Indianapolis expansion to produce isotopes to treat cancer
EAST HANOVER, N.J. (WISH) — Pharmaceutical company Novartis on Wednesday announced it’s starting construction of new facilities for its targeted nuclear medicine that doctors use to treat cancer.
The Indianapolis site expansion will allow production of isotopes critical for radioligand therapies. RLTs use radioactive substances to target cancer cells, limiting the effects on healthy cells.
The expansion, expected to cost more than $150 million, is next to the Novartis facility that opened earlier in 2024 at 8520 Challenger Drive. That’s just across I-70 from Indianapolis International Airport. More than 50 jobs will be created.
Following regulatory approvals, isotopes produced in Indianapolis will be used to manufacture Pluvicto for treatment of prostate cancer, and Lutathera for treatment of advanced tumors in the pancreas and gastrointestinal tract.
Isotopes created in Indianapolis also would be used in treatments Novartis has under development.
Novartis said in its announcement, “Novartis is exploring a diverse portfolio of new isotopes, ligands and combination therapies to expand the use of RLTs in additional cancer types beyond prostate and neuroendocrine tumors.”
A Novartis representative told News 8 by email, “This new facility would be the first Novartis-owned in-house isotope production source in the U.S., adding redundancy to robust and expansive network of manufacturing facilities and suppliers.”
The other expansion announced Wednesday will be in California.
Novartis is based in Basel, Switzerland. Its U.S. headquarters are in East Hanover, New Jersey.