Vietnam - USA Biomedical Institute opens in Nha Trang

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Dr. Phan Minh Liem, Head of the Vietnam - USA Biomedical Institute said: "This is the first center in Vietnam to have the next-generation gene sequencing and genomics technology in cancer precision medicine and screening, transferred by MD Anderson Cancer Center, a member of Texas University".

With his experience in MD Anderson Cancer Center, he shared that the new technology has made MD Anderson Cancer Center become the leader in cancer treatment in USA for the past 28 years. It is expected that the new solution will allow doctors to analyze the gene map after testing in order to quickly detect troublesome genes for early treatment.

The successful transfer of the technology to quickly detect and early treat cancer in the Vietnam – USA Biomedical Institute is the first step in the long-term collaboration between Vietnam and the USA, proving that the Vietnamese medical field now has a full capacity and the resources to implement leading technologies in the world in cancer treatment.

After the opening ceremony, the workshop "Application of Next-Generation Sequencing and Genomics in Cancer Precision Medicine and Screening in Vietnam" took place in Nha Trang.

At the workshop, experts from the USA, Singapore, and Vietnam discussed the technology of testing 20,000 pairs of genes to identify cancer cells via hereditary mutation – the most state-of-the-art technology at the moment for cancer screening via gene sequencing. They explained in details the research basis and implementation experience of the technology in optimizing cancer treatments.

The result of sequencing the 20,000 pairs of patients’ genes will be analyzed and certified by doctors from the American Society for Clinical Pathology, the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics. Based on this, there will be a more precise method of cancer treatment.

Currently, with over 125,000 new cancer patients each year, 90,000 of whom end up in death, Vietnam has become the nation with the highest rate of death due to cancer on earth. The main cause of this grave situation is the late discovery of the disease and the limit in treatment methods.