2001 Minutes Of Twenty-Second NCI-JSPS Joint Steering Committee Meeting Of The U.S.-Japan Cooperative Cancer Research Program

Minutes Of Twenty-Second NCI-JSPS Joint Steering Committee Meeting Of The U.S.-Japan Cooperative Cancer Research Program
February 25, 2002 Natcher Building, NIH, Bethesda, MD

The 22^nd NCI-JSPS Joint Steering Committee Meeting of the U.S. Japan Cooperative Cancer Research Program was called to order at 12 Noon on February 25, 2002 at the Natcher Building on the NIH campus in Bethesda, MD by the moderators of the meeting Dr. Masaaki Terada and Dr. Joe B. Harford.
Dr. Joe B. Harford, Associate Director for Special Projects at NCI delivered opening remarks in which he welcomed the Japanese delegation to NHI. Dr. Harford also expressed how pleased he was at the quality of the program for the Large Symposium on Tobacco and Tobacco-Related Cancers that was underway. He also praised the overall achievements of the Program that represents the NCI’s most enduring international partnership. The JSPS thanked the NCI for hosting the meeting, for the lunch provided, and also expressed thanks to the coordinators of the Program on both sides namely Drs. Terada and Thorgeirsson in the field of Basic Science, Drs. Tsuruo and Christian in the field of Clinical Science, and Drs. Kitagawa and Hiatt in the field of Epidemiology/Behavioral Science.
Highlights of the ensuing Steering Committee discussions included the following:
Format and Number of Activities Sponsored Under the Program:
The Large Symposium on Tobacco-Related Cancers was being held February 25-26, 2002 and was underway at the time of the Steering Committee Meeting. Dr. Harford reported that 137 persons had pre-registered as participants at the meeting (including the invited speakers).
For JFY2001 , three seminars were held in addition to the Large Symposium now underway. These were:
Basic:
RecentAdvances in Speclfic Immunotherapy of Cancer; Organizers: Drs. Schwartzentruber and Itoh; held in Maui, HI March 21 -22, 2001
Clinical:
Development of Tailor-Made Cancer Therapy; Organizers: Drs. Marincola and Tohge; held in Maui, HI February 17-18, 2001
Epidemiology/Behavorial:
Molecular Epidemiology of Nicotine Addiction and Lung Cancer; Organizers: Drs. Shieds and Kitagawa; held in Maui, HI March 8-9, 2001
The coordinators of the three program areas commented that feedback from participants in the Seminar program continued to be quite positive. The Japanese side expressed a preference for the Seminar format over the Large Symposium and indicated that they would prefer not to hold a Large Symposium in Japan in the following year based on the experience of the first of the Large Symposia held in Tokyo during JFY2000 and their conviction that the small Seminars were more conducive to interaction that might lead to additional collaborations. The U.S. side reiterated the desire on the part of the U.S. coordinators to have the additional visibility for and inclusiveness in the Program that is afforded by the Large Symposium in Bethesda where more than 140 scientists from Japan are working in NCI laboratories. The U.S. also asked that both sides consider how we might obtain a less subjective evaluation of the benefits of various aspects of the Program.
Eleven applications were received for the JFY2002 round of seminars. Based on reviews coordinated by two sides, it was reported that three ÇèÇÜ these had been approved for JFY2002. In light of position expressed by the Japanese coordinators, the U.S. proposed that the Large Symposium scheduled for Japan in this JFY be canceled in favor of adding three additional seminars to the schedule from among applications already received. The subsequent Large Seminar would be held as planned in Bethesda in the spring of CY2004 and in that JFY the number of Seminars would revert to three. This proposal was accepted with thanks from the Japanese coordinators.
It was noted that 2004 would mark the 30th anniversary of the Program and that something to mark this occasion should be planned in conjunction with the Large Symposium in Bethesda. It was agreed that the three new additions to the Seminar list would be done irrespective of area based on picking the highest quality available from among previously unselected applications. It was further agreed that this selection would be done by each side independently and the two lists reconciled has had been done with the already selected Seminars. Dr. Harford recused himself from this process as he had in the initial review of this round of Seminars.
At a previous meeting of the Steering Committee, there had been discussion of a disproportionate number of Seminars being held on U.S. soil with the U.S. responsible for logistical expenses of these meetings. At that meeting the U.S. had suggested that some cost-sharing be considered for meetings held in Hawaii and JSPS agreed to consider this proposal in light of technical issues related to paying meeting expenses outside Japan. The U.S. in the current meeting withdrew this proposal and agreed that NCI would continue to pay for those meetings held on U.S. soil. The JSPS thanked the NCI for their willingness to bear these costs, Both sides agreed to encourage organizers to hold some of the Seminars outside Hawaii either in Japan or on the U.S. mainland.
Plans for the Next Meeting of the Steering Committee
At a previous meeting of the Steering Committee, it had been agreed to hold Steering Committee meetings in conjunction with the alternating Large Symposia to conserve resources and to minimize travel required of the coordinators. In light of the fact that the Steering Committee had determined not to hold the next Large Symposium in Japan, the U.S. offered to host the next meeting in conjunction with the AACR meeting in Toronto in early April 2003, This proposal was taken under consideration by the Japanese with the decision of where and when to hold the next Steering Committee meeting deferred. It was agreed that at the next Steering Committee meeting plans for the Large Symposium and anniversary celebration would be discussed. The positions of the two sides regarding renewal of the Program upon expiration of the Sixth Five-Year Plan in March 2004 would also be discussed along with a mechanism for modification of the Guidelines for the Seventh Five-Year Plan if needed.
The meeting was adjourned at 1 :25 PM.
Notes Added After the Meeting:
Based on review by both sides (before and after the Steering Committee meeting) the following six Seminars were approved for JFY2002:
Basic:
Role of Telomeres in Cancer; Organizers: Drs. Shay and Kyo
Tumor-associated Musins and Related Glycoproteins in Metastasis, Tumor-Specific Immunity and Immunotherapy; Organizers: Drs. Finn and Irimura
Tumor-specific Delivery: Approaching a Realty; Organizers: Drs. Chang and Muruyama
Clinical:
Hematopoiesis, Hemopoietic Malignancies and Novel Therapeutic Approaches; Organizers: Drs. Pandolfi and Hirai
Screening Detected Lung Cancer: Diagnostic, Pathologic and Therapeutic Issues and Approaches to Innovative Research; Organizers: Drs. Saxman and Yoshida
Epidemiology/Behavorial:
Immigration and Cancer; Organizers: Drs. Kolonel and Shimizu
It was agreed by both sides that the next Steering Committee meeting would be hosted by the NCI in conjunction with the AACR meeting in Toronto. The 23rd NCI-JSPS Joint Steering Committee Meeting of the U.S. Japan Cooperative Cancer Research Program is scheduled for Sunday April 6, 2003 at 2 PM at the Crowne Plaza Toronto Centre in Toronto.