Keyword: health through research

Top-level skin cancer research acknowledging the individuality of cancer is conducted in Turku. In the studies, the characteristics of cancer are examined at the level of tracers and molecules. This opens up the opportunity to tailor the most suitable treatment for each patient. The studies are rewarding for both the researchers and the research subjects. At best, patients with advanced skin cancer benefit from the new medicinal products used in trials long before these products are in commercial use.

Brain researchers from Turku share a strong passion for research and an ability to utilise state-of-the-art technology. PET imaging has provided a window into brain mechanisms, e.g. the principles of addiction or the progress of multiple sclerosis.  Brain research is connected to the research and practice of patient care at the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital. This enables the researchers to have a firm grasp on what kind of research can help the patients and allows the quick utilisation of newly acquired expertise.

Where top-level research is conducted, the patients also receive first-rate care. Patients’ interest is also based on this same logic when they are selecting a hospital. In the joint orthopaedic research unit of the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital, new and improved methods are developed, which in turn benefits the patients of Tyks Orto – a top-level medical clinic focusing on injuries and diseases of the body's musculoskeletal system. The latest research results from this spring are interesting also to implant manufacturers all over the world.

In early 2020, researchers in the Clinical Microbiology unit of Turku University Hospital heard about the new Sars-CoV-2 virus. They were among the first ones to start developing the diagnostics. With a foundation in the strong diagnostic expertise at the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital (Tyks), the test developed in Turku has had a central role in the fight against the coronavirus.

The coronavirus launched a pandemic, but also a wave of new research. In spring 2020, most virologists around the world started to study the new, unknown virus. The challenge was also taken up at the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital (Tyks). Eighteen months into the pandemic, the number of international medical publications related to the virus in PubMed is already around 170,000, which is a truly exceptional number.

Atrial fibrillation is one of the greatest challenges in cardiology. The atrial fibrillation research is evidence of cardiological expertise in Turku and the involved parties are the University of Turku, the Turku University Hospital Heart Centre, Turku PET Centre, and the hospitals of the Hospital District of Southwest Finland. A smart phone app for observing atrial fibrillation has been engineered in Turku, and there is more to come. This technology is top-quality on a global scale.