KYOTO -- The Crown Prince on Thursday attended a pediatric surgery conference in Kyoto and said that he hopes research in the field will aid children and parents in the Pacific region.
"I hope many research results will bring hope to parents and children battling illness in all participating countries," the Crown Prince said during a speech delivered in the opening ceremony of the 34th Annual Meeting of the Pacific Association of Pediatric Surgeons, held at a Kyoto hotel.
He later attended a lecture on the history of modern Japanese surgery given by Shizu Sakai, a medical history professor at Juntendo University.
The conference, which annually attracts pediatric surgeons from the Pacific Rim region, was formed in 1967 to disseminate cutting-edge medical knowhow, exchange information and nurture young pediatric surgeons.
It was the fifth meeting held in Japan, the last being in Kagoshima in 1994