(212)Pb@C(60) and its water-soluble derivatives: synthesis, stability, and suitability for radioimmunotherapy.

Fullerenes could potentially play a valuable role in radioimmunotherapy by more stably encapsulating radionuclides, especially where conventional chelation chemistry is inadequate due to the physical and/or chemical properties of the radionuclide. One of the therapeutically useful radionuclides that requires improved containment in vivo is 212Pb (tau1/2 = 10.6 h), the beta-emitting parent to alpha-emitting 212Bi (tau1/2 = 60.