Breakthrough Research and Innovations to be presented at XXIII International
Congress of The Transplantation Society

VANCOUVER, July 28 /CNW/ - The XXIII International Congress of The Transplantation Society is the premier educational and scientific event in the fields of organ and tissue donation and transplantation (OTDT). This conference, sponsored by The Transplantation Society (TTS), will take place August 15 to 19, 2010, featuring up to 5,000 attendees from around the world, at the Vancouver Convention Centre in downtown Vancouver, BC.

The International Congress of The Transplantation Society will include Nobel and Gairdner Laureates, keynote speakers, addresses by leading scientists, and specialist seminars with close to one thousand presentations covering crucial data in transplantation science and medicine. Controversial topics and important new research will be offered daily coupled with vital information evaluating Canada's organ donation and transplantation systems compared to the international community's progressive strategies.

"The XXIII International Congress promises to be an unprecedented meeting in terms of quality and content, and at the forefront of discovery and development in organ transplantation around the world," said Dr. Paul Keown, Chair of the Congress.

    
    Notable presentations throughout the conference include:
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    Stem Cells - How far are we from growing our own?

    -   The wonderful potential of pluripotent stem cells in organ
        regeneration and transplantation - generating new organs using stem
        cells and gene technologies
    -   Advances in bone marrow and stem cell transplantation, and the
        exciting use of bone marrow cells to produce tolerance

    New Technologies and Techniques - the impact they are having on Transplant
Medicine

    -   Islet transplantation - the hope for many with diabetes
    -   Use of artificial hearts as a life saving bridge to transplantation
    -   Gene therapy is restoring damaged lungs for transplantation - how
        Canada is leading the world
    -   Investing in genome technologies is unraveling novel means of
        transplant rejection  - identifying new targets for drug treatments
    -   The new field of composite tissue transplantation - how
        transplantation is replacing hands, faces and other tissues
    -   Patient selection for composite tissue transplantation - a cautious
        and demanding process

    Expanding the Donor Pool to Meet the Need - How far can we push the
barriers?

    -   Anonymous living organ donation - what's new?
    -   The rapid increase in systems to help people trade living donors in
        order to find a match - can it meet the need?
    -   Expanding living donor transplantation beyond just kidneys
    -   Using one liver to save more than one life - the benefits of split
        organ donor transplants
    -   Geographical and societal factors influencing access to
        transplantation in emerging and advanced countries
    

Media Advisories will be issued daily, outlining "hot" topics throughout the conference.

Media must be registered to attend the XXIII International Congress of the Transplantation Society. Media can register at the media centre located in Meeting room 113 of the Conference Centre.

Please visit www.transplantation2010.org and visit the Media Section to download the Media accreditation form, or contact Curve Communications for details. Media interviews are available.

For more information about the XXIII International Congress of the Transplantation Society, please visit www.transplantation2010.org. For information on the Transplantation Society, visit www.tts.org. Visit www.transplantation2010.org/ScientificProgram.html for the complete conference program schedule.

For further information: MEDIA ENQUIRIES: Curve Communications, George Affleck, T: 604.684.3170 ext. 103, C: 604.618.4496, [email protected]; Curve Communications, Sophia Cheng, T: 604.684.3170 ext. 104, C: 604.828.3102, [email protected]