Preface

Dear Colleagues:

On behalf of the organizing committee, I am pleased to invite you all to participate in the 12th Japanese Society of Hematology (JSH) International Symposium. This symposium will be held at Kamakura Prince Hotel in the sea-side region of Kamakura City, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, on May 14 and 15, 2021. The theme is "Diversity of molecular targets and immunotherapy".
Treatment using molecularly targeted agents and immunotherapy for blood cancers has been developing as a herald to all cancers. Agents that preferentially target the genes and proteins that are important for leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma cell proliferation are increasing. The development of molecularly targeted therapeutic agents and immunotherapy as novel treatments for hematological cancer is the most advanced.
Bidirectional research in hematology and immunology is creating new drugs one after another, leading to the development of molecularly targeted therapeutic drugs with new concepts and immunotherapeutic methods.
The discovery of new molecular pathologies and the development of new drugs based on these mechanisms are rapidly progressing, and the diversity of molecularly targeted drugs has influenced the diversity of immunotherapy using CAR-T cell therapy.
In the era when many new therapies for hematological diseases are being created, we hope that the participants will have a meaningful discussion by understanding the characteristics of new immunotherapy by re-visiting hematopoiesis, carcinogenesis and immunity.
This symposium also includes two joint sessions: one between the JSH and the American Society of Hematology (ASH) and the other between the JSH and the European Hematology Association (EHA). We will offer a poster session and numerous networking opportunities.
Kamakura City faces Sagami Bay and is surrounded by mountains on all three sides. You can see Enoshima Island nearby and Mt. Fuji in the distance. The shogun entered this area in 1180, and Kamakura became the capital in 1192, aiming at "Samurai politics for samurai by samurai". For the 150 years since then, Kamakura has been in the spotlight as the center of Japanese politics. I look forward to participating in the 2021 International Symposium in Kamakura with you.

Koiti Inokuchi, President
The 12th JSH International Symposium