Radioactive waste management: an issue in nuclear medicine facility

'There are few things certain in life - one is death, second is change and the other is waste' Radioactive materials have been found to be very effective when used in a variety of medical applications for diagnostic, therapeutic and research purposes. In nuclear medicine, there are various short-lived unsealed radionuclides used for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. The radiopharmaceutical for patient administration may be made either by labeling the ready to use kits with the readily available radionuclide or to an eluate obtained from the parent radionuclide i.e. from generator. As a consequence of handling these radio-pharmaceuticals, a wide range of radioactive waste is likely to be produced. The waste generated includes contaminated materials and syringes, unused radio-pharmaceuticals in the vial, used radionuclide generator, as well as sealed sources used for calibration purposes. Thus, the radioactive waste generated may be categorized either of solid, liquid and gaseous form. As per the regulatory requirement, the waste generated needs to be managed in a safe manner to ensure protection of human health and the environment from the undue effects of ionizing radiation now and in the future without imposing undue burden on future generations. Objective of this article is to establish the methodology, which shall be fulfilled for the safe management of solid, liquid and gaseous radioactive waste from generation through safe disposal. It has always been a topic of discussion in the nuclear medicine facility that what is the suitable method for disposal of the radioactive waste generated. Mostly, the matter of concern is the waste generated due to the used column generator and the sealed sources used for calibration of PET scanners. As per the international instrument, code of conduct of the safety and security of radioactive sources, the imported disused sources should be repatriated to the country of origin but many times this repatriation is a challenge due to various reasons. Radioactive waste is managed in a manner that ensures compliance with the fundamental principles of radiation protection and environmental safety. Monitoring and surveillance programme prepared by the facility helps to ensure radiation protection of the occupational workers, public and the environment. It is the responsibility of the facility that emergency preparedness plan needs to be put in place for minimizing the radiological and environmental impact. The basic principle that needs to be followed during the radioactive waste management is that it should be managed within the dose constraints and other safety requirements prescribed by the regulatory body. Effective management of radioactive wastes involves segregation, characterization, handling, treatment, conditioning and monitoring prior to final storage/disposal. (author)