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Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2026
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Reimagining nuclear materials for the future of medicine
Nuclear medicine has come a long way since Henri Becquerel first observed the penetrating energy of radioactive materials in 1896. Today, technetium-99m alone is used in more than 40 million diagnostic procedures every year—from cardiovascular imaging and bone scans to cancer detection—making it the undisputed workhorse of nuclear medicine. That single statistic tells you something important: An enormous portion of modern diagnostic medicine rests on a surprisingly narrow foundation, one built around a small number of aging research reactors that were never originally designed for continuous isotope production.
Advanced Reactor Safety (ARS) SPeaker
Ana has been working in nuclear safety for 39 years. From 1995 to 2000, she worked at the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) where she was responsible for activities on probabilistic safety assessment, safety performance indicators and safety related maintenance for nuclear power plants.
Ana joined the UK Office for Nuclear Regulation in 2000 where she was Head of Advanced Nuclear Technologies (2016 – 2020) and Head of HPR1000 Regulation (2016 – 2022). She led the Generic Design Assessment (GDA) of the UK HPR1000 reactor, a large project that concluded in January 2022 with the issuing of a Design Acceptance Confirmation for the UK HPR1000.
In May 2022 Ana joined IAEA as Head of the Safety Assessment Section (SAS). SAS is one of the five sections within the Division of Nuclear Installation Safety (NSNI) in the IAEA Department of Nuclear Safety and Security. As Head of SAS Ana leads a team of 20 staff to deliver the needs of the IAEA Member States in the areas of ‘design safety’ and ‘safety assessment methods and tools’ covering existing, evolutionary and innovative reactors, including small modular reactors, non-water-cooled reactors, transportable nuclear power plants, and fusion facilities.
Last modified March 20, 2024, 10:18am PDT
