Production of the therapeutic radionuclides 193mPt and 195mPt with high specific activity via alpha-particle-induced reactions on 192Os.

For the production of therapy-relevant radionuclides (193m)Pt (T(1/2)=4.33 d) and (195m)Pt (T(1/2)=4.03 d) with a high specific activity, the (192)Os(alpha,n)(195m)Pt and (192)Os(alpha,3n)(193m)Pt nuclear reactions were investigated for the first time from their respective thresholds up to 28 MeV. Thin samples of enriched (192)Os were prepared by electrodeposition on Ni, and the conventional stacked-foil technique was used for cross-section measurements. The calculated thick target yields were found to be 0.013 MBq/microA h for the (192)Os(alpha,n)(195m)Pt reaction in the energy range of E(alpha)=24-->18 MeV, and 0.25 MBq/microA h for the (192)Os(alpha,3n)(193m)Pt reaction in the energy range of E(alpha)=28-->24 MeV. The two radionuclides could not be detected in the interactions of (3)He particles with (192)Os. A production method involving high-current alpha-particle irradiation of enriched (192)Os and efficient chemical separation of radioplatinum was developed. Batch yields of about 1 MBq (195m)Pt and 8.7 MBq (193m)Pt were achieved. Compared to the reactor production these batch yields are very low, but the (192)Os(alpha,n)(195m)Pt and (192)Os(alpha,3n)(193m)Pt reactions are superior with respect to the specific activity of the products which is higher by two orders of magnitude.