Topic: Access to Medical Isotopes
Country: Ethiopia
Delegate Name: Carter Wade
School: Roeper School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All Ethiopia position papers GLIMUN 2014 committees
Fellow delegates, honorable chair, the pending issue of access to radioisotopes used in medicine has fostered the uncovering and treatment of several ailments such as cancer, which can be found by consumption of radioisotopes that then collect in tumors and can then be pinpointed using a detector. The tumor can then be removed by ionizing bombardment destroying the structure. Another use is in the treatment of …This has become a significant problem on international scales.
Public opinion of the medical use of radiation is skewed by a variety of misconceptions, particularly the erroneous notion that exposure to radiation would make one radioactive. This mistaken concept establishes that even if widespread availability to medical isotopes was not a problem, public resistance continues to provide an additional barrier. The obvious solution is education to inform people that controlled radiation poses no danger to their health.
Alas, access to medical isotopes is the more pressing matter. An increase of production and exports by nations which have mastered this technology would increase availability. Lowering prices would encourage imports. Furthermore, reducing taxes on shipping increases profitability of exports and would permit lower prices without sacrificing profit. Therefore, incentives to lower shipping taxes and provide education on false rumors should be encouraged for all countries.
For the past year, Ethiopia has been exploring the possibility of constructing its first nuclear plant for power generation. One of the side benefits would be the potential for domestic development of medical isotopes. However currently Ethiopia is like the vast majority of developing nations: without nuclear power and so without the capacity to develop medical isotopes within its borders. Ethiopia is eager to work with all other nations to develop a plan to make the production and development of medical isotopes available to the medical systems of all nations at a far lower cost than currently exists. Only through international cooperation and access to the nuclear reactors of other nations will such a goal be possible to achieve.
