Cooperation between the International Centre for Cancer Vaccine Research of the University of Gdańsk and the University of Malta was the main topic of the online meeting held on April 20, 2021.
The meeting was attended by prof. dr. hab. Piotr Stepnowski, Rector of the University of Gdańsk, prof. dr. hab. Krzysztof Bielawski, Vice-Rector for Innovation and Cooperation with the Socio-Economic Environment, prof. Theodore Hupp, Director of the International Centre for Cancer Vaccine Research, and prof. Alfred J. Vella, Rector of the University of Malta, dr. Justyne Caruana, Minister of Education of Malta, Owen Bonnici, Minister of Development, Innovation and Coordination of Post-Covid Strategy of Malta.
The theme of the meeting was the institutional partnership established between the University of Gdańsk and the University of Malta, including the Faculty of Applied Biomedical Sciences of the University of Malta and the Centre for Molecular Medicine and Biobanking on the part of Malta, and the International Centre for Cancer Vaccine Research, which is a joint unit established by the University of Gdańsk in Poland and the University of Edinburgh in the UK.
Interdisciplinary training and exchange under the ERASMUS+ programme, joint development projects, joint study programmes and seminars, as well as scientific and research cooperation will enable the scientists to deepen their research on cancer immunotherapy.
Cancer immunotherapy is a form of cancer treatment that harnesses the power of a patient's own immune system to prevent, control and eliminate cancer. Current efforts by the international research community indicate that immunotherapy has the potential to become a more precise, personalised, effective form of treatment with significantly fewer side effects than current chemotherapy.
Prof. Piotr Stepnowski, Rector of the University of Gdańsk, expressed his conviction that the established cooperation in the field of cancer immunology is the beginning of many new joint projects in the future.
Prof. Ted Hupp, director of the International Centre for Research on Cancer Vaccines, stressed that he was pleased with the cooperation with experts from Malta and their significant contribution to the joint work. - 'The International Centre for Cancer Vaccine Research is a centre of excellence focused on interdisciplinary research. This collaboration is a key step in our shared global vision to stimulate knowledge exchange and enable discoveries in cancer research,' he added.
Prof. Alfred J. Vella, Rector of the University of Malta, called the event an important step in fostering research collaboration in cancer immunology and cancer vaccines, which could ultimately revolutionise cancer treatment.
The University of Gdansk and the University of Malta collaborate intensively on many levels in a consortium of 6 partners under the ERASMUS+ programme in the SEA-EU - European Maritime University initiative.
The Minister of Education, Justyna Caruana, and the Minister of Research, Innovation and Post-Covid Strategy, Owen Bonnici, representing Malta, stressed the importance of this collaboration for the development of scientific excellence in Malta and the exchange of knowledge for the well-being of the society.
