Message from the Chairman of Organizing Committee

We are pleased to announce that The 19th Scientific Meeting of Asia Pacific Association of Surgical Tissue Banking (APASTB) will be held at Centennial Hall Kyushu University School of Medicine from August 17 (Thursday) to 19 (Saturday), 2023.

The APASTB was established in 1988. Since its establishment in 1988, the APASTB has been working to improve the medical and social infrastructure of tissue transplantation in the Pacific Rim, including the development of APASTB standards for the safety and ethics of tissue transplantation in the Pacific Rim Region.

World Union of Tissue Bank Association (WUTBA) is composed of the American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB), Latin American Association of Tissue Banks (ALABAT), European Association of Tissue and Cell Banks (EATCB), Biotherapeutics Association of Australasia (BAA), APASTB and the observer South African Association of Tissue Banks (SATiBA). As a member of this WUTBA, the APASTB has contributed to the coordination and harmonization of tissue transplantation worldwide.

Currently, tissue banks are required to contribute not only in the field of tissue transplantation such as bone, cartilage, ligament, skin, heart valve, and amnion, but also in the field of cell transplantation and regenerative medicine such as pancreatic islet cells. This society also contributes to the development of these tissue and cell transplantation to maintain people's life and improve their health.

This scientific meeting has been held in 11 countries so far: Japan, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, China, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia, Korea, Hong Kong, and India. This will be the third time the conference will be held in Japan. The theme of the conference is "Let's connect with various countries and fields. Let's take the next step forward in cell and tissue transplantation". In order to advance tissue and cell transplantation medicine around the world, we will be joined by participants from AATB, ALABAT, EATCB, BAA, and SATiBA, as well as physicians, coordinators, and other medical staff from many countries around the Pacific Rim for lively discussions.　

We look forward to your participation

Ken Urabe, MD, PhD.
Chairman of Organizing Committee
The 19th Scientific Meeting of Asia Pacific Association of Surgical Tissue Banking