Abstract:
Radioactive materials have been found to be very effective when used in a variety of medical applications for diagnostic, therapeutic and research purposes. As a consequence of handling these materials, a wide range of radioactive waste is produced. The amount and types of these wastes varies depending on the scale of the medical application and the radionuclides involved. The waste that is generated during the different applications of radioisotopes in medicine or biological research is considered as biomedical radioactive waste.
Biomedical or medical radioactive waste in many cases will contain an infectious biological component from clinical, anatomical, ancillary or research sources. It may also include spent sealed sources and surplus unsealed sources. Anatomical waste arises from human and non-human sources and may include body parts, tissues, organs and fluids.
