The place of nuclear medicine in 21. century medicine

The possibility of a personalized medicine that is able to predict, to detect and to cure becomes more real with nuclear medicine because of its power tools for imaging and curing. For instance the combination of an X-ray radiography and a tomography based on Technetium 99m can reveal a tibia break that an X-ray radiography alone can not detect. The development of nuclear medicine is very particular because it relies on a complex economic concept that involves nuclear reactors, units of nuclear chemistry and efficient dispatching systems. This complexity and the necessity for radiation protection has so far hampered the development of nuclear medicine. (A.C.)