Medical Diagnostics and Therapy

Radiochemistry is a discipline that deals with the chemistry of radioactive materials which is different from normal chemistry as it deals with μg and ng levels of radioactive material. Radiochemicals are the source (raw) material for radiopharmaceuticals which are pharmaceuticals administered at low chemical levels where the active compound is a radioisotope which either gives of radiation that is useful for imaging or therapy.

The Nuclear Technologies in Medicine and the Biosciences Initiative (NTeMBI), a national technology platform, is managed by Necsa and supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST).

The Nuclear Medicine Research Infrastructure (NuMeRI) is part of the Department of Science and Technology’s South African Research Infrastructure Roadmap (SARIR).

NuMeRI is a medical imaging facility dedicated to drug development and clinical research and will consolidate expertise and implement new strategic initiatives relating to R&D in nuclear technologies in medicine and the biosciences.