BARC Develops India's First Ruthenium 106 Plaque For Effective Eye Cancer Treatment

Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) Mumbai has developed an Eye Cancer therapy in the form of the first indigenous Ruthenium 106 Plaque for treatment of Ocular Tumours.

It is very convenient for the surgeon to handle the plaque under this therapy which is at par with the international standards.

The Department of Atomic Energy had entered into collaboration with Dr Rajendra Prasad Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.

Later, AIIMS, New Delhi agreed to use the Plaque developed by the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) for Eye Cancer treatment and it was in September 2020 that it was used for the first time for the treatment of a patient with Choroidal Hemangioma and the results proved to be satisfactory.

According to Dr Atul Kumar, Professor and Head of Dr Rajendra Prasad Centre for Ophthalmic Sciences, AIIMS New Delhi, so far the BARC plaques made in India through the Department of Atomic Energy have been used for seven cases for Ocular Cancer, out of which two were Retinoblastoma, two were Choroidal Melanoma, two Ocular Surface Squamous Neoplasia (OSSN) and one case of Choroidal Hemangioma. The Plaque handling is very much Surgeon-friendly and the preliminary results are very satisfactory, he says.

Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) is also involved in developing Bullet Proof Jackets for security personnel and in the Agricultural sector, radiation techniques to extend shelf life of vegetable and food products are being applied.