The CERAD cyclotron designed and built by Belgian company Ion Beam Applications S.A. has been installed at the National Centre for Nuclear Research (NCBJ) in Świerk. The cyclotron will accelerate protons and alpha particles to an energy of 30 MeV and deuterons to an energy of 15 MeV.

The device is one of the most advanced cyclotrons in the world and one of three that can accelerate three different charged particles.

Thanks to it, research into new radiopharmaceuticals, particularly those specifically designed to meet the needs of individual patients, will be possible at Świerk.

“We are joining an elite group of scientific research units with unique research equipment, i.e. a cyclotron accelerating protons, deuterons and alpha particles. Thanks to this device, we will be able to produce radioactive isotopes hitherto hardly available in Poland. This opens up the field for the design of innovative drugs, which we will produce at CERAD”, said Prof Renata Mikołajczak of NCBJ.