Diagnostic radionuclides, nuclear properties

In 1965, Richards and his collaborators at Brookhaven National Laboratories (N.Y.) have introduced the Mo/ Tc generator for clinical application (Richards 1966). This radionuclide system made technetium-99m available for clinical research and has stimulated the development of the first labeled compounds, which had a considerable impact on radiochemistry and nuclear medicine (Andros et al. 1965 Harper et al. 1966 McAfee et al. 1964a, b Stern et al. 1965, 1966). In the years to follow, diagnostic nuclear medicine procedures based on " Tc pharmaceuticals increased to approximately 85%. The reasons for this rapid growth were the ideal nuclear properties of techne-tium-99m, its availability worldwide as a radionuclide generator system, and the development of new labeling techniques. 

Nuclear properties of some gamma and positron emitting diagnostic radionuclides (ICRP 1983)... 

Technetium-99m ( Tc) is widely used in radiopharmaceutical preparations due to its excellent physical and chemical properties. In fact, more than 80% of all radiopharmaceuticals used in diagnostic nuclear medicine are based on this short-lived radionuclide, which is obtained by elution of a Mo/ Tc generator system that is available in any radiopharmacy and nuclear medicine facility. 

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