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The Ethical Use Of Radioisotope In The Real World

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The Ethical Use Of Radioisotope In The Real World
A radioisotope is an isotope of an element with different masses, whose nuclei are unstable and dissipate excess energy by spontaneously emitting radiation in the form of alpha, beta, and gamma rays (Radioactive Isotopes, 2017). Radioisotopes have many different uses in the real world, but some of the most beneficial uses are in the field of medicine.

Technetium, more specifically technetium-99m, is used in tens of millions of medical diagnostic procedures annually, making it the most commonly used medical isotope. Technetium-99m (99mTc) is favoured because of its half-life being short, the energy of the gamma ray it emits, and the ability of technetium to be chemically bound to many biologically active molecules (Technetium, 2011). Examples

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