My name is Hiroaki Ikeda, Professor of Oncology, and I am honored to serve as Dean of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Nagasaki University.

　At the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, our mission is clear and enduring: to advance discovery that improves human health and contributes to planetary health, and to cultivate the next generation of scientists, clinicians, and leaders who will shape that future.

　From Nagasaki, we aspire to generate knowledge with global significance. Through rigorous scholarship and interdisciplinary collaboration, we seek to contribute not only to advances in medicine and life sciences, but also to the broader well-being of societies worldwide.

　We live in a period of extraordinary transformation in biomedical science. The rapid expansion of data-driven multi-omics research, the growing sophistication of human specimen–based investigation, and the integration of advanced data science—including artificial intelligence—across nearly every scientific domain are redefining the possibilities of research. The scale, complexity, and velocity of scientific discovery continue to accelerate at an unprecedented pace.

　These changes create remarkable opportunities for innovation. Yet they also present important challenges. Differences in institutional resources and research environments risk widening disparities in scientific opportunity and competitiveness. In Japan, universities and research institutions face additional pressures, including constrained funding, reduced academic positions, increasing clinical demands, and declining numbers of trainees entering research-intensive pathways. Together, these trends underscore an urgent responsibility: to strengthen the environment in which the next generation of researchers can thrive. Nagasaki University is uniquely positioned to meet this moment.

　As a comprehensive graduate school integrating medicine, dentistry, pharmaceutical sciences, health sciences, tropical medicine, and radiation medicine, we possess exceptional breadth and intellectual diversity. Over the years, we have advanced our educational and research mission through nationally recognized initiatives, including the 21st Century COE Program, the Global COE Program, the Program for Leading Graduate Schools, and the WISE Program. These efforts have enabled the creation of innovative educational platforms and interdisciplinary programs, including joint graduate initiatives in disaster and radiation medical sciences and advanced preventive medicine. We have also expanded our global footprint through the establishment of new educational and research hubs, including the TMGH campus. At the same time, Nagasaki University has embraced a bold commitment to planetary health—an approach that recognizes the deep interconnection between human health, society, and the environment

　Through interdisciplinary initiatives that bring together expertise in medicine, engineering, environmental science, economics, sociology, and data science, we are helping to address the most pressing challenges of our time. The Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences is proud to play a central role in this effort. This year marks twenty-five years since the founding of the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in 2002. A quarter century later, we stand at an important inflection point. As the research landscape and societal needs continue to evolve, we must evolve with them—ambitiously, thoughtfully, and together. Guided by that conviction, we will pursue three defining priorities:

1.    Advancing the true integration of medicine, dentistry, and pharmaceutical sciences.

2.    Creating an environment where students discover the excitement and joy of science.

3.    Building a scholarly community where researchers find purpose and fulfillment in scientific inquiry.

　Our ambitions extend beyond Nagasaki. We seek to engage, compete, and contribute at the national and global level.

　Above all, we are committed to creating an environment in which every student and researcher has meaningful access to opportunity, where scientific curiosity is nurtured, and where clinician-scientists and investigators can pursue discovery with rigor, gratitude, responsibility, and a deep sense of purpose.

　The future of biomedical science will be shaped by institutions that cultivate talent, embrace collaboration, and pursue excellence with courage and imagination. We are committed to ensuring that the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Nagasaki University is among them.