Duarte-based City of Hope is extending its reach to South America.

On April 1, City of Hope, an independent research and treatment center for cancer and diabetes, announced it has reached an education agreement with Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, a cancer center in Sao Paolo, Brazil.
 
The three-year agreement calls for City of Hope to share its specialized cancer expertise with Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein’s oncology residents and clinical staff. City of Hope will provide educational experiences and host multidisciplinary tumor boards. Both institutions will explore potential collaborations in precision oncology and research.

“This agreement marks another milestone moment, allowing City of Hope to extend its mission to eliminate cancer to a new continent,” Harlan Levine, president of strategy and business ventures at City of Hope, said in the announcement. “We hope to collaborate with our Latin American colleagues to improve cancer care outcomes not only in São Paulo, but also throughout Brazil and Latin America.”

City of Hope is one of 51 comprehensive cancer centers in the United States, as designated by the National Cancer Institute.
 
Through its Center for International Medicine, City of Hope has similar arrangements with hospitals in several other nations. Among other things, City of Hope provides these hospitals with treatment programs for specific cancers, training of clinical and administrative staffs, accreditation and certification assistance, and quality and patient safety programs.

This agreement with Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein specifically calls for City of Hope to provide a virtual multidisciplinary tumor board that will initially focus on gastrointestinal, genitourinary, lung and brain cancers.
 
Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein physicians will share specific patient cases with complex issues involving molecular diagnostics, immunotherapy and innovations in cancer care delivery for review and discussion. City of Hope will also provide educational webinars and offer professional training on topics such as genetic testing, supportive care services and nursing.

“We will incorporate City of Hope’s multidisciplinary approach to oncology precision medicine to address the cancer burden in Brazil,” Sidney Klajner, president of Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, said in the announcement.

Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein manages a 600-bed general hospital and 10 satellite units in the greater metropolitan area of São Paulo. It has been ranked as the best hospital in Latin America by the America Economia Business Intelligence Unit for 12 years in a row.