Media interview on the first day of the exhibition
Living with Disease. Living with Hope. Photography Exhibition" - For the future to create answers that have yet to be seen.
Living with Disease. Living with Hope. On Tuesday, December 12, 2023, the opening day of the exhibition, a media interview was held. The meeting was attended by 11 journalists from 11 companies. At the beginning of the meeting, Mr. Hiroaki Ueno, Chairman of the Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (JPMA), explained the purpose of the exhibition. After the opening remarks by Mr. Takahiro Furukawa of Cancer Institute Hospital, Ms. Erina Hanzawa of CancerX, and Ms. Yuko Mizuta, Representative Director of encyclo, Inc, After welcoming Mr. Harvey Yamaguchi, the photographer who took the portraits for this exhibition, as a guest speaker, a talk session was held on the theme of recent issues in the pharmaceutical and medical fields and his thoughts on the exhibition and the future.
Speakers: From left, Harvey Yamaguchi, Erina Hanzawa, Yuko Mizuta, Takahiro Furukawa, Hiroaki Ueno
Below are comments from the speakers at the media interview session.
Hiroaki Ueno, Chairman, Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association
Treatment is provided by the support of healthcare professionals and those who support the sick, but what is most important is how we can recognize and respond to the thoughts and concerns that each patient has about their illness. In this photo exhibition, we believe it is important to first let people know the thoughts and images of not only the patients, but also the many people involved in their treatment. We hope that the importance of illness, treatment, and support will be widely conveyed to everyone.
Department of Advanced Medical Development, Cancer Institute Hospital
Department of Advanced Medical Development, Cancer Institute Hospital, Ariake, Japan
I have always wondered if it would be possible to develop new drugs more quickly in Japan. There are still few oncologists in Japan who are also members of the Japanese Society of Clinical Oncology (JSMO), and I believe that if the number of oncologists responsible for drug development increases, the possibilities for drug development will further expand. I believe that there are many ways in which JSMO can cooperate with the theme of this photo exhibition.
Ms. Erina Hanzawa, co-chairperson and co-founder of CancerX
We at CancerX are working daily to design a society where people do not feel upset when they are told they have cancer, and we are also involved in conference projects. We are very grateful for the opportunity to cooperate in this photo exhibition.
CancerX Belongs to CancerX, operates the brand "MAEÈ," which was launched as a result of my cancer experience.
Ms. Yuko Mizuta, Representative Director, encyclo Inc.
I participated in this event as a cervical cancer survivor. Due to the treatment, I developed lymphedema, an aftereffect of the treatment that causes lifelong swelling. I have started this company with the intention of using this experience to help people suffering from the same condition to enjoy their lives even after treatment.
Photographer Mr. Harvey Yamaguchi
When I was shooting, I thought that people who are living their lives for one thing have very good expressions on their faces. As a photographer, I felt this keenly. This time, I believe I was able to capture the beautiful expressions of people who are living desperately and with purpose. I hope to continue capturing the presence of these people and the value of their lives.
Talk Session
After the greetings, we held a talk session about this photo exhibition. The participants in this photo session varied from being active in the medical field to supporting patients and their families. Mr. Furukawa, Ms. Hanzawa, and Ms. Mizuta introduced their own activities and talked about current issues and other topics.
Mr. Furukawa I am conducting a Phase I clinical trial, which is the first stage of a cancer drug trial," said Yamaguchi. It is difficult to conduct trials in which a new drug is administered to patients for the first time without specialized experience. Therefore, Japan inevitably lags behind in new drug development. As an oncology department, it is an important social responsibility to contribute to new drug development, and we are creating an environment where more young people can gain experience and new drugs can be developed more quickly by using training facilities where they can gain specialized knowledge and experience.
Mr. Hanzawa As more and more people return to their daily lives after undergoing cancer treatment due to the development of medical care, what to do with their lives after that is also a major issue. We are aiming to build a platform where diverse people can participate in discussions that include how to support their families and others around them and how to work together with them.
Mr. MizutaWhen you experience cancer or any disease, you suffer from a variety of symptoms, but I actually believe that this experience can be a positive one for you as an expert in the health care field. In diseases that are long-lasting, many people actually lead healthier lives than they did before they were afflicted because they work closely with their doctors and try to improve their condition day by day. At MAEÈ, we consider such experience and knowledge to be an asset to society as a whole, and we are developing products that will advance the health of not only those who are ill, but also the general public.
We then asked our guest photographer Harvey Yamaguchi, who has consistently worked on the theme of "capturing the hope of life" based on his own long experience with the disease, what thoughts he had in mind when he took the photographs for this exhibition.
Mr. Harvey I honestly thought the expressions on the faces of those with a mission were beautiful when I photographed them this time. I was diagnosed with caries when I was two months old, and I spent a difficult childhood being bullied. But in my late teens, when my doctor told me that I was going to be fine, I felt hope for life for the first time in my life, and I decided to use that as the theme for my photographs, and here I am today.
When we asked Mr. Furukawa, Mr. Hanzawa, and Mr. Mizuta, who cooperated in the filming, about their episodes during the filming, Mr. Furukawa commented with some embarrassment, "They filmed me looking so nice, like I wasn't myself. Mr. Hanzawa said, "I used to specialize in dance, so I had them shoot me dancing," and Mr. Harvey shared his thoughts about Mr. Mizuta's shoot, "Mizuta-san had a wonderful expression with a twinkle in her eye, so I made her an image looking into the future.
We also received messages for those who are dealing with illness from various perspectives and for those who will be visiting the exhibition.
First, Mr. Harvey Yamaguchi said, "I believe that medical professionals and those who provide support are close to God. As long as I live, I will have hope, and my desire to make the world a better place than tomorrow will continue throughout my life," to which Mr. Furukawa replied, "I want to support the patients who come to our hospital so that we can take away their anxiety and provide new treatments as much as possible, and I have a I want to help patients who come to our hospital to get rid of their anxiety as much as possible and provide them with new treatments. I want to make the patients smile as much as possible," said Mr. Hanzawa. "Everyone who was the subject of the exhibition, including myself, has the same direction we are aiming for, but we have different positions, values, and ways of living, and I think each of our existence was affirmed very strongly by Mr. Harvey's photographs. Mr. Mizuta commented, "I thought that even with his illness, Herbie has not lost his unique way of living and his unique way of being, and that he has captured some sparkling and inspirational moments in your photographs. I thought of that when I saw your photos. Although each photographer's position is different, this black-and-white exhibition is full of colorful and colorful worlds. Please visit the exhibition and see for yourself," she commented, expressing her expectations for the exhibition and her hopes for the development of each of the participants in their respective fields.
In closing, Mr. Ueno, Chairman of the Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Japan (PMAJ), gave the following words in his closing remarks: "(The title of this exhibition) "Live with Disease, Live with Hope. Live with Hope." I strongly felt that this can only be achieved with the understanding of the world, not just medicines and medical professionals. We, as a pharmaceutical company, will continue to strive to bring smiles to everyone's faces through research and development of new drugs," he concluded the event.
Even with the development of medical care, there are still issues such as "unmet medical needs," for which no cure has been found, effective drugs have not been developed, and there is a burden associated with treatment, as well as "drug lag/loss," in which drugs approved overseas are not approved in Japan, or are not developed in Japan. The Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Japan (PMAJ) is working to address these issues. The Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of Japan (PMAJ) hopes to increase the number of people who understand these issues by communicating them to the world at large.
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