrine tumours, breast cancer, bone pain palliation, liver cancer,  and  non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.

These efforts are enhanced through collaborations both within the Department of Atomic Energy and through collaborations with Institutes and leading nuclear medicine centers such  as  All  India  Institute  of  Medical  Sciences  (AIIMS),  Postgraduate  Institute  of Medical  Education  and  Research  (PGIMER),  Chandigarh,  Jawaharlal  Institute  of Postgraduate Medical Education & Research (JIPMER), Pondicherry through Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS) funded projects.

Tata  Memorial  Centre,  an  aided  institute  under  the  aegis  of  Department  of  Atomic Energy  has  established  P  Ramaiah  Naidu  Shodhika,  an  advanced  Nuclear  Medicine Research  and  Treatment  unit  in  the  Advanced  Centre  for  Treatment,  Research  and Education in Cancer (ACTREC) in Mumbai.  This facility has 41 hot beds, one of the largest  therapeutic  nuclear  medicine  units  in  the  world,  and  was  inaugurated  by  the Hon'ble Prime Minister in 2023. It has state-of-art facilities for nuclear medicine and basic research.

- (c)      Bhabha  Atomic  Research  Centre  (BARC)  regularly  produces  radio-isotopes  and radiopharmaceuticals and supplies it through Board of Radiation & Isotope Technology (BRIT) to various nuclear medicine centres across India, enabling broader availability of diagnostic  and  therapeutic  services  including  in  rural  and  underserved  areas.  Tata Memorial Centre (TMC) has established Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital and Mahamana Pt.  Madan  Mohan  Malviya  Cancer  Centre  at  Varanasi,  UP.  There  are  2  PET  CT,  1 SPECT CT, High Dose Radioiodine Therapy and Theranotic Facility available for the use of nuclear medicine and diagnostic purpose.

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