Rutgers University and RWJBarnabas Health will partner with Hiroshima University to collaborate on cancer research and education, Gov. Phil Murphy announced on Sunday as part of his first full day on an economic trade mission to Japan and South Korea.
The agreement permits an exchange of researchers and a sharing of technology and research methods on digestive tract cancer clinical trials.
“With today’s ceremony, we will establish a new, cross-continental partnership — one that will enable our top minds in New Jersey to engage and exchange ideas with researchers here in Hiroshima,” said Murphy. “In the years to come, I am confident that this partnership will lead to important breakthroughs, especially when it comes to caring for cancer patients in New Jersey, Japan, and around the world.”
RWJBarnabas Health is New Jersey’s largest academic health system, and Hiroshima University, one of Japan’s premier public research institutions. RWJBarnabas Health has been working with Rutgers on medical research since 2018.
“We are transcending traditional academic boundaries to foster and advance clinical research and education with the ultimate goal of improving health outcomes internationally,” said Mark Manigan, the president and CEO of RWJBarnabas Health.
Brian Strom, the chancellor of Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, said the partnership offers strategic opportunities for all parties.
The agreement won the praise of Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. Ambassador to Japan.
“In a world where boundaries are becoming increasingly blurred, it’s collaborations like these that remind us of the power of knowledge and the pursuit of innovation are worthy endeavors,” Emanuel said.
Murphy and New Jersey corporate leaders are on a nine-day trade mission sponsored by Choose New Jersey. Manigan was accompanied by George Helmy, Murphy’s former chief of staff and now the executive vice president of RWJBarnabas Health.
“Research is at the heart of New Jersey’s standing as a leading global innovation hub,” said Wesley Mathews, the Choose New Jersey CEO and president. “Today, we take another step in strengthening our state’s innovation ecosystem with a leading Japanese research university.”