María Dolores García, UCAM President, and Javier Cánovas, Director General of Fundación UAPO, have signed a collaboration agreement at the Los Jerónimos Campus for the development of research projects and internships for students in Health Sciences programmes.

The agreement envisages the launch of research projects focused on generating scientific evidence on the benefits of the multidisciplinary support programmes for cancer patients that UAPO runs at its centres. These programmes integrate psychological care, adapted physical exercise, nutritional advice and physiotherapy, with the aim of improving the quality of life of patients during cancer treatment. The development of these research projects, in which researchers and professionals from different areas will work together, will enable the training of new doctors and the production of high-impact publications.

Javier Cánovas praised the signing of this agreement, stating that ‘UCAM will help us in the social work we do with cancer patients and, in turn, its students will be able to do practical training at our centres to become qualified professionals in the field of integrative oncology, establishing close collaboration on research projects’. Along the same lines, Estrella Núñez, UCAM Vice-Rector of Research, stressed that ‘the research we will develop under this agreement is very important, but what is even more important is the mark it will leave on our students, who will be able to care for cancer patients during their internships, people who give us real lessons in life’. 

UCAM offers training in key areas for this collaboration, such as Bachelor's Degrees in Physiotherapy, Nutrition, Psychology, Medicine, Nursing, Occupational Therapy and Physical Activity and Sports Sciences; and a Master's Degree in Therapeutic Physical Activity, which will enrich both the educational experience of the students and the multidisciplinary approach to patient care that characterises Fundación UAPO.

Currently, Fundación UAPO has active centres in cities such as Granada, Elche and Madrid, treating more than 1,200 patients free of charge through integrative oncology, and is looking into setting up a new centre in the Region of Murcia.