The Afro-Asian Conference of Transitional Research in Oncology (ACTRO) commenced in Bangalore today. The conference brought together oncologists from Asia and Africa, to discuss the need for personalized cancer care and a repository of cancer based research in the country. The conference began with research topics focused on personalized medicine, organ and functional preservation in breast cancer, hematology and stem cell transplant and cardio thoracic oncology.

According to the latest Population Based Cancer Registry, cancer incidence for every 1, 00,000 males and females in key cities in India are as follows:

With Bangalore having the highest incidence of cancer cases among key cities in the country, there has been an urgent call to action to debate existing cancer care, treatments and research based medicine which ACTRO aims to address.

At ACTRO, Dr. B.S.Ajaikumar, President, Association for Transitional Research in Oncology (ATRO), said, “India as a country has immense potential to be one of the leaders in oncology research with its burgeoning cancer population (as displayed by the above table) and comprehensive cancer care centers. The theme of this conference is “From Bedside to Benchmark” with a focus on superior cancer care for patients through futuristic technology to improve their quality of life. Due to dearth of research in India, we have been depending on the western population data and guidelines, to manage the problem. The ACTRO 2013 conference will act as a platform for oncologists to analyze our own cancer care treatment outcomes, through efficient documentation and data management.”

Dr. Prahlad Ram, Medical Oncologist, MD Anderson Cancer Center, USA, said, “One of the emerging challenges in oncology is the utilization of patient-specific genomic information in order to develop personalized and targeted therapeutic options based on molecular aberrations in the tumour. A second challenge facing cancer medicine is the identification of pharmacological options to overcome resistance and the repurposing of currently approved drugs for cancer therapy.”

Dr.Samuel JK Abraham, Surgical Oncologist, Yamanashi University-faculty of Medicine, Japan, said, “In the human immune surveillance system, a combination of adaptive and innate pathways work together to tackle cancer. When functioning optimally, they destroy any aberrant cell which might evolve into a cancer. The dysfunction of the immune system by itself or a relative dysfunction against an overwhelmingly strong cancer causative factor culminates in cancer development. One of the therapy aims is to empower the autologous immune cells to treat an already diagnosed cancer and also to prevent a cancer development as well its recurrence.”

The upcoming days of the conference will focus extensively on predictive oncology, colorectal and liver cancer, radiation oncology, neurooncology, psycho oncology, gynecooncology, head and neck cancer, evolving comprehensive cancer, global perspectives in oncology, lung cancer, musculoskeletal oncology and urooncology.

There are about 30 million cancer survivors in the world today, which is expected to rise to 70 million by the end of the year 2050. ACTRO aims to bring together oncologists to discuss preventive care and improved treatment, to advance the quality of life of cancer patients and survivors across the country.

About ATRO:

ATRO (Association for Transitional Research in Oncology) is a registered association of specialists from multidisciplinary approaches and works as a platform to promote Transitional Research in Oncology. The association deliberates debates and engages in meaningful research to build evidence for a Personalized Care Approach in Oncology.