International Congress of the Transplantation Society in Miami August 25-30

MIAMI, April 29 -- About 4,000 surgeons, physicians and scientists from nearly 70 countries are expected to attend the XIX International Congress of The Transplantation Society August 25 - 30 at the Westin Diplomat Resort and Spa, located on the Florida coast between Ft. Lauderdale and Miami. Held every two years, the congress is transplantation's premiere venue for the presentation of new scientific findings.

The scientific program consists of invited plenary and state-of-the-art lectures, and more than 1,600 peer-reviewed oral and poster abstract presentations reporting on original research. Topics to be presented include:

• The future of stem cell therapies and cellular versus whole organ transplants
• New methods to induce drug-free tolerance of transplanted organs
• Complications of adult-to-adult living donor liver transplants
• Transplantation of hands and other composite tissue grafts
• Current status of cross-species transplantation (xenotransplantation)

A fully equipped and staffed press room will be available on site from Aug. 25 - 30. Press briefings and availabilities will be held each day. Press credentials will provide access to all scientific sessions and poster and exhibit areas.

The preliminary scientific program, press registration and hotel information are available at www.txmiami2002.com. Please note that special hotel rates are available only until July 18.

Additional information about the congress will be posted as it becomes available. If you would like to receive updates and news releases by fax or e-mail, please contact Lisa Rossi at press@txmiami2002.com or (412) 624-3184 (fax).

The Transplantation Society was founded in 1966 and serves as the principal international forum for the advancement of both basic and clinical transplantation science. There are currently more than 3,000 members representing 65 countries. Among its current and former members are six Nobel Laureates. The president of the society is Carl Groth of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. Co-chairs of the congress are Camillo Ricordi of the Diabetes Research Institute at the University of Miami School of Medicine and Domingo Casadei of the Instituto de Nefrologia in Buenos Aries.

This year's congress had originally been scheduled to take place in Buenos Aries, but due to Argentina's unstable economy, its location was changed in recent months to the Miami site.