Toward clinical readiness: acceptance testing and initial commissioning of a 20 MeV medical cyclotron in a Philippine government hospital

Purpose: To describe the acceptance testing and initial commissioning of a newly installed 20 MeV medical cyclotron at a government-owned hospital in the Philippines. The current radiopharmaceutical distribution capacity in the Philippines has historically been concentrated in a limited number of centers, largely within the National Capital Region, thereby rendering FDG access in distant regions vulnerable to cost and transportation constraints associated with the 110-minute half-life of fluorine-18. Methods: Acceptance testing was conducted to evaluate radionuclide production yields for 18F- in both single-beam and dual-beam operating modes, as well as for 1⁸F2 gas and continuous 15O2. Single-beam 18F- irradiation were done at 70 µA for 60 minutes, whereas dual-beam irradiation were performed at 70 µA for 120 minutes. Tests for 1⁸F2 and 15O2 were carried out at 30 µA in accordance with specified operating conditions. The measured production yields were then benchmarked against performance target provided by the manufacturer. Results: Single-beam 18F- yields ranged from 6110-6140 mCi on the A-side target and 6860-7320 mCi on the B-side target. Dual-beam yield spanned 8958-10150 mCi on the A-side and 8720-9630 mCi on the B-side. 1⁸F2 yields varied between 369.1 and 674.0 mCi, while continuous 15O2 yields were observed from 430.43 to 445.18 mCi. Notably, all measured yields met or exceeded the manufacturer’s benchmark. Conclusion: Acceptance testing enabled effective initial commissioning and confirmed readiness for subsequent clinical operations. The demonstrated multi-curie 18F production capability, particularly dual-beam operation, indicates a strong potential to meet institutional demand and to support future regional radiopharmaceutical distribution.