Rhenium-188 and Copper-67 Radiopharmaceuticals for the Treatment of Bladder Cancer

Abstract

The favourable nuclear properties of copper-67 and rhenium-188 for therapeutic application are described, together with methods for the chemical synthesis of a number of derivatives. Survival from invasive bladder cancer has changed little over the past 20 years. The intravesicular administration of Cu-67 or Re-188 radiopharmaceuticals in the treatment of bladder cancer offers some promise for improvement in this situation.

Sodium Iodide Symporter for Nuclear Molecular Imaging and Gene Therapy: From Bedside to Bench and Back

“…Re-188 is an important therapeutic radionuclide, which is obtained on demand as a carrier-free sodium perrhenate by saline elution of the tungsten-188 (W-188)/Re-188 generator system. With a half-life of 17.0 hours and emission of a high-energy beta ray (maximal energy of 2.12 MeV) and gamma ray (155 keV, 15%) for imaging, Re-188 offers the prospect of cost-effective preparation of radiopharmaceuticals for cancer treatment 22. Cyclotron-driven neutron activator may be an alternative for on-demand supply of Re-188 23.…”

188Re(V) Nitrido Radiopharmaceuticals for Radionuclide Therapy

“…One potential advantage of rhenium-188 over other therapeutic radionuclides, such as yttrium-90, lutetium-177 and copper-67, is its routine availability because of the 188 W/ 188 Re generator. Nevertheless, preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated favorable pharmacokinetic and dosimetric properties for several 188 Re-based therapeutics; the simpler and most known chemistry of yttrium-90, lutetium-177 and copper-67 may be the principal reason for which 188 Re is less used in clinical practice [ 9 ].…”