The First Mini-IPA Shanghai Forum
The First Mini-IPA Shanghai Forum was successfully held in May 2021
By [Lei Shi, Jia Liu, Dixin Wang]
Edited by [Pilar Acedo]
A Mini-International Photodynamic Association (Mini-IPA) Shanghai Forum was held in Shanghai on May 23, 2021. The forum was organized by the Shanghai Skin Disease Hospital (Tongji University, School of Medicine), the Photodynamic Therapy Research Center and the Chinese Society of Dermatology, and co-organized by the International Photodynamic Association (IPA).
This Mini-IPA Shanghai Forum was the first edition of this type of forum forum in the world. It was a hybrid event, including both options online and onsite participation. Prof. Xiuli Wang, as the congress chairman, invited the IPA President, Prof. Luis Arnaut, to give in the opening session a talk to highlight and introduce the IPA to Chinese scholars. Prof. Luis Arnaut, Prof. Gary Fisher, Prof. Ron Allison, Prof. Ronald Sroka, Prof. Bing Hu, and Dr. Zhi Cao did very excellent presentations on PDT. Prof. Luis Arnaut, Prof. Xiuli Wang, Prof. Ronald Sroka and Dr Lei Shi acted as co-chairs in this forum. More than one hundred participants attended the event on site and more than 3,500 participants attended online.
The opening presentation was delivered online by the IPA President, Prof. Luis Arnaut, who thanked Prof. Xiuli Wang for her invitation. He stated the aims and scopes of IPA which, among others, clearly support preclinical research and clinical applications of photomedicine. He highly praised Prof. Wang’ team for their great efforts in promoting PDT in China.
Mini-IPA chair & speakers
The first talk of the event delivered online by Prof. Arnaut focused on “selecting photosensitizers for specific applications: Tumors, skin diseases, bacteria and virus”. It followed by Dr. Cao Zhi sharing topics on “application and development of PDT in China” on behalf of Prof. Xiuli Wang. Later in the day, Prof. Bing Hu shared his opinion on “progress in photodynamic therapy for bile duct cancer”. Prof. Gary Fisher and Prof. Ron Allison delivered talks on “skin aging”, including PDT studies, and on “tips to get your PDT articles published in peer reviewed journals”, respectively. Moreover, Prof. Ronald Sroka gave an online talk on “Interstitial Photodynamic Therapy –The Munich Experience”.
The success of the first Mini-IPA Shanghai Forum benefited from the strong support of the IPA. It is also a confirmation of the development of PDT in China. We hope there will be more opportunities to bridge the gaps between the Chinese scholars and the IPA. We are also looking forward to the 2023 IPA world congress which will be held in Shanghai.