YantaiJune 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On the morning of June 11, the new medical isotope production base of Qikangyuan Medical Technology (Changzhou) Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Qikangyuan”), jointly invested by Dongcheng Pharmaceutical Group and Eckert & Ziegler AG of Germany, was officially inaugurated in Jintan District, Changzhou. This marks the implementation of China’s first medical isotope project for alpha nuclides, transitioning from “heavy reliance on imports” to “independent large-scale supply,” bringing a fundamental turning point to the decades-long “bottleneck” issue in the field of targeted alpha nuclide therapy in China.
Representatives from the Changzhou City and Jintan District governments, the Berlin Representative Office in China, Dongcheng Pharmaceutical Group Chairman You Shouyi, Eckert & Ziegler Supervisory Board Chairman Dr. Andreas Eckert, Dongcheng Pharmaceutical Group General Manager Luo Zhigang, industry experts, and over 60 employee representatives attended the inauguration ceremony. In a warm atmosphere, the attending leaders and guests jointly cut the ribbon for the project, marking the official entry of Qikangyuan into a new phase of development.
Strategic Move: Driven by “One Reactor, Two Accelerators,” China and Germany Join Forces to Solve the “No Available Drugs” Dilemma
Medical isotopes are regarded by the industry as the “lifeline” for precision diagnosis and treatment in nuclear medicine. However, for a long time, China’s key medical isotopes have been almost entirely dependent on imports, with fragile supply chains and high prices. The birth of Qikangyuan is a direct response to this dilemma. As a core component of Dongcheng Pharmaceutical’s “One Reactor, Two Accelerators” strategy (reactor + accelerator), in November 2023, Dongcheng Pharmaceutical and Eckert & Ziegler AG formed a strong partnership, each holding a 50% stake, and the joint venture was officially established. Leveraging Dongcheng Pharmaceutical’s full industry chain capabilities in the domestic nuclear medicine market and Eckert & Ziegler AG’s world-leading radioisotope production processes, it aims to achieve large-scale domestic production of high-end medical isotopes.
To ensure production operations, the base completed the procurement and installation of a cyclotron by the end of 2025. The total usable area of the project is 9,500 square meters, with commercial production expected to begin in early 2027. The first phase of the base will mass-produce Germanium-68 [68Ge], which is the parent nuclide for preparing Gallium-68 [68Ga], a core medical isotope in the field of imaging diagnostics. According to the plan, the second phase of the base will build China’s first commercial production platform for Actinium-225 [225Ac], a key nuclide for next-generation targeted anticancer therapy.
At the inauguration ceremony, Dongcheng Pharmaceutical Group General Manager Luo Zhigang stated that the establishment of the Jintan base is a turning point in the development of China’s medical isotope industry. With the domestic mass production of Germanium-68 [68Ge] and the subsequent implementation of Actinium-225 [225Ac] production capacity, it will stably supply core medical isotopes to domestic patients and comprehensively enhance the risk resistance of the nuclear medicine industry chain. Dongcheng Pharmaceutical will continue to work hand in hand with Eckert & Ziegler to lay a solid foundation for the innovative development of China’s precision diagnosis and treatment field.
Dr. Harald Hasselmann, CEO of Eckert & Ziegler AG, stated that the inauguration of the Jintan production base is an important milestone in Eckert & Ziegler’s development strategy in China and further consolidates the company’s industry position as a globally important radioisotope supplier. Achieving localized production of Germanium-68 [68Ge] will stably supply the core parent nuclide for Gallium-68 [68Ga] generators to Chinese medical institutions, supporting modern PET imaging diagnostics. This is also a reflection of Eckert & Ziegler’s decades-long efforts in building full industry chain comprehensive service capabilities.
Core Breakthrough: Actinium-225 [225Ac] Production Capacity to Benefit Over 100,000 Patients, Filling a Key Gap in the Industry Chain
The Qikangyuan project, inaugurated this time, relies on an internationally leading 30MeV medium-energy proton cyclotron and German production processes. Upon full completion, it will achieve large-scale supply of Germanium-68 [68Ge] and Actinium-225 [225Ac]. Among them, the annual production capacity of Actinium-225 [225Ac] is expected to meet the treatment needs of over 100,000 patients, providing diagnostic and therapeutic integrated nuclide products covering the entire chain from PET diagnosis to targeted alpha therapy.
The localization of the project will significantly reduce the production cost of nuclides, stabilize the price of nuclear drugs, effectively alleviate the burden on patients, and simultaneously resolve the risk of “supply interruption” of alpha diagnostic and therapeutic nuclides in China. It will drive the coordinated development of the entire industry chain, including upstream equipment manufacturing, midstream nuclear drug research and development, and downstream clinical applications. In the future, domestically produced alpha nuclides can also be supplied globally through cooperation with partners, achieving a leap from “import substitution” to “participating in global competition.”
Standing at a New Starting Point
After the ceremony, guests toured the modern factory building and highly praised the advanced design of Qikangyuan. After hundreds of days and nights of intense construction, a medical isotope factory with world-leading technology has risen in Jintan, Changzhou. With the power of nuclides, reshaping the supply landscape; with the strength of the full chain, empowering precision diagnosis and treatment. Qikangyuan, with the mission of “Building Dreams Together, Embarking on a New Journey for Health,” will continue to promote the localization process of medical isotopes and inject new momentum into the nuclear medicine field in China and globally.
