Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry

Since April 2021, I have served as president of the Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry (JSCC). Thanks to the support and cooperation of JSCC members and other parties, we have grown the society through our scientific activities. I would like to express my deepest gratitude.

The JSCC has focused on developing young members who will become future leaders of the organization. To this end, we have established the Young Investigator Development Committee, launched nationwide webinars, and created the JSCC Student Award. Furthermore, thanks to a generous donation from Special Honorary Member Dr. Kayoko Sudo, we initiated a research support program through the Kayoko Sudo Fund for Young Investigator Development Grants last year. Additionally, we formally joined the Japan Federation of Pharmaceutical Sciences Societies in April 2024. As a result, our membership has steadily grown to exceed 2,000 members by the time of the annual meeting held in Nagoya last November.

For many years, the JSCC has played a vital role in the standardization of clinical laboratory testing. The Compendium of JSCC Reference Methods was first published in 2004 as a supplement to Rinsyo Kagaku, the official journal of the JSCC. Subsequent editions were published in book form in 2012 and 2020. Recent advances in clinical laboratory testing have necessitated revisions to the JSCC reference methods. We currently plan to revise and publish the 2026 edition.

In the field of education, the JSCC has formally agreed to cooperate with the e-Learning program “Learning Lab in Laboratory Medicine”, led by ADLM (formerly AACC) and involving clinical chemistry societies worldwide. We have signed a contract with Area9 in Denmark, and we are now working on translating the English version of this program into Japanese while considering its integration into JSCC certification programs.

Furthermore, the JSCC is actively engaged in international standardization activities. Specifically, we are collaborating with the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry (IFCC) to promote global Lp(a) standardization and transition from mass units to the International System of Units (SI). Our goal is to achieve this standardization before Lp(a)-lowering drugs become widely used in clinical applications. Additionally, we are advancing C-peptide standardization studies through joint research with the University of Missouri in the United States.

Meanwhile, the Pitfall Research Committee has collected and analyzed abnormal data encountered in clinical laboratories. The results have been officially published in an analysis manual supplementing Rinsyo Kagaku. Additionally, a collection of case studies is available for free on the JSCC website. We hope our members find these reference materials useful.

The JSCC will continue to strengthen its cooperation with members, as well as with related academic organizations and companies in Japan and abroad. Our mission is to contribute to the development of clinical chemistry and to improve the quality of medical care. We look forward to your continued guidance and support.

Respectfully,

Takashi Miida, MD, Ph.D.
President of Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry
(Juntendo University Graduate School of Medicine)

About Us

Clinical chemistry is an academic discipline that sees practical application in the clinical setting. In addition to forming the basis of services providing chemical analysis results for medical care in the daily clinical setting, it aids the elucidation of disease etiologies and pathologies and contributes to treatment and prevention. Thus, having various academic and practical aspects and including both analytical chemistry and clinical medicine, clinical chemistry is very wide ranging, and there is much interaction with other academic disciplines. Therefore, it does not only involve researchers in university and other research institutions but also those in various research laboratories such as those in hospitals and individual clinical departments, and industry research institutions.

Our Goals

The Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry was established for the purpose of promoting advances in clinical chemistry and related areas. Giving full consideration to research in the various specialized areas that constitute clinical chemistry, we aim to achieve information sharing that will bring about further organic integration so that, together, we can make an even greater contribution to medical care and medical science. In this regard, we established the company membership system in fiscal 2006 to strengthen cooperation with industry.

Fundamental Activities

The members of the Japanese Society of Clinical Chemistry engage in close cooperation in order to achieve an understanding of each other’s specialist areas and exchange ideas covering a wide range of clinical chemistry aspects. We are also active in holding events such as annual scientific meetings, and issue an academic journal titled Clinical Chemistry. The Society also has various technical committees and project teams that are involved in multidisciplinary and specialized research. In addition, we have nine branches nationwide to promote activities at the local level.

International Activities

The Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry is a member of the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (IFCC) and the Asia Pacific Federation of Clinical Biochemistry (APFCB). In addition, we continually engage in activities on an international level together with the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry - Clinical Chemistry Div (IUPAC - CCD) and the International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (IUBMB). In 2002, the 18th International Congress of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (ICCC) was held in Kyoto.

Our History

The Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry has a history of over 50 years, which began with the holding of the first "Medicinal Chemistry Symposium" in 1961. However, our history actually goes back a little further to the holding of the first "Clinical Chemistry Analysis Discourse Meeting" a voluntary meeting of a study group in Tokyo in 1957. This was expanded to become a nationwide activity through the holding of summer and winter seminars. The name of the academic meeting was changed from “Medical Chemistry Symposium” to “Clinical Chemistry Symposium” in 1971. This organization later joined forces with the “Japan Clinical Chemistry Study Group, which was established for the publication of our journal, titled "Clinical Chemistry". The Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry was formed though the merging of the “Clinical Chemistry Analysis Discourse Meeting”, “Clinical Chemistry Symposium” and “Japan Clinical Chemistry Study Group”, in 1981.

Japan Society of Clinical Chemistry