By Tom Wilemon
A group of Ukrainian oncologists recently visited Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) where they toured research labs, observed tumor board meetings, met with several Vanderbilt oncologists, and attended the 23rd Annual Retreat for Cancer Biology.
Their visit occurred Nov. 4-10, about a week before another delegation from Ukraine — organ transplant physicians — also toured Vanderbilt University Medical Center. The visit marked the first time a group of Ukrainian oncologists had come to VUMC to learn about cancer research and care, while the transplant team visited last year.
The oncologists learned about cancer survivorship, precision oncology and biomedical engineering commercialization. They observed tumor board meetings focused on head and neck cancer, amyloidosis, thoracic cancers, genitourinary cancers, sarcomas, blood cancers and melanoma. They began their tour by attending a stomach cancer symposium. During the following days, they learned about research into extracellular vesicles, early-onset cancers and breast cancer. They also met with specialists on hereditary cancer and graft vs. host disease among other VICC cancer experts. In total, they met with more than two dozen VICC physicians and scientists.
“We have great respect for the work that our cancer care colleagues do in Ukraine during a time of war, and we were honored to host this group,” said Ben Ho Park, MD, PhD, the Benjamin F. Byrd Jr. Professor of Oncology, professor of Medicine and director of Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center.
