OTTAWA - The Netherlands is bracing for the worst if the world is without its two top sources of medical isotopes next year, a scenario that became more likely last week after Canada's nuclear agency said it will take longer than planned to repair a leaky reactor at Chalk River, Ont.
An aging Dutch nuclear reactor in community of Petten is scheduled for lengthy maintenance work next spring, which is the earliest its downed Canadian counterpart is expected back up and running.
The two reactors built a half-century ago supply the bulk of the isotopes used to diagnose cancer and heart ailments.
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