Podcast: Canada's leading role in life-saving medical isotopes
Bruce Power's Chief Operating Officer James Scongack is also Chairman of the Canadian Nuclear Isotope Council and, as he explains, the country is aiming to grow its leadership role in nuclear medicine.
He outlines the life-saving diagnostics and treatments that now exist thanks to isotopes produced in Canada's Candu reactors, research reactors and cyclotrons, and talks about the new trials and treatments which are emerging.
The Canadian Nuclear Isotope Council has recently signed an agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency's Rays for Hope campaign and aims to help provide nuclear medicine's diagnostics and treatments to those parts of the world where people do not currently have access. This is one of the drivers he sees for huge demand growth in the years ahead.
For those who may say that producing isotopes is the equivalent of a 'side hustle' for a nuclear power plant, Scongack says it might be "1% of the cashflow, but it's 50% of our contribution" in terms of tackling some of the greatest challenges that communities and society are facing.
Scongack also talks about progress at Bruce Power, where the modernisation programme is adding extra capacity equivalent to that which would be provided by building three small modular reactors. There's also an update on Bruce C.
Scongack, who sees a bright future for nuclear energy in general, says that communicating positive stories is key. He presents the Canadian Nuclear Isotopes Council's own podcast - called Isotopes for Hope - helping to spread the news about what he calls a "real hidden gem of what our industry around the world does". For instance, Canada supplies about half of the world's cobalt-60 which is used to sterilise about 40% of the world's single-use medical devices.
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Co-60 is made by irradiating rods of cobalt-59 inside a Candu pressurised heavy water reactor for up to three years (Image: Bruce Power)
With other Candu reactor countries also producing, or planning to do their bit to help meet global demand, he says that the challenge for the future is to ensure that, as with producing energy "the world is counting on us ... when someone turns their light switch on at home, they expect the light to turn on, and when an oncologist is ready to give a patient cancer treatment, we need to make sure they have the isotopes that they need to provide that patient with the best chance of success".
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Episode credit: Presenter Alex Hunt. Co-produced and mixed by Pixelkisser Production
