Energy Fuels strikes strategic alliance for the recovery of isotopes needed for emerging cancer therapeutics

Energy Fuels Inc. has announced the execution of a strategic alliance agreement to evaluate the recovery of thorium and potentially radium, from the company's existing rare earth carbonate (RE Carbonate) and uranium process streams, for use in the production of medical isotopes for targeted alpha therapy (TAT) cancer therapeutics.   Energy Fuels said the initiative will complement its existing uranium and RE Carbonate businesses, as it will investigate the recovery of isotopes in existing process streams at its White Mesa Mill in Utah for medical purposes.  The agreement is with RadTran LLC, a Denver-based technology development company focused on closing critical gaps in the procurement of medical isotopes for such applications. READ: Energy Fuels to unlock value of assets through sale and strategic alliance with International Consolidated Uranium Uranium and thorium are long-lived, naturally occurring radioactive elements that decay into a series of different elements through the successive loss of alpha or beta particles. These alpha-emitting isotopes are currently being studied by major pharmaceutical companies developing therapies to treat cancer on a cellular level while minimizing damage to surrounding healthy tissue. However, existing domestic and global supplies of these isotopes are in short supply, and existing methods of production are costly and currently unable to scale-up to meet widespread demand as new drugs are developed and approved in the US, Europe, and globally.  Energy Fuels said its mill can represent a possible solution to this medical supply chain issue. The mill is the only licensed and operating conventional uranium mill in the US, and it recently began production of RE Carbonate from natural monazite sands. Monazite sands, natural uranium ores and certain other feed sources for the mill contain thorium-232 (Th-232) and radium-226 (Ra-226), which would normally be disposed of permanently in the mill's tailings impoundments following processing for uranium and RE Carbonate recovery.  As an initial step in this medical isotope initiative, Energy Fuels said it and RadTran will evaluate the technical and economic feasibility of recovering Th-232, and potentially Ra-226, from the mill's natural monazite and other existing feeds. These isotopes are a necessary precursor to the specific medical isotopes needed by pharmaceutical companies for their emerging TAT cancer therapeutics, making the initiative the potential beginning of an important new domestic medical supply chain. If this initial step is feasible, Energy Fuels said both companies will then evaluate the feasibility of recovering radium-228 (Ra-228) from the Th-232 and thorium-228 (Th-228) from the Ra-228 at the mill using RadTran technologies. The alliance's potential If successful, Energy Fuels said the alliance has the potential to generate significant future cashflow for the company in the medical isotope industry. In addition, Energy Fuels can support cancer research and the creation of a new, US-based medical supply chain that adheres to the highest global standards for human rights, sustainability, safety and environmental protection.  Energy Fuels also said the initiative is highly complementary to its existing businesses, as the uranium and rare earth feeds it currently processes, contain the required thorium and radium. Energy Fuels is seeking to put these isotopes to beneficial human use, rather than losing them to permanent disposal. "At its heart, the Energy Fuels' Alliance with RadTran is about maximizing the value and human benefit of our existing uranium and rare earth feeds at the White Mesa Mill," said Energy Fuels CEO Mark Chalmers in a statement. "We believe Energy Fuels has the potential to create a domestic supply of thorium and possibly radium that can be harvested using RadTran's technologies for use in the production of the next generation of cancer therapies, a potentially multi-billion dollar industry. And we would be accomplishing this in a way that is environmentally beneficial and highly congruent with Energy Fuels' recycling and sustainability goals." Contact the author: patrick@proactiveinvestors.com Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham