We are pleased to announce that the 47th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy will be held in Osaka from February 27 to March 1, 2025, immediately before the Osaka Expo. The theme is “Wishing for Everyone's Smiles.”
Basic research has elucidated complex pathologies, thus leading to advancements in treatments such as mini-transplantation, haploidentical transplantation using PTCY, CAR-T therapy, bispecific antibodies, and molecular-targeted therapies. Supportive therapies for various complications such as preparatory regimen toxicity, infections, GVHD, sinusoidal obstruction syndrome, and enhancement of systems such as donor burden reduction and the establishment of bone marrow and cord blood banks have also progressed rapidly. Consequently, hematopoietic cell transplantation and immune cell therapy have made significant strides, thereby allowing more patients to receive treatment with improved outcomes.
Additionally, the development of treatments for life-threatening and debilitating complications, such as GVHD, supported by the introduction of molecular targeted drugs and other therapies, has expanded the available treatment options. Our society and Network of Core Hospitals for Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation have also contributed to system improvements in areas such as fertility preservation, long-term follow-up (LTFU), transition care, appearance care, and employment support through personnel development, coordination assistance, and regional collaboration projects.
In recent years, to further improve the treatment outcomes of blood disorders, efforts to collect genomic and electronic medical record data and support clinical practice in a safe and integrated manner using the latest technologies, such as artificial intelligence, are now being conducted as part of digital transformation initiatives. While there are still many challenges that remain to be solved, such as treatment for non-remission phases and relapses, we are moving from an era where our main goal was to try and cure incurable diseases to one in which we strive to enable patients to lead normal, everyday lives.
The progress we aim for in medical care has been made possible through the collaboration of diverse healthcare teams, including physicians, dentists, nurses, HCTCs, physical therapists, clinical engineers, laboratory technicians, dietitians, social workers, and organizations such as the Japan Marrow Donor Program, Cord Blood Bank, the Japanese Red Cross Society, the Japanese Data Center for Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the industry sector, and many others, who have each contributed their expertise.
We hope that the young attendees of this meeting will carry the baton forward, and that together, we will establish an excellent hematopoietic cell transplantation and immune cell therapy system where patients, donors, families, and all healthcare professionals involved can smile. We encourage everyone to engage with the latest knowledge and enjoy discussions during the conference.
After the meeting, we hope that you will be able to taste some delicious foods and enjoy all that Osaka has to offer.
We look forward to welcoming you all to Osaka.