The conference was held in a hybrid format, combining in-person and online participation. It was attended by former leaders of the Ministry of Health, including former Minister Tran Thi Trung Chien and former Deputy Minister Nguyen Truong Son, along with approximately 1,000 delegates who are officials, scientists, doctors, and healthcare workers from Vietnam and abroad working in the fields of oncology and immunology.
Speaking at the conference, Deputy Minister Nguyen Tri Thuc emphasized that cancer is becoming a global burden with a rapidly increasing trend, and Vietnam is no exception. According to GLOBOCAN 2020 data, in Vietnam, there are approximately 159 new cancer cases and 106 deaths per 100,000 people. This rate is forecast to continue rising in the coming time due to various objective factors such as population aging, population growth, and environmental pollution.
Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Tri Thuc delivers the opening remarks at the conference.
Currently, common cancer treatment methods in Vietnam include surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, treatment with radiopharmaceuticals, and others. In addition, modern methods such as targeted therapy, immunotherapy, virotherapy, and vaccines for cancer prevention and treatment have also been implemented at several central- and provincial-level hospitals.
In particular, cancer immunotherapy was recognized by the Deputy Minister as one of the remarkable advances of modern medicine. This method has been successfully applied in many countries and is gradually affirming its important role in cancer treatment. The combination of immunotherapy with advanced molecular biology techniques such as next-generation gene sequencing and gene mutation analysis is creating a revolution in cancer diagnosis and treatment.
“This method is especially effective for patients who do not respond to conventional treatments, or it can be applied from the beginning to enhance treatment effectiveness,” Deputy Minister Nguyen Tri Thuc emphasized.
The conference organizing committee, the chairing panel, and current and former leaders of the Ministry of Health.
To date, more than 63 countries have established cancer immunotherapy societies. In Vietnam, the Vietnam Cancer Immunotherapy Society was approved for establishment by the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2023. This is the second time the society has organized an international scientific conference, demonstrating its continuous efforts and development.
This year’s conference brought together many valuable scientific reports from major hospitals in Vietnam and abroad, focusing on important topics such as an overview of cancer immunotherapy, molecular biology, vaccines, cellular immunotherapy, and stem cells in cancer.
“These topics are highly necessary and timely, in line with the current direction of technological development and innovation in the healthcare sector, aiming to improve the effectiveness of cancer prevention, treatment, and public healthcare in accordance with the spirit of Resolutions 57 and 59 of the Politburo,” the Deputy Minister stated.
He also expressed his expectation that, in the coming time, the Vietnam Cancer Immunotherapy Society will continue to expand its scale, update advanced global techniques, especially in the fields of molecular biology and immunotherapy, and contribute to improving the quality of cancer diagnosis, treatment, and prevention in Vietnam.