Following the loss of potential funding through the National Growth Fund, the involved partners from the DECISIVE consortium are actively seeking alternative opportunities to address the previously identified challenges in the nuclear medicine chain through national collaborations. In this context, two major grant applications have been submitted in recent months and several substantive themes are being further concretised for future submission.

National Lifelong Development Programme
The first application, which has now been awarded, concerns an LLO Catalyst Grant of €125,000 for the development of the ‘Nuclear Medicine Education Programme’. This initiative, led by TU Delft and Radboudumc, focuses on conducting a gap analysis and setting up a national Lifelong Development (LLO) programme for professionals within nuclear medicine. By bringing together technological, physical, biological and clinical knowledge and seeking cooperation with academic institutions, social partners and industry, it will work towards a sustainable and future-proof training offer. The field is cordially invited to think along and actively contribute to the design of this programme.

NWO Perspective project
In addition, the full application was recently submitted for the NWO Perspective project DIAL (application amount: €8 million), with a decision expected in November. DIAL, a collaboration between Radboudumc, Erasmus MC, LUMC, UMCG and TU Delft, among others, focuses on increasing dosimetric knowledge around radionuclide therapy. Through research into advanced dosimetry, the use of artificial intelligence, standardisation of measurement and imaging methods and fundamental research into dose-effect relationships, the project aims to understand and improve the effectiveness and societal impact of radionuclide therapy.

In addition to these applications, several concepts are currently being further developed, including the establishment of a Radiopharmaceutical Incubator and an initiative for harmonised and standardised research on FAPI tracers.

All these initiatives build on the objectives of the original DECISIVE proposal and underline the importance of national cooperation to maintain and strengthen the Netherlands’ leading position in nuclear medicine.

Anyone from the field who wants to contribute ideas on any of the above initiatives, or has an idea of their own and is looking for collaboration partners, is welcome to join the regular DECISIVE meetings. To do so, please contact Meike van Wijk, project manager (meike.vanwijk@radboudumc.nl).