A radio-pharmaceutical transport system includes a pig and a disposable plastic insert. Together, the pig and the disposable plastic insert provide a mechanism for transporting a syringe containing a dose of a radio-pharmaceutical composition. The pig includes a tungsten cylinder that defines an elongated cavity therein that is substantially coaxial with the tungsten cylinder. The cavity is of sufficient size to receive therein a syringe. The tungsten cylinder has a thickness sufficient to shield users from a PET radio-pharmaceutical without requiring additional shielding. The disposable plastic insert is disposed within the cavity and includes an elongated plastic envelope.