The 70th Autumn Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Pathology

The 70th Autum Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Pathology

Kenichi Ohashi
President, The 70th Autumn Annual Meeting
of the Japanese Society of Pathology
Department of Human Pathology, Institute of Science Tokyo

The 70 Annual General Meeting of the Japanese Society of Pathology will be held on November 7 and 8, 2024 at the Japan Education Center and Kizan Club in Tokyo. The vice-chairperson is Professor Fumihiko Ishikawa of the Department of Comprehensive Pathology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences. This is the first Autumn Annual Meeting held in Tokyo in a long time since 2017, when the 63th Meeting was held by Professor Zenya Naito of Nippon Medical School.

The theme of this meeting was "Future Prospects of Pathology." In recent years, progress in pathology has been remarkable. In many tumors including brain tumors and soft tissue tumors, pathological diagnosis and classification based on molecular biological information, is widely spreading, and digital diagnosis using virtual slides and AI technology are advancing. On the other hand, research that incorporates advances in molecular biology is required, and in order for research papers to be accepted in high quality journals, it is necessary to introduce a higher level of data and new technologies than ever before. New technologies suitable for pathological research, such as single-cell analysis and spatial transcriptome analysis, are also being used in recent years. Under such circumstances, it is difficult to keep up with advances in both pathological diagnosis and research, and some young pathologists may not be able to envision a bright future because they fear that if they are careless, they will be left behind, or that future pathological diagnosis will be replaced by digital technologies such as AI. In order to dispel such apprehensions, we would like to create a project in which young pathologists and researchers can have a bright future view of the progress of pathological diagnosis and research.

As for the program, it has been conventionally focused on eight Academic Research Award Lectures (Lectures A), two Case Research Award Lectures (Lectures B), and two Special Lectures of Pathological Diagnosis, each of which was selected by the Academic Committee. Usually, there are not many opportunities to listen to lectures outside of one's field of expertise, and the Autumn Annual Meeting provides a valuable opportunity to study the latest information and research results in fields outside one's field of expertise. I also hope that the recipients of the Award will greatly stimulate young doctors and researchers and serve as good role models. Other programs include two symposia, a special lecture, a poster session, an international poster session and a morning session. The titles of the symposium are "Future prospects for pathology research: Frontiers of New science & technology" and "The Cutting-Edge and Future Perspectives in Gastrointestinal Pathology ". I would like to have many up-and-coming pathologists and researchers on the stage. Just before the meeting, Tokyo Medical and Dental University will merge with Tokyo Institute of Technology to create a new “Institute of Science Tokyo”. In the special lecture, we hope that the promotion of collaboration between medicine and engineering will further develop future medical research, and we asked each of the professors who have promoted collaborative research between Tokyo Medical and Dental University and Tokyo Institute of Technology to give lectures. I hope that the fusion of the two universities and the collaboration between the two fields will lead to further development of pathology research.

This meeting is mainly held in a face-to-face format, but I would also like to distribute lectures on demand by internet after the meeting. We hope that many doctors, including those who could not attend due to medical work, will be able to use this service. It has been a while since we last held Autumn Annual Meeting in Tokyo, but we hope that the participants will greatly facilitate their academic communications and enjoy the autumn days in Tokyo. We are looking forward to your participation.