CNNC Health Experts Visit Our Hospital to Advance Full-Chain Nuclear Medicine Development

CNNC Health Experts Visit Our Hospital to Advance Full-Chain Nuclear Medicine Development

On June 30, a delegation of three experts from the Hospital Development Center of CNNC Health Investment Co., Ltd., led by Chief Medical Management Expert Huang Chanjuan, visited the Wuwei Heavy Ion Center of Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital for an on‑site inspection and research visit. The group conducted a thorough review of the center's core operations, including clinical operation of heavy ion therapy, clinical translation of nuclear technology, discipline system development, and medical quality control management, gaining a comprehensive understanding of our hospital's achievements in the field of medical nuclear technology.

The delegation visited the PET/CT diagnostic area, radionuclide therapy ward, and the central control room of the heavy ion therapy system, where they observed equipment operation, clinical workflow standards, and the implementation of radiation safety protection measures. Throughout the visit, they received detailed briefings on the clinical application of nuclear medicine equipment, patient volume, and technical strengths. They engaged in in‑depth discussions with frontline staff on key areas such as integrated radionuclide diagnosis and therapy, the full‑process management of precision heavy ion radiotherapy, and standardized management of medical radioactive materials. The delegation fully acknowledged and commended the hospital's practical achievements in the clinical application of medical nuclear technology, specialty development, and refined operational management.

As a key strategic region for the nuclear industry in Northwest China, Gansu has been actively building a full‑industry‑chain development framework in recent years, with medical nuclear technology emerging as a critical driver of industrial transformation and the construction of both a "strong province in science and technology" and a "Healthy Gansu." Built on the foundation of domestic self‑reliance in nuclear medicine, our hospital has established a comprehensive and robust framework that includes a national benchmark in heavy ion radiotherapy, top‑tier molecular imaging diagnosis in the province, and the only facility in Gansu offering a full spectrum of alpha‑ and beta‑emitting radionuclide therapies. This makes our hospital one of the few institutions in Northwest China with complete capabilities spanning particle therapy, internal radionuclide therapy, and functional imaging diagnostics.

In the field of heavy ion therapy, our hospital is the birthplace of domestically produced medical heavy ion accelerator technology and has established a collaborative "Lanzhou‑Wuwei dual‑center" development framework to expand and strengthen the heavy ion medical industry across Gansu Province. To date, the two centers have completed over 3,000 cases of heavy ion therapy, serving patients from all provinces in China and attracting patients from countries including Belgium, Australia, South Korea, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Canada, Jordan, and Serbia. Our institution has become an important window for China's heavy ion therapy technology to reach the global stage.

Wuwei Heavy Ion Center, Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital

PET/CT

SPECT/CT

In the field of nuclear medicine imaging, our Department of Nuclear Medicine, established in 1983, was the first nuclear medicine department in Wuwei and the one with the most comprehensive range of radionuclides in western Gansu. It is equipped with a GE Discovery 710 Super‑Iterative PET‑CT — the only one in a prefecture‑level city hospital in the province — alongside a GE Hawkeye 4 dual‑probe SPECT. This hardware and software combination forms the highest‑level nuclear medicine molecular imaging diagnostic system in Gansu, providing high‑quality imaging support for precision radionuclide therapy and heavy ion target volume delineation.

Leveraging its in‑house radiopharmaceutical preparation platform and decades of technical expertise, our hospital is the only medical institution in Gansu Province that simultaneously conducts large‑scale clinical applications of both alpha‑ and beta‑emitting radionuclide therapies, covering the full spectrum of alpha and beta radionuclide clinical use with the highest volume and broadest range of treated conditions in the province. In the field of beta‑emitting radionuclide therapy, the hospital routinely and maturely performs procedures including ¹³¹I therapy for hyperthyroidism, ⁹⁰Sr‑⁹⁰Y radionuclide applicator therapy, ⁸⁹Sr therapy for analgesic management of bone metastases, ¹²⁵I seed implantation, and ⁹⁰Y resin microsphere interventional therapy for liver cancer. Recently, the hospital successfully completed the first domestically produced Y‑90 microsphere interventional procedure for liver cancer in the Gansu‑Qinghai‑Ningxia‑Xinjiang region, setting a new record for beta‑emitting radionuclide interventional therapy in the region. In the field of alpha‑emitting radionuclide therapy, ²²³Ra radium‑223 targeted therapy has been routinely introduced into clinical practice, opening a new treatment pathway for patients with advanced multiple bone metastases. ¹⁷⁷Lu targeted therapy will soon be available to benefit patients with metastatic prostate cancer, and additional high‑end alpha‑emitting therapies, including ²²⁵Ac and ²¹¹At, will be progressively introduced to further expand the scope of alpha‑radionuclide therapy.

¹³¹I therapy for hyperthyroidism

⁹⁰Sr‑⁹⁰Y radionuclide applicator therapy

⁸⁹Sr therapy for bone metastases  

¹²⁵I seed implantation therapy

⁹⁰Y resin microsphere interventional therapy

With three core advantages — national leadership in heavy ion technology, the top‑ranked PET/CT and SPECT imaging capabilities in the province, and the only facility in Gansu offering the full spectrum of both alpha‑ and beta‑emitting radionuclide therapies — our hospital has relieved the suffering of numerous cancer and chronic disease patients and advanced the development of regional nuclear medicine from the deployment of individual devices to a full‑chain industrial approach. Moving forward, the hospital will continue to deepen its engagement and collaboration with CNNC Health, further solidify its leading position in these three areas, accelerate the clinical translation of cutting‑edge nuclear medicine technologies, and help propel the overall level of medical nuclear technology in Gansu and the broader Northwest region to a nationally advanced standing.

Writer: Guo Yishan  

First Review: Duan Shengyu  

Second Review: Guo Yishan

Third Review: Cai Qinghua