Broadening the nuclear debate: from industry to medical applications
Panel discussion and Q&A
Tuesday, 18 March 2025

 

The discovery of radioactivity in the 1890s led to the emergence of both medical and industrial applications that transformed the world in the 20th century. The value that nuclear physics can offer society can be better understood by bridging these two sectors, which have traditionally been thought of as separate.
 
Our panel of industry experts will touch on a broad range of questions, including: 

• What is nuclear physics and how is it used in today’s world?

• How is nuclear medicine used today? What are some recent breakthroughs?

• How will nuclear physics transform the industrial and medical sector in the future? 

This will be a thought-provoking discussion for anyone interested in real-world applications of nuclear physics.
 
Background
One of the earliest medical applications of nuclear physics was the use of artificial radioisotopes for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes, such as iodine-131 for thyroid disorders, starting in the 1930s. Since then, technologies such as positron emission tomography (PET), external beam radiotherapy, and proton therapy, which uses high-energy protons produced by particle accelerators, have become central to medicine as we know it.
 
Similarly, nuclear power generation has played a key role since the first prototype of a nuclear power station was built in the 1940s. There are now around 450 nuclear power stations worldwide, supplying 10% of the global electricity output, and approximately 60 new stations are under construction. Investors, including large tech companies, are investing billions of dollars in small and micro-modular reactors to power the datacenters of the future.

 

	Dr. Manera, ETH Zurich Dr Manera is Professor of Nuclear Systems and Multiphase Flows at ETH. She is currently on a leave of absence from the University of Michigan, where she was co-director of the Experimental and Computational Multiphase Flow Laboratory (ECMF) and the High Resolution Imaging Lab.  She holds a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Delft University of Technology.
	Pierre Mandrillon, Founder and CEO of AIMA-Developpement (AD) AD designs innovative cyclotrons for medical and industrial applications, such as the  MiniCyc – a compact cyclotron for production of short-lived radionuclides, CyTHER, a high-power cyclotron, and new drivers for subcritical nuclear systems (ADS, Accelerator Driven Systems). In 2001 Pierre Mandrillon was awarded with Pr Charpak the European Grand Prix for Innovation.
	Dr. Antoine Leimgruber, CMO Swiss Theranostics, Director of Nuclear Medicine Development for the Swiss Medical Network Group A physicist and medical doctor by training, Dr. Leimgruber specializes in molecular cancer imaging and vectorized therapies, particularly for neuroendocrine tumors. He set up the Nuclear Medicine Department at the Riviera Chablais Hospital before joining Clinique de Genolier. He is also Director of Nuclear Medicine Development for the Swiss Medical Network Group
	Jeevan Virk, Radioligand Therapy (RLT) Therapeutic Area Strategy Head, Novartis Jeevan is part of the leadership team in RLT, an innovative approach that delivers radiation to specifically targeted cancer cells. His background is in biotech, working with Advanced Accelerator Applications, the first company to gain regulatory approval for an RLT with FDA and EMA, which was acquired by Novartis in 2018.

Programme 
17:30 Genolier Innovation Hub Guided Tour (45 minutes)
18:00 Door opening (for those not visiting the tour)
18:30 Panel discussion
19:30 Apéro & networking
21:00 Closing
 
Key Facts
When: Tuesday, 18 March 2025, 17:30 (Guided Tour) or 18:30 (panel discussion)
Where: Genolier Innovation Hub, Route du Muids 3, 1272 Genolier
Tickets: CHF 70 NAA Members (paid-up) and CHF 95 Alumni non-members and guests
Virtual tickets: CHF 10 NAA Members (paid-up) and CHF 15 Alumni non-members and guests
 
Registration: https://infomaniak.events/en-ch/conferences/broadening-the-nuclear-debate-from-industry-to-medical-applications/574198a1-37d4-43c9-8b81-474402b5b944/event/1371681
 
INSEAD Alumni Association Switzerland
Event organizers:
Marco Montefiori, MBA’05J
Aleks Ruzicic, MBA’97J
events@insead.ch