Greeting / The 44th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Nuclear Medicine Technology

The 44th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Nuclear Medicine Technology
chair Kazuaki Mori
(Chief Technologist, Division of Nuclear Medicine,
Department of Radiological Technology,
Toranomon Hospital)
I have the honor to have been appointed Congress Chair of the 44th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Nuclear Medicine Technology (JSNMT). On this occasion, I would like to offer a greeting to JSNMT members and everyone else involved.
The 44th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Nuclear Medicine Technology will be held in the city of Yokohama at the PACIFICO Yokohama Conference Center and Exhibition Hall A over the three-day period from Thursday, November 7 to Saturday, November 9, jointly with the 64th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Japanese Society of Nuclear Medicine (chaired by Professor Jun Hashimoto of Tokai University School of Medicine). The last time the Annual Meeting was held in the Kanto region was in Yokohama in 2017. As PACIFICO Yokohama will also be the venue for the Japan Radiology Congress next spring, I think it will be familiar to many JSNMT members. Since COVID-19 was downgraded to a Class 5 infectious disease, we have had more chances to gather, and this Annual Meeting will be held in person, but to enable as many people as possible to take part we are intending to adopt a hybrid format with on-demand streaming in addition to in-person attendance.
The theme of the Annual Meeting will be “Nuclear Medicine – Creation and Communication.” This refers to the “creation” of new investigative techniques through the introduction of PET amyloid imaging as well as new nuclear medical therapies and tumor imaging techniques, and the strong “communication” between professionals in different fields through the expansion of roles involved in task shifting and sharing. By around the time the Annual Meeting is held, a disease-modifying drug for Alzheimer’s dementia should be covered by health insurance in Japan, and the clinical usage of amyloid PET will be making strides. It will be a good time to come to the Annual Meeting and learn about new scanning techniques and the treatments and tests that are about to be introduced. Also, in response to the increasing number of female radiographers the JSNMT has set up a committee for promoting women’s activities("Hanamizuki" Women in Nuclear Medicine~Empowering Women Committee), the first meeting of which will be held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting. In addition, we are planning to offer Travel Awards as a new system for financial assistance, starting with this Annual Meeting. The content of the postgraduate education program and basic lectures will also reflect the latest developments.
The Yokohama Air Cabin that features in the design of the poster for this Annual Meeting is Japan’s first urban circular ropeway. Not only is Yokohama famous as the origin of gourmet dishes such as “naporitan” pasta, gyu-nabe, and ice cream in Japan, but its cultural claims also include the fact that it was the birthplace of the Japanese railways. It’s worth making a pilgrimage to this historic site after attending the Annual Meeting.
The Executive Committee is making every effort to ensure that you will encounter new knowledge and be highly satisfied by taking part in this Annual Meeting in Yokohama, where so many things have come into being. I hope as many of you as possible will attend, and am looking forward to chatting to you there.