Contact: Will Sansom
Phone: (210) 567-2579
E-mail: sansom@uthscsa.edu

(L-R) Dr. William Henrich, Dr. Francisco Cigarroa and Dr. José Narro sign the UTHSCSA-UNAM Agreement of Cooperation.
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The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) announced an Agreement of Cooperation between their schools of medicine Sept. 22. The agreement, which will remain in effect for three years, includes provisions for student exchanges, co-sponsored educational programs and joint research activities.

Francisco G. Cigarroa, M.D., president of the Health Science Center, and William L. Henrich, M.D., M.A.C.P., dean of the School of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs, welcomed Dr. José Narro Robles, dean of the UNAM School of Medicine; Dr. Malachias López Cervantes, associate dean; and Dr. Joaquín López Barcena, dean of community services, to the Health Science Center for the ceremony and tours of Health Science Center laboratories.

The leaders said they were proud to partner in areas of interest and benefit to both institutions and countries. Students who will become tomorrow’s physicians will be enriched, ultimately resulting in improved health for patients in both Mexico and the United States, they said. Dr. Cigarroa also noted that the agreement is consistent with The University of Texas System’s strategic plan, which calls for expanding global initiatives.

The Agreement of Cooperation signed Sept. 22 is part of a larger agreement that Dr. Juan Ramón de la Fuente, rector of UNAM, and Dr. Cigarroa signed on Sept. 4, 2001 in Mexico City. The new document states that, “The purpose of the cooperation between UNAM and the Health Science Center is to promote interest in teaching and research activities in the field of medicine.”

The agreement further states these goals:
• Carry out joint research activities as possible and appropriate;
• Promote institutional exchanges by inviting faculty of the partner institutions to support and strengthen postgraduate programs and research activities;
• Interchange students at the appropriate educational level of the partner institution for periods of study and/or research;
• Co-sponsor courses, workshops and academic seminars;
• Exchange bibliographic information to support teaching and research activities and student development at each institution.

The Health Science Center has a long history of involvement with institutions of higher learning in Mexico. Dr. Cigarroa visited UNAM in Mexico City in February this year, and Dr. De la Fuente visited the Health Science Center in 2002.

In Monterrey, urologist Dr. Ian Thompson’s Health Science Center team has screened hundreds of men for prostate cancer. Dr. Thompson leads the San Antonio Center of Biomarkers of Risk for Prostate Cancer (SABOR for short), one of the largest prostate cancer studies in the world. His team members have interacted closely with urologists in practice in Monterrey. The goal of SABOR is to find new biomarkers of the disease in men before they are diagnosed.

Other Health Science Center research projects in Nuevo León focus on schizophrenia, lupus and microbial biofilms.

In September 2005, Dr. Cigarroa visited Ciudad Victoria, Tamaulipas, to sign an agreement for a master’s degree program in infectious diseases. The Health Science Center is providing assistance to establish the program at the University of Tamaulipas medical school branch in Reynosa, across the border from McAllen. The courses will be taught by Tamaulipas university faculty. The master’s degree program will focus on tuberculosis and other infectious diseases that occur with regularity along the U.S.-Mexico border.

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The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio is the leading research institution in South Texas and one of the major health sciences universities in the world. With an operating budget of $500 million, the Health Science Center is the chief catalyst for the $14 billion biosciences and health care industry, the leading sector in San Antonio’s economy. The Health Science Center has had an estimated $34 billion impact on the region since inception and has expanded to six campuses in San Antonio, Laredo, Harlingen and Edinburg. More than 20,500 graduates (physicians, dentists, nurses, scientists and allied health professionals) serve in their fields, including many in Texas. Health Science Center faculty are international leaders in cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, aging, stroke prevention, kidney disease, orthopaedics, research imaging, transplant surgery, pain management, genetics, nursing, allied health, dentistry and many other fields. For more information, click on www.uthscsa.edu.

The Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) is the most important university in the country and Latin America because of its history, its strong educational influence on the majority of other universities, and the quality of the research it undertakes. Remarkably, UNAM is responsible for 50 percent of the nation’s research and has educated several Nobel Prize recipients. It is recognized for the number and diversity of the cultural activities it carries out and its broad range of study programs and curricula in various educational levels. The National Autonomous University of Mexico has been the most significant academic institution in the foundation and development of the nation. The London Times ranked UNAM as one of the top 100 universities of the world. Amongst its accolades, UNAM houses Mexico’s most important buildings, including the National Library, and possesses renowned scientific and artistic collections.