The UVic-UCC, the Faculty of Medicine and the Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology sign a collaboration agreement on cancer research

The University of Vic - Central University of Catalonia (UVic-UCC), the Faculty of Medicine and the Vall d'Hebron Institute of Oncology research centre (VHIO) signed an agreement at the University's Faculty of Medicine at noon last Wednesday. The agreement, which encompasses academic aspects as well as research and knowledge transfer, was signed by the president of the Foundation for Advanced Health Sciences Studies (FESS), Josep Arimany, the rector of the UVic-UCC, Josep-Eladi Baños, and the director of VHIO, Josep Tabernero.

According to Arimany, who chaired the event, it is "great news that a leading institution like the VHIO decided to trust a regional project like ours: a young and very enthusiastic Faculty of Medicine." Tabernero, who is also the head of the oncology service at Vall d'Hebron hospital in Barcelona, explained that the agreement has three basic pillars. The first is promoting clinical research "so that patients have the best treatments in Vic or in Manresa, and more precise diagnoses are made," he said. The second is the academic pillar, which entails Tabernero becoming a tenured lecturer on the subject of Oncology-Hematology in the bachelor's degree course in Medicine, and providing "advanced training for professionals linked to the University and hospital centres." Finally, the third pillar involves promoting translational research to foster "early diagnosis and forecasts for timescales, as well as how to better determine the causes of the disease."

Tabernero highlighted "the pedagogical model of the Faculty based on learning from clinical cases" as one of the reasons why he joined the UVic-UCC, and the fact that the two institutions share "a similar model of governance, a private foundation with strong links to the public administration"

The rector of the UVic-UCC, Josep-Eladi Baños, said that the arrival of the VHIO at the University is "very positive" and thanked its president for "coming here to help us move forwards towards excellence." According to Baños, Vic and the Faculty of Medicine are particularly sensitive in terms of placing the patient at the centre of the medical care process.