The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology's (MEXT) "Training Plan for Cancer Professionals to Meet Diverse New Needs" is implemented with the aim of further advancing cancer care in Japan. This is achieved by establishing "cancer care personnel training centers" through inter-university collaboration, where educational programs leveraging the unique strengths of each university are developed to train outstanding cancer professionals capable of responding to the new needs in cancer care. Following a fair review by the Committee for the Promotion of Cancer Professional Training, which consists of experts and specialists, eleven projects were selected, including the "Future Cancer Care Professional Training Plan."
Overview of the "Future Cancer Care Professional Training Plan"
The "Future Cancer Care Professional Training Plan," a collaborative project involving eight universities and twelve graduate schools led by Tokyo Medical and Dental University, has been selected for the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology's (MEXT) "Training Plan for Cancer Professionals to Meet Diverse New Needs." Advances in medicine and pharmaceutical sciences, including genomic medicine, have been remarkable, and their clinical applications are accelerating. This plan aims to train pharmacists and pharmaceutical researchers who can keep pace with such highly specialized, cutting-edge medical care.
Key Features of This Plan
Collaboration among numerous graduate schools
Collaboration between the Tokyo metropolitan area and the northern Tohoku region
A balance of three national and five private universities
All School of Medicine have medical oncology departments.
Provision of practical training sites for three themes
About the Initiatives of Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences
Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences has established the following two courses to enhance its programs.
1. Training Course for Pharmaceutical Cancer Researchers (Doctoral Programs)
This course trains pharmacists and pharmaceutical researchers who can keep pace with the progress of increasingly specialized cancer treatment and provide the best medical care to cancer patients. It also fosters specialized cancer pharmacists with a strong research mindset who can participate in bioinformatics, as exemplified by genomic medicine, and apply the results back to clinical practice, as well as cancer researchers with a strong clinical mindset who can solve questions arising from clinical practice through research.
Key Features of This Course
Medical ethics education through introductory lectures on clinical research in the first year
Take a course incorporating bioinformatics, as exemplified by genomic medicine.
Take courses featuring lectures and interactive case conferences on topics such as cancer care and palliative care tailored to different life stages.
Conduct clinical training in oncology at domestic cancer specialty hospitals and overseas clinical training in oncology at affiliated hospitals of Faculty of Pharmacy overseas partner institutions.
2. Pharmaceutical Cancer Researcher Training Program (Intensive Course)
We train pharmacists who can understand advances in highly specialized cancer care, such as genomic medicine, and provide the latest medical care to cancer patients.
Course Highlights
Hold case discussions and presentations by inviting physicians and pharmacists involved in cancer care, using actual clinical cases to discuss the delivery of the latest cancer treatments and medical services tailored to patient backgrounds.
Understand the needs of cancer care from the patient's perspective by inviting cancer patients.
The two items above are held as the "Cancer Professional Training Seminar," and by attending, participants who wish to do so can earn credits toward certifications such as board certified oncology pharmacist or other certified pharmacist credentials.