Clinical Virology research and medical education in Greece: An interview
with Demetrios A. Spandidos, Professor of Clinical Virology at the
University of Crete in Greece
Professor Demetrios A. Spandidos, Professor Emeritus of Clinical
Virology at the University of Crete School of Medicine in Crete, Greece,
is a pioneer in world research in Virology, Oncology and medical
education. He has been the first Professor of Clinical Virology at the
University of Crete School of Medicine, the only School of Medicine with
a separate Department of Clinical Virology in Greece. According to
Professor Spandidos, the understanding of the interactions of viruses
with human host cells is what enables the development of new vaccines
and new therapies against a wide range of diseases in humans, including
cancer. Over the past two decades, the expansion of new knowledge,
treatments, prevention and management options and the emerging needs on
neonatal and paediatric viral infections have made the role of future
paediatric virologists more than necessary. For this reason, he strongly
believes that Paediatric Virology should be recognized as a new
paediatric subspecialty. Professor Spandidos declares that medical
education is a continuous sequence from undergraduate to
postgraduate/specialty/subspecialty medical training and continuing
learning. He also supports the concept that the future of medical
education represents the future of Medicine