New centre for radiopharmaceutical development at University Hospital Munich

13 August 2011

Ion Beam Applications (IBA) S.A.,  has announced that its German partner, PET Net GmbH, has reached an agreement with the University Hospital of Munich to install a state-of-the-art centre for radio-pharmaceutical development and production.

This agreement highlights IBA’s commitment to expanding in nuclear medicine markets through key partnerships in parallel to its organic growth.

The project will provide €15 million in financing to build a 1050 m² state-of-the-art center for radiopharmaceutical development and production that will focus on Positron Emission Tomography (PET), a non-invasive method used in molecular imaging to visualize biological processes for the early detection and real-time monitoring of cancer and other diseases.

The partnership will focus on the development of new PET radiopharmaceuticals and the production of existing diagnostic tracers. The facility will be built near the existing nuclear medicine clinical center at the Grosshardern University Hospital, currently one of the leading PET examination clinics in Europe.

“Through this collaboration, PET Net has achieved a major step forward in expanding its radiopharmaceuticals network in Germany, and we are delighted to have them as our German partner,” said François Labarre, president, IBA Molecular Europe. “Not only are plans for this new center testimony to PET Net’s strength in the German market and its potential for growth, they also confirm that IBA is committed to partnering with companies that we have identified as industry leaders.”

In April 2011, IBA announced that it had made a 25.2% minority stake investment in PET Net, a provider of PET radiopharmaceuticals to nuclear medicine facilities in Germany, in order to strengthen its PET infrastructure in Germany with a local partner. PET Net is experienced in the management of centers for the production of radiopharmaceuticals, regulatory affairs and manufacturing licensees and currently manages two production sites in Erlangen and Regensburg, Germany.

Source: IBA Group