Toyama University Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Center　

Our Biobank Department stores biological samples for research purposes. The Department will play a vital role in supporting advanced medicine in the future.

Treatment System & Overview of Our Work

The Biobank Department features seven pathologists from our Department of Pathology. At present, these comprise four pathology specialists and three cytological diagnosis specialists who specialize in tumors of each organ, for collective expertise across all fields. As an advanced medical facility, Toyama University Hospital draws patients with uncommon tumors that can be difficult to diagnose or treat at community hospitals. Our staff is constantly engaged in diagnostic work, as well as training and research to gain new knowledge, in order to ensure that these patients receive proper diagnoses and advice on treatment, taking even the smallest changes in their diseases into account.

Distinguishing Features

We strive to not only improve pathological diagnoses, but to also help these diagnoses lead to reliable treatment. We also aim to contribute to future medical developments by playing a translational role, connecting fundamental research with practical medical applications. We use many pathological samples in our fundamental research work, to find information that could be useful for new medical treatments in the future, and provide this information to clinical departments where it can be put to use. More specifically, we are currently working to elucidate the numerous molecular mechanisms that are involved in the development, progression, and treatment of cancers and other malignant tumors. In recent years, we have also contributed to community healthcare by providing pathological examinations at community hospitals that lack their own pathologists, as well as remote pathological diagnoses for other hospitals via the internet.
In addition, we have established a new program for pathology specialists, hosted by Toyama University Hospital, in collaboration with other regional cooperation medical facilities. This program serves to train many promising young pathologists, in order to help address Japan’s shortage of pathologists.