Institute for Advanced Medical Isotopes (IAMI)

“With the new IAMI facility and BC Cancer’s partnership with TRIUMF we will have the most innovative infrastructure and minds working to develop advanced, highly targeted cancer therapeutics. Thanks to the vision and investments from the governments of Canada and British Columbia and a generous anonymous donation to the BC Cancer Foundation, IAMI will bring hope and improve outcomes for people facing cancer across our nation.”

— Dr. Francois Bénard, Vice President, Research, BC Cancer

Institute for Advanced Medical Isotopes (IAMI)

The Institute for Advanced Medical Isotopes (IAMI) is a state-of-the-art facility for research into next-generation, life-saving medical isotopes and radiopharmaceuticals. Located on TRIUMF’s campus, it will comprise an integrated series of labs and a TR-24 medical cyclotron, one of the most technologically advanced commercial cyclotrons in the world. IAMI will significantly increase British Columbia’s and Canada’s capacity for the sustainable and reliable production and distribution of medical isotopes currently critical for Canadian health research and clinical use, including Technetium-99m and Fluorine-18.


The new institute will also enhance radioisotope and radiopharmaceutical research by bringing together TRIUMF faculty and students with partners from academia, not-for-profits, government, and industry. Similarly, it will synergize the Vancouver region’s diverse nuclear medicine sector, acting as a research hub and centrally managing the production of radioisotopes and radiotracers for commerce and clinical research. It will give TRIUMF, the University of British Columbia (UBC), BC Cancer, and others, efficient access to leading-edge expertise, infrastructure, and oversight of accelerator-based isotope research and applications.

 Building on TRIUMF’s 30-years of experience in nuclear medicine and life sciences research, the Institute for Advanced Medical Isotopes (IAMI) will be a major part of TRIUMF’s Life Sciences program for research into next-generation medical isotopes and radiopharmaceuticals.

TRIUMF expects the building to be completed in the summer of 2022, after which commissioning activities will take place. Operations are expected to start in 2023 and will allow exciting new research in Life Sciences.

Crane-in of the TR-24 Cyclotron at IAMI