It’s not often you get invited to a meeting of some of the leading scientists, ethicists, philosophers and faith leaders in the world so when the call comes in it’s an easy one to answer. Particularly when the call is from the Vatican.

Maria T. Millan, MD, President and CEO of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), will be part of a panel discussion at the Fourth International Vatican Conference at Vatican City, Rome. The conference, titled: Unite To Cure: How Science, Technology and 21st Century Medicine Will Impact Culture and Society, runs from April 26-28 in Rome.

Maria T. Millan, MD

“It is a tremendous honor to be part of this historic event,” says Dr. Millan. “CIRM funds the science and development of transformative cell and gene therapies for patients with unmet medical needs so it will be important to be part of the global conversation during such a propitious time in the history of medicine.”

“We’re thrilled to bring together the world’s best scientists, doctors, ethicists and leaders of faith, business, government and philanthropy to this extraordinary global event at The Vatican,” says Dr. Robin Smith, President of The Cura Foundation, the event organizer in partnership with the Vatican. “It’s a Davos for health care, and over the course of three days we will rally the world around a very simple idea — that tomorrow’s cures are just around the corner, and by uniting together and understanding the challenges that lie ahead, we can speed the delivery of cures and foster great hope for patients all over the world suffering from deadly diseases and dangerous medical conditions.”

Dr. Millan will be part of a panel discussion titled, Public Private Partnerships to Accelerate Discoveries. The panel will be moderated by award-winning medical journalist Max Gomez, PhD., and will include David Mazzo, PhD, CEO of Caladrius Biosciences, and David Pearce, PhD, the Executive VP for Research at Sanford Health.

The topic for this panel is particularly well suited for CIRM, an agency that is devoted to accelerating stem cell treatments to patients with unmet medical needs. CIRM has funded over 800 projects and over 45 novel stem cell and regenerative medicine clinical trials. It delivers a predictable and expedited funding mechanism, an active partnership and advisory role, strategic infrastructure, involvement of key opinion leaders and patient representatives and an industry alliance program, all to increase the chances of success for its programs and for the patients who would benefit.

To learn more about Unite To Cure: The Fourth International Vatican Conference, please visit: http://vaticanconference2018.com. Or, you can follow the event on Twitter @CuraFdn and on Facebook at facebook.com/TheCuraFoundation, and join the conversation with #UnitetoCure.