Tampa Bay health care and research leaders are making a push to position the region as a center for one of the fastest-growing areas in cancer treatment, betting that demand for specialized manufacturing, workforce training and precision medicine could generate thousands of jobs and reshape part of the region’s life sciences economy.
A coalition led by Speros and Moffitt Cancer Center launched Wednesday with plans to build a regional ecosystem around radiopharmaceutical therapies, a category of cancer drugs that combines radioactive isotopes with targeted treatments designed to locate and attack tumors at the cellular level.
The initiative, called the Florida Oncology and Radiopharmaceutical Growth Engine, or FORGE, includes Embarc Collective, the University of South Florida and Pasco-Hernando State College. Organizers project the effort could create roughly 4,000 jobs and generate $2.6 billion in economic impact across Florida over the next decade.
Drugmakers and health systems have expanded investment in radiopharmaceutical therapies in recent years as the treatments gain traction inside oncology and precision medicine. Unlike traditional radiation treatment, which can affect healthy tissue surrounding a tumor, radiopharmaceutical therapies are designed to deliver radiation directly to cancer cells.
The treatments also create unusual manufacturing and supply-chain demands because the radioactive isotopes begin decaying almost immediately after production. Companies must manufacture and distribute the therapies close to hospitals and patients, pushing regions with research hospitals, specialized workforce pipelines and available development sites to compete for production facilities and research operations.
That dynamic has created an opening Tampa Bay leaders believe the region can capture through Moffitt’s research infrastructure, USF Health’s academic programs and the long-term development plans surrounding Speros, the 775-acre Pasco County life sciences campus anchored by Moffitt Cancer Center.
“FORGE represents a transformational opportunity to position the Tampa Bay region at the forefront of one of the most promising advances in cancer care,” Josh Carpenter, president of Speros and chief integration officer for Moffitt Cancer Center, said in a statement. “By bringing together these regional partners, we are building the talent, infrastructure and innovation ecosystem needed to accelerate next-generation radiopharmaceutical therapies.”
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The coalition plans to develop a radiopharmaceutical-focused incubator, an integrated theranostics center and workforce training programs tied to imaging technology and nuclear pharmacy operations. Pasco-Hernando State College plans to support imaging technologist training while USF would help expand nuclear pharmacy education opportunities.
The effort also reflects broader competition among states and metropolitan regions trying to attract more biotechnology, pharmaceutical manufacturing and advanced medical research investment. Tampa Bay has steadily expanded its health care and life sciences footprint through institutions including Moffitt, Tampa General Hospital and USF Health while private-sector biotechnology and pharmaceutical activity has increased across the region.
Radiopharmaceutical manufacturing remains highly specialized and heavily regulated, requiring advanced facilities, trained workers and close coordination between researchers, hospitals and production operations. Organizers said those requirements make integrated regional systems increasingly important as health care providers expand adoption of targeted cancer therapies.
Building more domestic production capacity has also become a growing priority across the health care industry after supply-chain disruptions exposed dependence on overseas pharmaceutical manufacturing and isotope production.
“Florida has an opportunity to become the national model for how economic growth, innovation and quality of life rise together by intentionally building the talent, research and industry ecosystems required for the future,” Mike Simas, president and chief executive officer of the Florida Council of 100, said in a statement.
The coalition said future expansion plans will depend on securing additional funding, industry partnerships and long-term infrastructure investment across the Tampa Bay region.
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