Serva Energy Discovers Promising New Way to Produce Cancer-killing Actinium-225 Isotope

TEMPE, Ariz., June 22, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Serva Energy, a nuclear innovation company, has developed a new production method to ramp up the supply of Actinium-225, a cancer-killing isotope in ultra-high demand by oncology researchers and pharmaceutical companies developing Targeted Alpha Therapies (TAT)—a promising step forward in the fight against cancer.

The milestone marks the first time a commercial entity has employed a conventional nuclear reactor to produce the life-saving TAT isotope—allowing for dozens of existing research reactors around the world to collaborate with Serva on increasing production of research-grade Actinium-225, free of problematic contaminants like Actinium-227, without huge capital investments or delays for construction.

"Serva's production method is highly promising and has significant potential to make commercial quantities of Actinium-225 suitable for radiopharmaceutical use," said Dr. Ian Horn, Senior Associate Consultant of Radiochemistry and Radiopharmaceuticals at the Mayo Clinic Rochester, Departments of Nuclear Medicine and Radiology. "Targeted Alpha Therapies are the next generation of therapeutic radiopharmaceutical products. To facilitate the development and use of these novel treatments, it is critical that the supply chain of alpha emitting isotopes, such as Actinium-225, be improved to support multiple commercial applications."

"What's really exciting about this innovation is the potential to save lives," said Ian Horvath, founder and CEO of Serva Energy. "Actinium-225 is the miracle isotope that can open the doors to the cancer treatments we've been wishing for. The more Actinium we can produce, the more lives we can save."  

With support from the Department of Energy's National Isotope Development Center, which provided Serva with Radium-226, Serva's proprietary materials and process technology produced initial batches of Actinium-225 that have been validated by Mayo Clinic's Dr. Horn.

The isotope used in this research was supplied by the U.S. Department of Energy Isotope Program, managed by the Office of Isotope R&D Production.

Serva Energy is a nuclear technology company revolutionizing the way radioisotopes and nuclear fuels are produced—serving the world critical cancer treatments and a safe carbon-free transition to a clean energy future. Serva fuel technologies aim to transform the state of nuclear power within this decade, making reactors safer and more efficient, while advancing the supply of radioisotopes for health care applications and biomedical research.

SOURCE Serva Energy LLC