In his lecture on ‘Radiopharmaceuticals in Medicine’ Prof. Dr. Mustanser Jehangir, Prof. of Chemistry, Preston University said Radiopharmaceuticals are unique medicinal formulations containing radioisotopes which are used in major clinical areas for diagnosis and /or therapy. He further said, the use of radio pharmaceuticals for imaging organ function and disease state is an exceptional capability of nuclear medicine. Unlike other imaging modalities such as Computed Tomography(CT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging(MRI) and Ultrasonography (US), nuclear medicine procedures are capable of mapping physiological functions and metabolic activity thereby giving more information about the organ function and dysfunction, he maintained. It can also help detection and  management of cancer at an early stage.

Dr. Mustanser said, Radiopharmaceuticals are radioactive products fulfilling all pharmaceutical requirements and are intended for in-vivo administration in human beings with special purpose to carry out diagnostic or therapeutic procedures. In Pakistan, these radiopharmaceuticals are being prepared at Pakistan Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology (PINSTECH) and distributed to Nuclear Medical Centers established under Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission   (PAEC) and other hospitals where more than 400,000 patients are treated every year. The speaker remained associated with PINSTECH as head of the Isotope Production  Division.