West Valley City is home to the latest company in Utah’s burgeoning life-sciences and medical technology industry. 

In August, physics company Nusano cut the ribbon to mark the opening of a 190,000-square- foot radioisotope production facility at 4129 W. Lake Park Blvd. 

Radioisotopes are largely used for cancer treatment by delivering radiation to cancer cells to help kill them. Radioisotopes are also traceable allowing doctors to follow their path and determine how effective they are in attaching to cancer cells. The elements can also be used in medical diagnoses like tracking tumors. 

The new production site will be capable of producing more than 40 different radioisotopes overall and 12 types simultaneously. 

“From our world-class production facility in Utah, we will make radioisotopes in quantities and varieties unsurpassed by older methods,” said Nusano CEO Chris Lowe. “This will help address supply-chain bottlenecks, support domestic manufacturing, and deliver life-changing radioisotope supplies needed for cancer care.”

“We can meet the existing needs of drugmakers and at the same time enable tomorrow’s clinical breakthroughs with isotopes that would be unavailable or hard to access without Nusano’s production,” Lowe said.

A simpler definition of a radioisotope from the National Cancer Institute is “an unstable form of a chemical element that releases radiation as it breaks down and becomes more stable. Radioisotopes may occur in nature or be made in a laboratory.” The name is a combination of radioactive and isotopes. 

Landing such a company in Utah, not to mention West Valley City, on a long-term basis is another sign of the state’s push to further grow an already-flourishing life sciences industry, according to Gov. Spencer Cox, who participated in the ribbon-cutting. “We’re incredibly proud to have another true pioneer in our innovation economy.”

The Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah puts the economic output of the life sciences sector, including the type of work done by Nusano, at $5.8 billion just in Salt Lake County, or 5.1% of the county’s total gross domestic product in 2023. The industry added jobs at an average annual rate of 4.5% from 2018 to 2023. 

Nusano currently employs more than 170 people, the majority in Utah. It hopes to reach 300 employees in the next two years.

While radioisotopes for medical diagnoses and treatment purposes will be a key focus of its operations, Nusano will develop radioisotopes for several other applications including advanced aerospace and defense technologies. One specific use is the development of long-life batteries powered by radioisotopes, known as nuclear batteries. “Nuclear batteries are always-on systems built to provide power in places where it would be inconvenient or impossible to routinely swap our traditional batteries, such as remote ocean sensors or space satellites,” said Glenn Rosenthal co-founder and chief technology officer of Nusano.

Besides production activities, West Valley City’s Lake Park business-industrial corridor will also be home to Nusano’s headquarters at an adjacent building. The company has been based in Valencia, California. 

Nusano is a “privately held physics company working to stabilize supply chains, advance American national security by reducing dependency” on foreign-based firms and “enable once-in-a-generation innovations in fields ranging from health care to nuclear energy,” according to a company statement.