Interventional Radiology in the Era of Radiotheranostics: An Update for Interventional Radiologists!

In 2018, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved lutetium-177 (¹⁷⁷Lu) DOTATATE (LUTATHERA, Advanced Accelerator Applications [Novartis]) for the treatment of somatostatin receptor positive gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs). Since then, ¹⁷⁷Lu DOTATATE has been increasingly used as a treatment option for NETs. Less than 5 years later, in March 2022, ¹⁷⁷Lu vipivotide tetraxetan (PLUVICTO, Advanced Accelerator Applications) received FDA approval for the treatment of prostatespecific membrane antigen-positive castration-resistant metastatic prostate cancer. Both drugs are excellent examples of viable radiotheranostic therapies. As more radiotheranostic agents and applications get adopted in clinical practice, interventional radiologists are likely to get exposed to this field in a way or another. In this article, we discuss the fundamentals of radiotheranostic therapy and explore the expanding role interventional radiology (IR) is expected to play as an essential partner in modern oncology practice.