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Submitted
by Myung-Chul Lee, M.D.
Former &
Honorary Chairman, ARCCNM
President,
WFNMB
An
Overview
- Background
- Objectives
- Structure
and Establishment of the Council
- Action
of the Council
- Achievements
and Future Goals of the Council
- Commitment
of the Council
Background
Since
the introduction of nuclear medicine in
Asia some 30-40 years ago, it has been consistently
promoted in the region as a field that promises
to expand medical technology and knowledge
for the betterment of patient care.
It
remains, however, that the successful promotion
of nuclear medicine development is dependent
on the abilities of each individual nation.
The unfortunate reality is that the
current status of nuclear medicine in Asia
falls far below the necessary standard,
as most countries in the region have not
yet even founded national nuclear medicine
societies. In fact, the total number
of institutes in the Philippines and Indonesia
has remained nearly as they were 10 years
ago, indicating an alarming decrease in
nuclear medicine activity. The majority
of Asian nations, with the exception of
Japan and Korea, significantly lack the
appropriate facilities and the substantial
manpower required for proper development
of nuclear medicine practice. Indexes
based on the numbers of institutions, equipment
and members per million population accordingly
reveal figures close to zero. Furthermore,
only four countries in Asia were listed
as major contributors for the Annual Meeting
of the Society of Nuclear Medicine in terms
of the number of presented papers: Japan
(168), Korea (85), China (26) and Taiwan
(22). There have been no contributions
from the remaining Asian nations thus far.
While
it seems as though the heterogeneity of
nuclear medicine activity in Asia is a direct
result of the poor economical status of
the region, figures prove otherwise. A
study based on the Gross National Products
per Capita (GNP) compared the numbers of
institutions, equipment and practice and
members per million population of various
Asian nations. Data from developing
countries in Eastern Europe were utilized
as an objective reference. Results
revealed that although Japan and Korea are
categorized under the same economic status
bracket, Korea has a considerably lower
level of nuclear medicine activity relative
to such parameters.
It
is important to note the disparity of nuclear
medicine activity between countries in Asia
and countries in Eastern Europe of similar
economic standing. All Asian nations,
regardless of their gross income level,
have far fewer facilities and much less
manpower than their counterparts in Eastern
Europe. Less developed countries in
Asia, such as Indonesia and Bangladesh,
regrettably has poor nuclear medicine activity.
Heterogeneity
of this nature poses grave threats to the
future of nuclear medicine practice and
scientific research on an international
level. Efforts to increase awareness
on the unsatisfactory condition of nuclear
medicine activity in Asia are pivotal to
the successful promotion and development
of nuclear medicine in other regions of
the world.
Objectives
The
ARCCNM was organized to foster and promote
nuclear medicine in Asia, specifically in
the developing and less developed countries
of the region. The main objectives
of the Council are to establish liaisons
with the official national bodies of nuclear
medicine and to enhance regional scientific
activities by way of conferences, seminars
and educational programs during the annual
scientific meeting, whereby facilitating
communication between experts, trainees
and fellows in the field.
Structure
and Establishment of the Council
Plans
for the establishment of the Asian Regional
Cooperative Council for Nuclear Medicine
(ARCCNM) were initiated in Turkey during
the annual meeting of the AOFMNB in the
year 2000 and the council was officially
founded at the 1st Executive Board Meeting
in Hong Kong, China in February 2001.
The
1st Executive Board Meeting sought to institute
an Executive Board to be the governing body
of the ARCCNM, and the following authorities
were accordingly elected: Dr. Myung-Chul
Lee (Korea) as the first Chairman of the
ARCCNM; Dr. June-Key Chung (Korea) as Secretary
General/Treasurer; Dr. M. A Karim (Bangladesh),
Dr. Jahan S. Masjhur (Indonesia) and Dr.
Yutaka Suzuki (Japan) as co-Vice Chairmen
of each of the regional chapters, Southeast
Asia, South Asia and Far East Asia. Dr.
Xiu-Jie Liu, Dr. Felix X. Sundram and Dr.
Cheuk Man Tong, were later instituted as
Board members as well.
The
Executive Board is responsible for managing
the political matters of the ARCCNM and
is held accountable for the supervision
of the Member Assemblies and National Delegates.
Dr. Shuji Tanada (Japan), Dr. Jerry
Obaldo (Philippines), Dr. Mizanul Hasan
(Bangladesh), Dr. Vikram R. Lele (India),
Dr. Soebowo Soemewo (Indonesia), Dr. Anchali
Krisanachinda (Thailand) and Dr. Sang-Moo
Lim (Korea) volunteered to assist in the
building of the ARCCNM foundation and basic
framework. The ARCCNM political structure
also includes Working-Group Members and
Task-Force Groups. Two to three active
members from the three regional chapters,
Southeast Asia, South Asia and Far East
Asia, were nominated as Working-Group members
for practical action of the Council, and
Six Task-Force Groups in the specific fields
of Nuclear Neurology, Nuclear Cardiology,
Nuclear Oncology, Radionuclide Therapy,
General Nuclear Medicine and the Basic Sciences
were approved by the Executive Board. Coordinators
for each group were appointed at the 1st
Executive Board Meeting.
To
efficiently direct ARCCNM political issues,
the ARCCNM was divided into three chapters
according to the various regions of Asia:
Southeast Asia, South Asia and Far East
Asia. The countries constituting each
of the chapters are as follows: (1) Southeast
Asia Chapter member states include Indonesia,
Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore,
Thailand and Vietnam while the Southeast
Asia Chapter non-member states include Brunei,
Cambodia and Laos; (2) South Asia Chapter
member states include Bangladesh, India,
Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka while the South
Asia non-member states include Maldives,
Bhutan; and (3) the Far East Asia Chapter
member states include China, Hong Kong,
Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Taiwan while the
Far East Asia Chapter non-member states
include Macao, North Korea.
In
the primary stages of the ARCCNM, the number
of member states amounted to fifteen, but
later increased to eighteen as Malaysia
and Mongolia at the were approved for official
ARCCNM membership at the 3rd Executive Board
Meeting, and Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka
were approved for official membership at
the 4th Executive Board Meeting
Action
of the Council
To
achieve the extensive goals of the ARCCNM,
Executive Board Meetings and Working Group
Meetings are held at the request of Chairman
or the Executive Board in developing or
undeveloped countries in association with
their scientific occasions as to attract
the greatest attendance of ordinary members.
Consequently,
the first Annual General Meeting of ARCCNM
was held in Dalian, China from June 1st
to June 3rd, 2002 in conjunction with the
1st China×Japan×Korea Conference.
Less the 200 participants from the
CJK Conference, approximately sixty participants
from fifteen member states attended this
significant ARCCNM scientific occasion.
Thirty-six oral and poster papers
were presented and for educational purposes,
six special lectures and four symposia were
conducted as well.
The
first Executive Board Meeting was held in
Hong Kong, China, the second in Toronto,
Canada, the third in Dalian, China, and
the most recent, the 4th Executive Board
Meeting, was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh during
the 2nd Annual General Meeting of the ARCCNM.
For the continued organization of
productive activities, Working Group meetings
were held in Bangkok, Thailand in November
2001 and in Manila, Philippines in June
2002. These meetings sought to disseminate
education through numerous international
symposia and scientific activities not only
for the benefit of the participants, but
for the promotion of nuclear medicine in
the host country as well.
The
1st Annual General Meeting was noteworthy
in harnessing support from the member states
and therefore, it was agreed that a subsequent
Annual Meeting of the ARCCNM should be held.
At the 3rd Executive Board Meeting
held in Dalian, China during the 1st Annual
General Meeting, the Executive Board resolved
to hold the 2nd Annual General Meeting in
Dhaka, Bangladesh from February 6th to February
8th, 2003.
The
2nd Annual General Meeting of ARCCNM was
also held successfully with the cooperation
of the Bangladesh Society of Nuclear Medicine.
Over 300 participants, including nearly
100 nuclear physicians from abroad and from
within the host country of Bangladesh, had
the opportunity to exchange innovative scientific
and technological information regarding
nuclear medicine. Numerous lectures
by invited speakers from the IAEA, the United
States and France were featured, and 30
oral and 27 poster papers were presented
by the ARCCNM. In terms of educational
programs, two symposia, two plenary sessions
and two luncheon seminars were offered for
all participants. Depending on the
evaluation of submitted papers, the ARCCNM
provided complete or partial financial support
to most participants with the aid of contributions
by several major sponsors, Philips, Siemens,
CIS-Schering, Amersham, CTI and IBA, devoted
to promoting and improving the nuclear medicine
technology in Asia.
Achievements
and Future Goals of the Council
The
ARCCNM has experienced incredible growth
in terms of member states and functionality
as a regional organization during the course
of my term due to continued dedication and
support of the ARCCNM members. As
a result, the 1st Delegate Assembly was
created and formally established at the
2nd Annual General Meeting in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Furthermore,
as it became gradually evident that more
practical action was required of the ARCCNM,
foundations for constructing an Asian School
of Nuclear Medicine (ASNM) were initiated.
Discussion concerning the necessity
for an ASNM was raised during the 1st Working
Group Meeting of ARCCNM in Bangkok, Thailand
in 2001 and continued at the 3rd Executive
Board Meeting in Dalian, China. Therefore,
it is essential to recognize and support
projects like the Asian School of Nuclear
Medicine (ASNM). In general, most
countries in Asia lack official education
programs, particularly in the field of nuclear
medicine, which are fundamental for the
advancement of nuclear medicine practice.
Often times, nuclear medicine physicians
in Asia do not even have the opportunity
or the resources to receive higher levels
of education from developed nations. The
main objective of the ASNM, as such, is
to contribute in the enhancement of academic
activities in the Asian region to notably
increase the number of young physicians
specialized in nuclear medicine. The
ASNM curriculum will be composed of comprehensive
1-2 week courses and additionally, 2-4 days
of seminars in various topics will be offered.
Efforts to establish a successful
ASNM will be made possible by forming liaisons
with the official national bodies of nuclear
medicine and international organizations
(IAEA). An ASNM is pivotal for the
proper promotion and development of nuclear
medicine practice in Asia, as it would function
as a subsidiary educational-training curriculum
for professionals and experts in the field.
In
particular, the ASNM aims to advocate innovative
scientific and technical knowledge, such
as PET/cyclotron technology, to developing
and less developed Asian nations. PET
technology has already become an important
diagnostic tool for staging disease, evaluating
the treatment effects and the long-term
follow-up of cancer patients in developed
nations. Clinical PET significantly
reduced national medical costs by detecting
cancer in its early stages, preventing unnecessary
surgery, modifying the optimal treatment
protocol and allowing for effective advancements
like PET/cyclotron technology, the countries
of Asia will be able to confidence in the
benefits of such diagnostic modalities and
of nuclear medicine as a whole will increase,
whereby remedying the chronic issue of stagnant
nuclear medicine development in the region.
The
IAEA too welcomed plans for establishment
of an ASNM, citing its essentiality, and
pledges its support. The ARCCNM has
begun the process of structuring the ASNM
and has selected Dr. Felix Sundram as Dean.
Selection of 6 to 7 Vice Deans, each
from a participating country, will follow
shortly. Cooperation by the member
states in regards to the ASNM has been greatly
appreciated, and we ask for sustained support,
as assembling a proper framework is crucial
in the initial stages of the ASNM. Success
of the ASNM will allow for the manifestation
of the Council¡¯s objectives of advocating
the benefits of nuclear medicine to the
rest of the world. Consequently, the
ARCCNM along with the ASNM may act as prototypes
for the establishment of similar regional
organizations and schools in the Middle
East, Northern and Sub-Sahara Africa, Eastern
Europe and Central Asia.
Recently,
at the 4th Executive Board Meeting in Dhaka,
Bangladesh, Dr. June-Key Chung (Korea) was
elected as the new Chairman of the ARCCNM.
Delegates and member state proxies
unanimously approved his election at the
1st Delegate Assembly. The former chairman,
Dr. Myung-Chul Lee, was established as the
Honorary Chairman of the ARCCNM. Other
former Executive Board members were established
as members of an Advisory Group so that
they may continue to support ARCCNM activities.
Revision
of the Constitution was a key issue at both
of the above-mentioned meetings. Although
the Constitution had been effective for
the first two years of ARCCNM, the Executive
Board found it was seemingly necessary to
reorganize the structure of the Council
to the increase its overall effectiveness.
As a result, an Organizing Committee
of the ARCCNM was newly established and
leadership for this committee was appointed.
Nomination of Dr. Sang-Moo Lim (Korea)
by Dr. Chung for the positions of Secretary
General and Treasurer were approved. Dr.
Sang-Moo Lim also volunteered to participate
as a Working Group member for two years.
Furthermore, at the request of the
Chairman, young, active members were nominated
as representatives of the 10 main member
states in the Organizing Committee. The
members of Organizing Committee are as follows:
Dr. Shuji Tanada (Japan), Dr. Zuoxiang He
(China), Dr. Mai Trong Khoa (Vietnam), Dr.
Jose Eduardo Rondain (Phillipines), Dr.
Nan-Jing Peng (Taiwan), Dr. Tawatchai Chaiwatanarat
(Thailand), Dr. Faridul Alam (Bangladesh),
Vikram R. Lele (India), Dr. Hussein S. Kartamihardja
(Indonesia) and one member from Pakistan.
Commitment
of the Council
Asia
is a region aspiring to flourish in nuclear
medicine practice and scientific activity
and holds a great future for growth in the
field. Yet, due to the overwhelming differences
of each individual nation in Asia in regards
to economy, geography and culture, it remains
a struggle to coordinate a unified network
in promoting nuclear medicine development.
Success in Asia most certainly means
success in other developing and less developed
regions of the world. Therefore, unrelenting
commitment and endeavors by the ARCCNM are
necessary to reduce heterogeneity in Asia
and to increase harmony and exchange for
the overall progress of nuclear medicine
internationally.
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