Introduction

The missions of the international medical education unit are: ① to promote international joint research by the Graduate School of Medicine; ② to support international students, teach medical English for undergraduates, engage in clinical training, and develop an international perspective; ③ to promote international joint education in master's and doctoral programs; and ④ to provide international medical services at Nagoya University Hospital. We conduct comparative research with universities in Japan and overseas to respond to the demands of society for medical education and internationalization of university hospitals, and to transmit forward-looking international medical education to society in cooperation with related units. Prof. Kasuya, a member of this unit, is also the director of the Office of International Affairs and the Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center. ⑤ Furthermore, the Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center conducts research to develop new treatments for intractable cancer.

Research Projects

① We collect and compare international strategy information from universities in Japan and overseas in order to construct an international strategy that is suitable for the times. We aim to raise the profile of Nagoya University in Japan and overseas and promote international joint research by hosting various seminars and forums.

a) We promote GAME joint research by a network of nine overseas medical schools
b) We host international symposiums through consortiums such as AC21, RENKEI and APRU
c) JDP partner schools hold international symposiums through FLAN meetings

② A. Consistent International Medical Education
From first-year medical English seminars to sixth-year clinical study-abroad programs to international joint education in doctoral programs, we contribute to the distinctive medical education of the School of Medicine at Nagoya University by providing a consistent international medical education in our undergraduate and graduate programs. We conduct extensive qualitative research into the graduate school education systems of global Top 100 universities in order to train excellent clinical medicine researchers, basic medicine researchers, and medical education researchers who will be active internationally. We will maintain international competitiveness and contribute to the construction of a medical education system befitting a research university.
a) Medical English Seminar
b) GAME summer camp conducted by a network of nine overseas medical schools
c) Accepting and sending out study abroad students for clinical training
d) Planning and holding workshops on clinical practice, research, and education

② B. International Exchange Program
We promote study abroad for clinical training. The university has a long history of accepting international students, and even though only about 40 students can be accepted into the program each year, there are more than 300 applicants from top universities abroad, and the level of screening is very high. Each department offers a unique program, and high evaluations from international students create a virtuous cycle that brings in next international students. Furthermore, every year, more than a dozen students from Nagoya University go abroad for several months to acquire hospital training experience overseas. There is a system whereby credits earned at the study abroad destination can be transferred to Nagoya University, so you can experience medicine overseas without having to repeat a year.

Office of International Affairs https://www.med.nagoya-u.ac.jp/intlexch/

③ JDP (Joint Degree Program)
We promote the JDP (Joint Degree Program) for postgraduate doctoral programs. The Graduate School of Medicine at Nagoya University has established an International Collaborative Program in Comprehensive Medical Science (joint degree program), whereby two collaborating universities jointly build an educational program and each student receives guidance in their research topic from two supervisors, one at each university. Upon completion of study, the two institutions will award a single degree jointly (= joint degree). During the standard four years of enrollment in graduate school, students are guaranteed a minimum of 12 months study abroad, and their international experience is proven in the form of a degree from a university abroad.

Joint Degree Program https://www.med.nagoya-u.ac.jp/jdp/about/

④International Operations at Nagoya University Hospital
We hold a working group for promoting internationalization of the University Hospital, and we promote the development of an in-hospital system for handling foreign patients. We support the reception of foreign patients in cooperation with the Center for Community Liaison and Patient Consultations. We also assist in providing English-language versions of in-hospital texts, as well as collecting and comparing information on hospital internationalization.

⑤Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
Our laboratory is interested in discovering new therapeutic methods against advanced cancer based on host anti-cancer immunity.
Our interests focus in two main topics which include oncolytic virus and anti-cancer cell therapy.
We are using natural mutated herpes simplex virus, HF10 which has been studied in USA as well as in Japan. This oncolytic virus is well known for its effect on "continuous replication with infection of neighboring cells and killing cancer cells without any damage to normal cells". HF10 is drastically different from former virus vectors. Recent studies have shown that oncolytic virus affects host immune response against specific cancer antigens, therefore it inhibits systemic metastasis.
As for cell therapy, we are interested in genetically modified receptor T-cell lymphocytes, which target cancer specific antigens on cancer cell surface. Our laboratory is studying a new generation technology for genetically modified receptor T-cell lymphocyte using iPS.

Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
https://www.med.nagoya-u.ac.jp/intlexch/cancerimmuno/www/index.html

Faculty Members

Faculty	Position	Department
KASUYA Hideki	Professor	Office of International Affairs Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
ALEKSIC Branko	Designated Associate Professor	Office of International Affairs
NAOE Yoshinori	Designated Associate Professor	Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
SUMIGAMA Seiji	Designated Associate Professor	Office of International Affairs
MATSUMURA Shigeru	Designated Associate Professor	Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
Itzel BUSTOS VILLALOBOS	G30 Designated Associate Professor	Office of International Affairs Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
HASEGAWA Hitoki	Designated Associate Professor	Office of International Affairs
LUO Chenhong	Visiting Assistant Professor	Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
KASAI PRINCE Mika	Coordinator/Secretary	Office of International Affairs
KOMURA Yukiko	Secretary	Cancer Immune Therapy Research Center
OIWA Satomi	Coordinator/Secretary	Office of International Affairs

Bibliography

• 2019

  1. Zhiwen Wu, Toru Ichinose, Yoshinori Naoe, Shigeru Matsumura, Itzel Bustos-Villalobos, Ibrahim Ragab Eissa, Suguru Yamada, Noriyuki Miyajima, Daishi Morimoto, Nobuaki Mukoyama, Yoko Nishikawa, Yusuke Koide, Yasuhiro Kodera, Maki Tanaka, Hideki Kasuya.Combination of Cetuxmab and Oncolytic Virus Canerpaturev Synergistically Inhibits Human Colorectal Cancer Growth.Molecular Therapy-Oncolytics.2019 May;13:107-115.

• 2018

  1. Ibrahim Ragab Eissa, Itzel Bustos-Villalobos, Toru Ichinose, Shigeru Matsumura, Yoshinori Naoe, Noriyuki Miyajima, Daishi Morimoto, Nobuaki Mukoyama, Wu Zhiwen, Maki Tanaka, Hitoki Hasegawa, Seiji Sumigama, Branko Aleksic, Yasuhiro kodera, Hideki Kasuya.The Current Status and Future Prospects of Oncolytic Viruses Clinical Trials against Melanoma,Glioma,Pancreatic and Breast cancers.Cancers.2018 Sep;10(10).
  2. Hirooka Y, Kasuya H, Ishikawa T, Kawashima H, Ohno E, Villalobos IB, Naoe Y, Ichinose T, Koyama N, Tanaka M, Kodera Y, Goto H. A Phase I clinical trial of EUS-guided intratumoral injection of the oncolytic virus, HF10 for unresectable locally advanced pancreatic cancer. BMC Cancer.2018 May;18(1):596.

• 2017

  1. Ibrahim Ragab Eissa, Yoshinori Naoe, Itzel Bustos-Villalobos, Toru Ichinose, Maki Tanaka, Wu Zhiwen, Nobuaki Mukoyama, Taishi Morimoto, Noriyuki Miyajima, Hitoki Hasegawa, Seiji Sumigama, Branko Aleksic, Yasuhiro Kodera and Hideki Kasuya. Genomic Signature of the Natural Oncolytic Herpes Simplex Virus HF10 and Its Therapeutic Role in Preclinical and Clinical Trials. Front. Oncol.2017 July;volumn 7, article 149.
  2. Yoshihiro Hotta, Hideki Kasuya, Itzel Bustos, Yoshinori Naoe, Toru Ichinose, Maki Tanaka, Yasuhiro Kodera. Curative effect of HF10 on liver and peritoneal metastasis mediated by host antitumor immunity. Oncolytic Virotherapy. 2017 March;6:31-38.

• 2015

  1. Tan G, Kasuya H, Sahin TT, Yamamura K, Wu Z, Koide Y, Hotta Y, Shikano T, Yamada S, Kanzaki A, Fujii T, Sugimoto H, Nomoto S, Nishikawa Y, Tanaka M, Tsurumaru N, Kuwahara T, Fukuda S, Ichinose T, Kikumori T, Takeda S, Nakao A, Kodera Y. Combination therapy of oncolytic herpes simplex virus HF10 and bevacizumab against experimental model of human breast carcinoma xenograft. Int J Cancer. 2015 Apr 1;136(7):1718-30.

• 2014

  1. Kasuya H, Kodera Y, Nakao A, Yamamura K, Gewen T, Zhiwen W, Hotta Y, Yamada S, Fujii T, Fukuda S, Tsurumaru N, Kuwahara T, Kikumori T, Koide Y, Fujimoto Y, Nakashima T, Hirooka Y, Shiku H, Tanaka M, Takesako K, Kondo T, Aleksic B, Kawashima H, Goto H, Nishiyama Y. Phase I Dose-escalation Clinical Trial of HF10 Oncolytic Herpes Virus in 17 Japanese Patients with Advanced Cancer. Hepatogastroenterology. 2014 May;61(131):599-605.
  2. Yamamura K, Kasuya H, Sahin TT, Tan G, Hotta Y, Tsurumaru N, Fukuda S, Kanda M, Kobayashi D, Tanaka C, Yamada S, Nakayama G, Fujii T, Sugimoto H, Koike M, Nomoto S, Fujiwara M, Tanaka M, Kodera Y. Combination treatment of human pancreatic cancer xenograft models with the epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor erlotinib and oncolytic herpes simplex virus HF10. Ann Surg Oncol. 2014 Feb;21(2):691-8.

• 2012

  1. Kanzaki A, Kasuya H, Yamamura K, Sahin TT, Nomura N, Shikano T, Shirota T, Tan G, Fukuda S, Misawa M, Nishikawa Y, Yamada S, Fujii T, Sugimoto H, Nomoto S, Takeda S, Kodera Y, Nakao A. Antitumor efficacy of oncolytic herpes simplex virus adsorbed onto antigen-specific lymphocytes. Cancer Gene Ther. 2012 Apr;19(4):292-8. doi: 10.1038/cgt.2011.91.
  2. Sahin TT, Kasuya H, Nomura N, Shikano T, Yamamura K, Gewen T, Kanzaki A, Fujii T, Sugae T, Imai T, Nomoto S, Takeda S, Sugimoto H, Kikumori T, Kodera Y, Nishiyama Y, Nakao A. Impact of novel oncolytic virus HF10 on cellular components of the tumor microenviroment in patients with recurrent breast cancer. Cancer Gene Ther. 2012 Apr;19(4):229-37.
  3. Deguchi T, Shikano T, Kasuya H, Nawa A, Fujiwara S, Takeda S, Gewen T, Sahin TT, Yamada S, Kanzaki A, Yamamura K, Fujii T, Sugimoto H, Nomoto S, Fukuda S, Nishikawa Y, Kodera Y, Nakao A. Combination of the tumor angiogenesis inhibitor bevacizumab and intratumoral oncolytic herpes virus injections as a treatment strategy for human gastric cancers. Hepatogastroenterology. 2012 Sep;59(118):1844-50.

Research Keywords

International medical education、international exchange、study abroad、 JDP、GAME、clinical training、cancer immunotherapy