PRESENTATION

PRESENTATION

JUAN MIGUEL ESTRADA GRUESO, M.D.
Dean Faculty of Medicine
Director Revista Med

In this number of Revista Med I wish to point out some events that significatively influence the academic process of the faculty and which consolidate us as an institution which actively participates in the formation of future medical professionals at the pre and post graduate levels, inducing us in time to not give up on the constant task, honest and committed as needed to reach excellence.

I would like to start by sharing with you the recent recognition granted to Med, our serial scientific publication, reclassified and elevated to category A-2 in Publindex of Colciencias, achievement that fi lls us with pride and for all of the members of the Publication Committee, headed by the Editor, Professor Enrique Melgarejo Rojas, this is the motivation that guides us to continue the editorial and scientific strengthening, towards the goal of increasing the visibility of the journal (which improves the recognition of our investigators), but also to the advancement of the publishing policies, which with solid quality criteria, scientific rigor, equanimity and interdiscipline, will take the Colombian scientific publications to increase their competitiveness.

I also must point out the alliance between our University and the National Cancer Institute, an institution that has been a pioneer and the leader in the management of oncologic pathologies in this country, and which, 75 years after its founding, continues as a solid entity assisting the Ministry of Social Protection and functioning as a Hospital of a high level of complexity taking care of patients from the entire country, with the fundamental purpose to provide them with the integral care of their disease and to promote lines of investigation oriented to the prevention and control of such a devastating disease within the national context. To achieve these objectives, we share with the National Cancer Institute the conviction of how important it is the formation and capacitation of the human element, the strengthening of research and technological development, as well as the promotion and implementation of health policies that promulgate the improvement of the health of Colombians. These are achievements, which we are confi dent, can be achieved, taking into account the high scientific quality and the dedication of the professionals formed in that institution. This is an academic union which will allow us to present to the Ministry of National Education approximately fi fteen programs of postgraduate formation in Oncology, which, after a judicious academic exercise, will be submitted for evaluation in the next few months, seeking to obtain the academic accreditation of their quality.

Finally, it is our pleasure to invite Dr. Camacho to serve as guest Editor for this special Oncology Issue. Dr. Camacho graduated from our Medical School in 1988 and started a career in Cancer Medicine at The George Washington University Medical Center where he completed his residency before joining Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York as a fellow in Hematology and Medical Oncology - Drug Development until 2001. Dr. Camacho subsequently moved to Houston where he served as faculty at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in the Departments of Bioimmunotherapy, Melanoma, and Phase I until August of 2007 when he took a position as Director of Research for Oncology Consultants in Houston. His work has been published in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cancer, Chemotherapy and Pharmacology, Expert Opinion in Investigational Drugs, Journal of Translational Medicine, British Journal of Cancer, Clinical Cancer Research, Annals of Surgical Oncology, Investigational New Drugs, American Journal of Medicine, and others. Dr. Camacho is member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology's scientific immunotherapy committee and a study section of the National Cancer Institute.