San José, March 4, 2024 San José, March 4, 2024. The University of Costa Rica and the Costa Rican Agency for Biomedical Research, ACIB-FUNIN, signed this Monday a framework cooperation agreement, to promote the conduct of research, in pursuit of the comprehensive well-being of the Costa Rican population.
Both entities have been dedicated, for decades, to the generation of scientific evidence to contribute to the development of the country and the promotion of health, and on various occasions, they have even signed specific agreements to carry out joint research.
The agreement signed this Monday empowers both parties to develop research actions, social action and teaching training. Likewise, “both institutions, in a coordinated manner, will jointly define, design and execute all those programs or projects of mutual interest, in the specific terms that they will agree on at each opportunity and within the limit of their own powers faculties and attributions”, states the agreement.
“We are very pleased to sign this alliance that, without a doubt, will enhance the research capabilities of two organizations with extensive experience and highly trained human resources. This collaboration represents a great opportunity to carry out high-impact research and, thereby, contribute to make decisions in health matters”, says Dr. Carolina Porras, director of research at ACIB-FUNIN.
Likewise, the agreement also aims to establish cooperation to carry out other activities that facilitate the exchange of knowledge, the development of community ties and professional training.
“For more than 30 years, various ACIB-FUNIN researchers have participated in studies on key topics for worldwide health, such as human papillomavirus, cervical cancer, chronic kidney disease, breast cancer, SARS-CoV-2, among others. This experience and that of the UCR researchers will be transcendental for the development of innovative projects, aimed to improve knowledge, prevention and treatment of the health problems that most affect the Costa Rican population,” explains Dr. Rolando Herrero, scientific director of ACIB-FUNIN.
The agreement also presents the opportunity to train new professionals in health sciences and other related disciplines in biomedical research.
San José, March 2024 San José, March 2024. In 2022, 245 women were diagnosed with cervical cancer; around 70% of cases were recorded in women between 30 and 59 years old.
Despite being a 100% preventable cancer, this disease is the fourth most common cancer in the country; in 2022, it caused the death of 133 women, according to data from the National Institute of Statistics and Censuses.
Within the framework of the commemoration of World Cervical Cancer Prevention Day, experts from the Costa Rican Agency for Biomedical Research (ACIB-FUNIN) make call to strengthen each of the prevention actions for this disease.
In this sense, they remember that, despite the great efforts that the country has made, there are still important challenges to achieve the elimination of this disease, as a public health problem.
One of the main challenges is to increase vaccination coverage against the human papillomavirus (HPV) in girls who have turned 10 years old, as well as to incorporate children and women up to 20 years old into the vaccination program.
Experts says that, while it is true, the vaccine against the HPV virus has a higher level of protection if it is given before the start of sexual relations, it has been shown that it also works when applied after.
“Costa Rica has done extraordinary work to achieve high vaccination coverage; The Costa Rican Social Security Fund is making great efforts in this field. In addition, the replacement of the Pap smear with the HPV screening test will allow better control of the disease and by this accelerate compliance with the Worldwide Strategy for the elimination of this disease, issued by the World Health Organization (WHO) and which includes three pillars: prevent, detect and treat. Costa Rica is one of the countries that has the least mortality from this cancer in Latin America, but it is clear that there is still a lot to do”, explains Dr. Rolando Herrero, scientific director of ACIB-FUNIN.
This Strategy sets three goals that must be met by 2030: a) That before the age of 15, 90% of girls are vaccinated against HPV, b) Achieve 70% cancer detection coverage in women between 35 and 45 years old, c) Treat 90% of precancerous lesions and invasive cancer cases.
Previously, the WHO recommended the administration of three doses, however, based on various worldwide studies, including several carried out in Costa Rica, it recommends that countries administer one or two doses. However, the agency is waiting for the results of the research being carried out in Costa Rica (ESCUDDO), to change the official recommendation to a single dose.
Cervical cancer causes more than 300,000 deaths each year worldwide; however, experts says that early detection of cases, along with rapid and quality treatment, can cure this disease.
San José, April 2024. The prevention and treatment of cancer has become one of the great challenges in global health. The growing burden of this disease, worldwide, demands more trained professionals in the approach of a condition that is one of the main causes of death in the world, since 1 in 5 people will develop cancer throughout their life, according to the World Health Organization, WHO.
The impact of cancer is such that this organization predicts more than 35 million new cases of this disease in 2050; this represents an increase of 77%, compared to the 20 million cases that were estimated for 2022.
Aware of the urgent need to have a new generation of professionals trained in the treatment of cancer, ACIB-FUNIN and the National Cancer Institute of the United States opened the competition to award a scholarship in the prevention and control of this disease, to a health professional in the country.
The call period for the pre-selection of candidates began on March 11 and closed on May 3, 2024. Those interested can visit the page https://acibfunin.com/programabecas/ , to learn more information and consult the requirements.
“Every year, a professional in the field of Health Sciences or Life Sciences has the opportunity to elect this fellowship, with full payment, to specialize in cancer prevention and control. It is one of the most prestigious programs in the world, in the training of leaders in research of this disease, and from 2020 to date, three Costa Ricans have been selected and are currently at the National
Cancer Institute of the United States. United, carrying out this program,” says Dr. Carolina Porras, research director of ACIB-FUNIN.
This internship lasts a maximum of four years and provides opportunities for laboratory studies of basic sciences, epidemiology, clinical trials, health services research, and studies of the biological and social aspects of health behavior.
The postdoctoral fellowship is possible thanks to a collaboration agreement that, in 2019, the National Cancer Institute of the United States and ACIB-FUNIN established, to promote cooperation in Costa Rica in all aspects of research, on prevention and cancer treatment.
Those interested must fill out a fellowship form, entering the link https://acibfunin.com/formulariobeca/
La prevención y tratamiento del cáncer, se ha convertido en uno de los grandes retos en materia de salud global. La creciente carga de esta enfermedad, a nivel mundial, demanda profesionales más capacitados en el abordaje de un padecimiento que se ubica como una de las principales causas de muerte en el mundo, pues 1 de cada 5 personas desarrollará cáncer a lo largo de su vida, según la Organización Mundial de la Salud, OMS. El impacto del cáncer es tal, que este organismo prevé más de 35 millones de nuevos casos de esta enfermedad, en 2050; esto supone un aumento del 77%, con respecto a los 20 millones de casos que se estimaron para el 2022. Conscientes de la urgente necesidad de contar con una nueva generación de profesionales capacitados para el abordaje del cáncer, ACIB-FUNIN y el Instituto Nacional del Cáncer de los Estados Unidos, abrieron el concurso para otorgar una beca en prevención y control de esta enfermedad, a un profesional de la salud del país. El periodo de convocatoria para la pre-selección de candidatos, inició el 11 de marzo y cerró el 3 de mayo 2024. Los interesados pueden visitar la página https://acibfunin.com/programabecas/, para conocer más información y consultar los requisitos. “Cada año, un profesional en el campo de las Ciencias de la Salud o Ciencias de la Vida, tiene la oportunidad de optar por esta beca, con todo pago, para especializarse en la prevención y control del cáncer. Se trata de uno de los programas más prestigiosos de todo el mundo, en la formación de líderes en investigación de esta enfermedad, y desde el 2020 a la fecha, tres costarricenses han sido seleccionados y están actualmente en el Instituto Nacional del Cáncer de los Estados Unidos, llevando este programa”, señala la Dra. Carolina Porras, directora de investigaciones de ACIB-FUNIN. Esta pasantía tiene una duración máxima de cuatro años y brinda oportunidades para estudios de laboratorio de ciencias básicas, epidemiología, ensayos clínicos, investigación de servicios de salud y estudios de los aspectos biológicos y sociales del comportamiento de la salud. La beca postdoctoral es posible gracias a un convenio de colaboración que, en 2019, establecieron el Instituto Nacional del Cáncer de los Estados Unidos y ACIB-FUNIN, para promover en Costa Rica, la cooperación en todos los aspectos de la investigación, sobre prevención y tratamiento del cáncer. Los interesados deben llenar un formulario de beca, ingresando al enlace https://acibfunin.com/formulariobeca/
Summary:
Studies of basic sciences, epidemiology, clinical trials, health services research, is part of what the scholarship grants to train at the National Cancer Institute of the United States.
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