The rector of Unicamp, professor Antonio José de Almeida Meirelles, the Minister of Health, Nísia Trindade, and the director of the National Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), Antonio José Roque, began negotiations this Tuesday afternoon (17) to establish a partnership between the institutions aiming at the use of proton therapy in the treatment of cancer.
Proton therapy uses proton beams to destroy cancer cells with minimal damage to healthy tissue. The future agreement also provides for the production of supplies for nuclear medicine – a specialty that uses radioactive materials to diagnose and treat diseases.
The rector said he was optimistic about the future of the partnership. “I believe that together we can form a strong front for innovation, in which health is perhaps the main focus,” said Meirelles. “The possibilities for CNPEM are enormous. Furthermore, health is Unicamp’s largest area. We know the social impact that this could have on our country.”
According to the director of CNPEM, one of the center's objectives is to create low-cost equipment that can be used in the public health system, transforming the Campinas region into a hub for the development of medical equipment.
“I am very happy with this partnership because it makes no sense for institutions like CNPEM and Unicamp not to align themselves very closely with the objective of solving some of the country's problems in the health area,” said Roque.
Trindade stated that the Ministry of Health has sought to get closer to higher education institutions.
“Having the support of universities is something that we have been seeking very hard at the ministry, and this has been happening through the construction of networks. Oncology requires this network model. Doing this and, at the same time, articulating the health industrial complex with cutting-edge technologies is everything that the Ministry of Health has proposed,” said the minister.
For the mayor of Campinas, Dário Saadi, who also participated in the event, any initiative that results in an expansion of services is welcome. “It is important to know that the Ministry of Health is expanding services in oncology. And this partnership that CNPEM has established in proton therapy is essential for us,” he said. “May Campinas become a center for serving the population and producing technology for the health sector – something so important for a country like Brazil.”
Hospital
The superintendent of the Hospital das Clínicas (HC) at Unicamp, Elaine Ataíde, presented a plan to the Minister of Health to build an oncology center for adults in Campinas. The new hospital, which she called the Oncology Institute, would serve a region where around 7 million people live and would be, in Ataíde's words, a way of tackling chronic problems such as the lack of beds and specialized centers.
According to the project, the new hospital could expand diagnostics and offer medical monitoring through the use of new therapies and new technologies and, therefore, contribute to reducing waiting lists.
The new hospital would serve the Regional Health Department (DRS) of Campinas, São João da Boa Vista and Piracicaba.
According to data presented by the superintendent, the pressure for care at HC has increased without any corresponding infrastructure contribution. The number of hospitalizations, for example, rose from 11.535 in 2022 to 12.089 last year. Compared to 2020, the year the COVID-19 pandemic began, the increase was 21,4%.
The number of radiotherapy sessions also increased: from 10.821 in 2022 to 11.111 the following year. And there was an increase in the number of laboratory appointments and imaging exams. According to the data, at least 250 people are currently on the waiting list for medical treatment at DRS-Campinas.
