Uzbekistan Aims to Open Nuclear Medicine Center Next Year

Uzbekistan aims to open a nuclear medicine center in 2026, a representative of the Uzatom Agency for Atomic Energy under the Cabinet of Ministers announced on September 26 at an exhibition held during World Nuclear Week in Moscow.

The project will be implemented in several stages - from diagnostics and radiosurgery to the introduction of proton therapy for treating the most complex forms of cancer, The Caspian Post reports, citing Uzbek media.

At the first stage (2025-2026), the center will be equipped with a PET-CT scanner, MRI, cyclotron complex, linear accelerator, radiopharmaceuticals laboratory, as well as advanced equipment including a gamma knife and a cyberknife. The second stage (after 2026) will involve the development of radionuclide therapy, and the third will focus on proton therapy.

“It is expected that thanks to this center, we will be able to diagnose more than 8,000 people annually at the early stages of illness, which will make treatment possible in 90% of cases. Medical tourism will also develop - foreign patients will be able to come to Uzbekistan, while our citizens will no longer need to go abroad to access nuclear medicine services,” the agency’s representative said.

According to Uzatom, the project will create more than 100 high-tech jobs and help build Uzbekistan’s own pool of specialists in nuclear medicine.

The first stage of the project, estimated at $25-30 million, will be implemented in cooperation with the S. Berezin Medical Institute in an investment format. Under the agreement, the Russian side will finance the project, while Uzbekistan will provide the land and ensure all necessary conditions. The facility will cover an area of 12,000 square meters.

“Engineering surveys and environmental assessments are currently underway at the potential site. If the location meets all the necessary criteria, construction work can begin,” the agency representative noted.

The parties are developing a feasibility study for the project. The future nuclear medicine center may be located in the Ulugbek settlement of the Mirzo Ulugbek district of Tashkent, where Uzatom has an unused building on its balance sheet.

In June, Uzatom and the S. Berezin Medical Institute signed an agreement outlining the key terms for implementing the project to establish a nuclear medicine center in Uzbekistan. The project will also involve the Ministry of Health.