Clust-ER Health at the Grand Finale of the SECURE project in Warsaw

Excitement and collaboration filled the air in Warsaw as Clust-ER Health joined the final consortium meeting of the SECURE project. After three years of hard work, experts from across Europe came together to celebrate achievements, share insights, and chart the future of next-generation medical radionuclides. This milestone event highlighted not only what SECURE has accomplished but also the transformative impact its results will have on diagnostics, therapy, and the sustainability of Europe’s medical isotope supply chain.

36 hours of of hard work and knowledge exchange

Over 36 hours of hard work and knowledge exchange in Warsaw, the consortium came together to reflect on SECURE’s accomplishments and explore how its results can shape the future of medical radionuclides in Europe. The program combined intensive discussions, collaborative problem-solving, and hands-on visits to cutting-edge research infrastructures. Here’s how the two days unfolded:

DAY 1 – Reflecting on achievements and future directions

On the first day, the partners engaged in vibrant discussions looking both back at SECURE’s accomplishments and forward to how its results can guide future initiatives in medical isotopes. Topics such as supply, therapy, and safety challenges for next-generation medical isotopes make up SECURE’s contributions. 

In particular, partners pointed out the impactful Brussels workshop held earlier this year in May and that brought together nearly 50 stakeholders from research, industry, and policy sectors. From a comprehensive roadmap for advancing Targeted radionuclide Therapy (TRT) in Europe, three strategic pillars emerged:  

• Security of supply: the critical need to modernise isotope production infrastructure and establish resilient supply chains, particularly for emerging alpha emitters used in cancer treatment.
• Access and excellence: expanding clinical trial capacity, improving dosimetry technologies, and addressing regional infrastructure gaps to ensure equitable patient access across Europe.
• Human capital: the urgent need for sustained investment in specialised training and education to address workforce shortages in radiochemistry, medical physics, and GMP manufacturing.

The discussions revealed five interconnected obstacles limiting TRT’s potential: supply fragility from aging reactor infrastructure, infrastructure gaps in production facilities, limitations in patient-specific dosimetry tools, critical workforce shortages, and regulatory bottlenecks that slow innovation.

As SECURE concludes, the exchanges and debates held over the first day are a testament to the projects’ activities in fostering collaboration and establishing strategic direction. The partners emphasised how SECURE’s work aligns with broader European initiatives including the SAMIRA Action Plan, Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, and complementary projects like ACCELERATE.EU and THERA4CARE, creating a comprehensive ecosystem for nuclear medicine advancement. SECURE provides a framework for Europe to maintain its global leadership in nuclear medicine while ensuring strategic autonomy in critical medical radionuclide supply chains. The consensus reached in Brussels and presented in Warsaw – that coordinated investment, strong leadership, and harmonised regulatory frameworks are essential – can serve as the stepping stone for Europe’s continued advancement in precision oncology through nuclear medicine.

SECURE’s contributions are available for consultation. 

DAY 2 – Visiting key infrastructures

The second day was dedicated to visits at the Radioisotope Centre POLATOM, a hub for high-quality radiopharmaceuticals and diagnostic kits. In particular, we got the opportunity to see: 

🔬 CERAD Cyclotron’s laboratories, scheduled to open in 2026. A facility that will accelerate protons, alpha particles, and deuterons for research on new diagnostic and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals. The 2,500 m² complex will also house production labs, including four hot cells procured by Comecer for safe radiopharmaceutical preparation.

🔬 POLATOM Laboratories, GMP-certified production and quality control facilities that support research into nuclear medicine radioisotopes and host the national Radioactivity Standards Laboratory, producing standard radioactive solutions and sources.

Clust-ER Health is proud to have contributed to SECURE’s mission; a contribution that was supported and shared by our partners as well, especially IRCCS Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori “Dino Amadori” – IRST Srl and ENEA. 

Relevance, impact, collaborations: the partners’s perspective

“Participating in SECURE has been an opportunity to contribute to the European-level development of alpha-particle therapies. It has been stimulating and extremely useful for my work as well, helping define clinical recommendations for innovative applications in cancer treatment.The project has broadened our perspective on the therapeutic potential of alpha emitters beyond prostate cancer, fostering updates on the most advanced protocols and emerging clinical targets. All of this will be leveraged for the planning of future clinical trials in this rapidly evolving field. Collaboration among European centers is crucial to ensure shared safety standards, optimize therapeutic protocols, and guarantee equitable access to these innovative therapies. The exchange of expertise and experience among different institutions has been — and continues to be — essential to protect patients and accelerate clinical progress.” – Maddalena Sansovini, Head of Nuclear Medicine Therapy Unit, Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori “Dino Amadori” IRST

“From a management perspective, overseeing a project of such high level has been extremely rewarding. SECURE has represented not only a scientific milestone for our Institute and all the partners involved, but also a highly valuable experience in terms of mutual support and continuous exchange among partners. This European collaboration strengthens everyone’s expertise and allows us to showcase the benefits of European research funding in our daily work.” – Rosa Maria Genovese, EU Policy & Project Manager, Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori “Dino Amadori” IRST

“Beyond the scientific objectives, the SECURE project has been an important opportunity for us to engage with European colleagues from different disciplines. This exchange has allowed us to observe that, despite belonging to the European Union, significant local differences still exist in terms of both financial resources and regulatory frameworks. On a personal level, the project offered me the opportunity to deepen my understanding of alpha-emitting radionuclides, beyond our specific area of expertise, particularly regarding their production and radioprotection aspects. In summary, European collaboration is essential because it allows us to discuss these differences, which can become valuable insights for learning and for systematizing the best practices developed at the local level.” – Valentina di Iorio, Head of Radiopharmacy, Istituto Romagnolo per lo Studio dei Tumori “Dino Amadori” – IRST

While the meeting marks the project’s formal conclusion, its outcomes will continue to drive innovation and impact in nuclear medicine across Europe.

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