Pre-owned medical cyclotrons for use in Positron Emission Tomography (PET).

Medical cyclotrons are typically below 20 MeV in energy and designed to produce the four (4) basic PET isotopes. These are Fluorine-18, Carbon-11, Nitrogen-13 and Oxygen-15.

Availability

Medial cyclotrons are available from time-to-time. Unfortunately these machines have not been installed in great numbers. At any one time the available inventory of used medical cyclotrons is at best limited.

Age

A typical medical cyclotron can range in age from 10-20 years old. This should not be a concern for the buyer. If properly maintained the medical cyclotron can be useful for decades.

Type

All cyclotrons available today are negative ion machines. This means that they typically build up less radioactivity in the machine which is a result of operation and production of isotopes. They also are typically purchased by the original owner as self-shielded units. This means that a large shield is supplied with the cyclotron to eliminate the need for construction of thick shielding walls in the structure housing the machine.

The Self-shield typically weights 40 tons and is confined in a small space around the cyclotron. This weight added to the 20+ tons of the cyclotron can present some special floor loading issues for the new facility. Although not difficult with which to deal, the weight of these combined pieces should be considered as part of the planning process.

Partners

Due to their highly specialized nature, Diagnostix Plus works with partners for the removal, packing, shipping, installation planning, installation, upgrade and start-up of the cyclotrons it sells. Although the buyer of a pre-owned cyclotron does not have to make use of these services, you may wish to consider them as part of the purchase process.