Excretion of gallium 67 in human breast milk and its inadvertent ingestion by a 9-month-old child.
The concentration of radioactivity excreted in breast milk following the administration of gallium 67 to 3 patients was measured in milk samples obtained for several days after injection. Similar values were obtained from all 3 patients, with milk samples obtained approximately 120 h after administration containing 4.3-5.7 Bq/ml per MBq of 67Ga administered. These values are lower than those previously reported. The image of a child who had inadvertently been breast-fed for 48 h after administration of 67Ga to the mother showed activity in the intestines only. Our results seem to confirm recommendations by other authors that gallium scintigraphy should be avoided in nursing mothers. Should the administration of 67Ga be inevitable, breastfeeding should be discontinued, since interruption periods of approximately 2 weeks may be required to reduce the effective dose equivalent to the infant below 1 mSv. However, close contact between mother and child need not be avoided.