Preface

More than 30 years have passed since 1962 when the Ministry of Health and Welfare established the National Cancer Center, which consists of a research institute, hospital and administration department as the sole government-supported cancer center in Japan. Ever since then, the Research Institute has been the leading institution for cancer research in the country, and has become a well-recognized partner of corresponding cancer institutes in other countries. In 1993, a new hospital, the National Cancer Center Hospital, East, and a branch of the Research Institute, the National Cancer Center Research Institute, East, were opened in Kashiwa, Chiba, about 40 km east of the present National Cancer Center in Tokyo.

Although there have been substantial structural changes, with increases in the number of divisions and a significant turnover of scientists and supporting members, the basic and unifying concept remains the achievement of cancer control by close collaboration with hospitals and all of the scientific disciplines concerned, and by acting as the core cancer research institute for the promotion of cancer research in Japan. There were two major areas of progress in 1992 and 1993; one is molecular oncology, based on advances in molecular biology, and the other is information and image analysis, supported by the development of computer science.

In 1966, the Research Institute began publishing annual ÒCollected Papers,Ó in which all of the articles published by the institute were compiled in book form. As the number of articles rose, the number of pages increased, but since reprints and copies are now readily available, it was decided to discontinue publication of ÒCollected PapersÓ after 1992. Reprints of all of the articles published every year have been collected and bound as such, and are maintained in the National Cancer Center Library. This ÒAnnual ReportÓ is now being published instead to summarize the research activity of each division and section and to outline our progress to the worldwide scientific community. This volume is exceptional in that research activity in both 1992 and 1993 has been summarized in a single volume together with a list of papers published during both years. Thus, it should properly be called a "biennial report." Beginning in 1994, this report of research activities will be published annually. Small booklets, ÒSel ected Papers Published in 1992Ó and ÒSelected Papers Published in 1993,Ó in which the titles of 100 representative papers are listed, are also available. The preparation of these publications could not have been achieved without the intense efforts of all of my colleagues at the institute.

I would like to express my sincere appreciation for the support we have received from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, other governmental organizations, including the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture and the Agency for Science and Technology, and private organizations and individuals. I must stress the importance of the support we have received for our research activities from the Comprehensive 10-year Strategy for Cancer Control and Grants-in-Aid from the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Japan.

December, 1994

Masaaki Terada, M.D.
Director, National Cancer Center Research Institute

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