Pain is a significant factor that impairs quality of life (QOL) for patients and their families, making it a key policy topic. Recognizing this, Health and Global Policy Institute (HGPI) has held repeated discussions on measures for pain management since FY2022. As current evidence supports efficacy of pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions provided by various specialties, it is urgent that Japan develops an integrated care provision system to deliver these forms of pain management through strengthened collaboration among different specialties and professionals.

Pain is associated with various diseases and palliative care is recommended as one method of supporting people living with pain, especially pain which accompanies life-threatening diseases. After the World Health Organization (WHO) revised its definition of palliative care in 2002, this form of care has expanded from palliative care that is provided during the terminal stage to include care provided during early stages, such as after diagnosis as well as during treatment, convalescence, and follow-up.

In Japan, advances in palliative care have mostly been centered around the field of cancer. In line with the expanded definition assigned to the concept of palliative care by the WHO, since the first phase of the Basic Plan to Promote Cancer Control Programs came into effect in 2007, it has included “Implementation of palliative care from the early stage of treatment” among its primary measures. Since its second phase, it has included “Implementation of palliative care from diagnosis,” expanding the stages at which management can be provided for the pain experienced by patients and their families.

For the upcoming HGPI Seminar, we will host Professor Masahiko Sumitani, who serves as Director of the Department of Pain and Palliative Medicine at the University of Tokyo Hospital. Professor Sumitani’s lecture will examine current circumstances surrounding palliative care in Japan and overseas, focusing on initiatives to provide integrated palliative care from early post-diagnosis to end-of-life, through follow-up and rehabilitation. He will also examine future prospects for this field.

*Please note that this seminar is available in Japanese only. An English report of this event will be published in due course.

 

[Event Overview]

• Speaker: Masahiko Sumitani (Department Director, Department of Pain and Palliative Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital; Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Tokyo)
  
• Date & Time: Tuesday, October10, 2023; from 18:30 to 19:45 JST
• Format: Online (Zoom webinar)
• Language: Japanese
• Participation fee: Free
• Capacity: 500

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■ Speaker Profile:

Masahiko Sumitani Department Director, Department of Pain and Palliative Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital; Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Tokyo)
Masahiko Sumitani earned MD from the Faculty of Medicine at Tsukuba University. Subsequently, he completed PhD in Medicine at Department of Acute Critical Medicine (Anesthesiology), Osaka University, Graduate School of Medicine. He served as the Assistant professor at Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Relief Center, The University of Tokyo Hospital (2008-2012), the Department Director, Department of Medical Engineering, The University of Tokyo Hospital, and Lecturer, Faculty of Medicine, The University of Tokyo (2012-2014), and has been appointed as Department Director, Department of Pain and Palliative Medicine and Associate Professor at Tokyo University Hospital since 2014.

He also serves for many pain-related academic societies including but not limited to the Japanese Association for the Study of Pain, the Japan Neuroscience Society International Association for the Study of Pain and International Association for the Study of Pain. He has been nominated for a number of awards including Young Investigation Award for Clinical Study of the Japan Society for Clinical Anesthesia (2010).