Thematic Planning: The Role of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Promoting Education, Medical Research, and Technology Transfer Among Nuclear Medicine Communities of Developing Countries

One of the major mechanisms of implementing the International Atomic Energy Agency’s (IAEA) programs in nuclear medicine has been through coordinated research projects (CRPs). In recent years, the IAEA has initiated a new type of CRP, called Doctoral CRP, in an attempt to further improve the effectiveness of its programs. The structure of the Doctoral CRP has been built on the structure of the existing CRP concept, but with a broader “thematic” approach. The word “thematic” indicates that these CRPs should both have a fairly broad scope and be designed so that their outcome, in terms of practical applications, might readily fit into the selected nuclear applications that are offered to Member States under the IAEA’s mechanism for thematic planning. The Nuclear Medicine Section of IAEA’s Division of Human Health initiated the first Doctoral CRP of IAEA in the year 2000, entitled, “Management of Liver Cancer Using Radionuclide Methods with Special Emphasis on Trans-Arterial Radio-conjugate Therapy and Internal Dosimetry.” Since then, the CRP has accomplished several milestones, including development of a new therapeutic radiopharmaceutical (¹⁸⁸Re lipiodol) and successfully carrying out Phase I and Phase II clinical trials on patients using the new therapeutic radiopharmaceutical.