A cyclotron is a particle accelerator used to produce radioisotopes for nuclear medicine, enabling radiopharmaceuticals to help detect and monitor malignant tumors in the body, such as FDG and F-PSMA, produced domestically in Iran.

They are used in nuclear medicine to diagnose a range of malignancies.

However, Iran’s cyclotrons had remained out of operation for around 16 years due to technical problems, sanctions and the failure of the foreign company responsible for installing and commissioning the equipment to fulfill its obligations.

The turning point came when Iranian nuclear industry specialists took over the task and restored the system using domestically produced components.

“Some of the components of this device are subject to sanctions and were not available to us. Our colleagues manufactured those parts themselves and got the device running within two months,” said Amin Mokhtari, a nuclear medicine specialist.

“The results are now visible. Patients are using the products,” he added.

Mohammad Eslami, head of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), said the cyclotron had operated continuously since its revival and had remained active even during the recent war on Iran, continuing to produce radiopharmaceuticals and provide services to patients.

The facility currently produces around 1,200 radiopharmaceutical doses a month, making the cyclotron an important part of the country's nuclear medicine infrastructure and cancer-care system.

According to Eslami, Iran's domestically produced radiopharmaceuticals cost only around one-tenth of imported equivalents, helping reduce treatment costs while strengthening the country's capacity to meet its own medical needs.

Iran plans to expand its cyclotron network to seven centers by the end of the Seventh Development Plan falling on March 2029, further increasing domestic production of medical radioisotopes and reducing reliance on imports.

As part of its efforts to expand domestic capabilities in nuclear medicine, Iran is also preparing to introduce AlphaZa, the country's first domestically developed alpha-emitting radiopharmaceutical for the treatment of advanced cancers that have become resistant to conventional therapies.

Eslami announced in June that the drug is expected to enter the market in the near future, describing it as a significant achievement in Iran's nuclear medicine sector and a step toward expanding the country's capacity for targeted cancer treatment.

Eslami also said that 20 new radiopharmaceuticals are currently at the research and development stage and are expected to enter production during the current Iranian calendar year, further expanding Iran's domestic portfolio of nuclear medicine products.