Although the physiological blood brain barrier major role in the regulation of water circulation, several studies have proposed the theory of the cerebral glymphatic system. The suggestion of this system's involvement evoked considerable discussions regarding the regulations of water circulations in the brain. Aquaporine 4, a water protein, plays a central roles in this regulation process. Some interpretations of water regulation in the brain suggest that the circulations of the interstitial fluids is causally linked to Cerebral edema or various cerebral diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis for example.

Neovascularization consists of three processes, namely angiogenesis, arteriogenesis, and vasculogenesis, which are involved in the development and progression of diseases such as cancer growth/metastasis, proliferative retinopathy, and atherosclerosis, and in the process of normal physiological phenomena such as embryonic development, wound healing, corpus luteum, and placenta formation process. For its mechanism and control, hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF-1), which is a transcriptional activator stabilized in a hypoxic state due to disruption of blood flow, plays an important role. Neovascularization has been elucidated to be promoted/suppressed by various growth factors such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), fibroblast growth factor (FGF), angiopoietin (Ang) and its receptors, adhesion molecules such as vascular endothelial (VE) cadherin, and enzymes. On the basis of these findings, treatments aimed at revascularization in ischemic heart disease and severe lower limb ischemia were applied on a global scale. Recently, vasculogenesis has been shown to occur newly from vascular endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) present in the bone marrow and circulating blood, and is used as a cell source for revascularization therapy in many clinical studies. In this article, we describe the basic concepts of neovascularization, revascularization therapy using peripheral blood stem cells for severe limb ischemic disease, and myocardial regeneration therapy, as well as the trial of EPC amplification for enhancing the therapeutic effect and future prospect.

Cancer treatment has become sophisticated and complex; therefore, the nurses responsible for cancer care are required to possess a high degree of expertise. A Certified Nurse Specialist (CNS) in cancer nursing is expected to understand the physical and psychological suffering of cancer patients and their families from the perspective of Quality of Life (QOL). Cancer nursing CNS was the first certified educational course established in Japan in 1998, to educate nurses who can offer high level of cancer nursing practice based on cancer specific knowledge and skills.

There are 656 registered Cancer nursing CNSs in Japan, which represents approximately 40 % of the total CNSs. This is the largest group among 11 specialties. Cancer nursing CNSs work primarily in hospitals, but they are becoming more active in a wide range of fields such as home-visit nursing stations.

CNSs are expected to perform six roles, such as advanced clinical practice, consultation, coordination, ethical decision making, education, and research. At Tokyo Women's Medical University, we engage in education to develop competencies that are important to perform these roles. CNSs are expected to possess clinical reasoning skills, advanced nursing practice, advanced communication skills, critical thinking skills, negotiation power, and presentation skills. Therefore, we teach these skills through lectures, seminars, and practicum with problem-based learning (PBL), team-based learning (TBL), small group work, and role play.

A cancer education program for 5^th and 6^th grade elementary students has been delivered by the Cancer Professional Course at Teikyo University since 2013. The one-day program has taken place annually on the last Saturday in July. Students visit the campus voluntarily in order to participate and attend the lessons. The cancer education program aims to encourage students to contemplate "well-being" through learning about health and cancer, in order to find their role as one of their community. The program mainly consists of hands-on learning that covers laparoscopy, pathology, and palliative care as well as a one-hour hospital tour. Each year 39 to 58 students participated, 48 % of students learnt about the program from their parents, and 72 % of students decided to join the program voluntarily. The students' evaluation of the program showed promising results; awarding it average ratings of between 2.71 and 2.93 points out of 3 in addition to their comments that the program would lead to them modifying some health related behaviors. Practical learning through the campus visit enables young teenagers to have more direct experience of the medical field. This style of learning for students is considered an effective means of promoting education around health and cancer, developing mental toughness in health.

People with cancer experience not only the symptoms of their disease, but also psychological and social stresses. The aim of this study was to identify key factors that influenced the quality of life of patients with cancer living in a metropolitan area. Demographic, medical, biological, environmental, functional, and socio-economic data for 969 patients with different cancers were collected from three university hospitals in Tokyo. The most frequent cancer types were breast (162, 16.7 %), lung (151, 15.6 %), and stomach (103, 10.6 %). Most patients indicated a preference for their cancer to be treated, but experienced some difficulties in daily life; a decline in job performance (149, 15.3 %), inability to continue working (147, 15.1 %), or the need for reduced working hours (63, 6.5 %). Most patients (571, 58.1 %) wanted to receive palliative or end-of-life care at home, whereas 152 patients (15.6 %) preferred hospitalization in cancer-care hospitals. This study identified the needs of patients with various types of cancer, based on physical, psychological, behavioral, and socio-economical background data. Further studies are required to investigate these specific needs and recommendations that will help support the survivorship of patients with cancer.