'The Second National Conference on Pharmacogenomics; the Frontier of Medical Sciences Forum 2013 of the Chinese Academy of Engineering; and the Fifth International Conference on Pharmacovigilance and Drug Safety’ was held in Changsha, Hunan, from 25 to 27 October. Focusing on the theme of the challenges of personalized medicine, the event attracted over 600 scientists, experts, healthcare professionals and postgraduate students to attend.

The conference were jointly organized by the Division of Medicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Engineering; Chinese Pharmacological Society and Organizing Committee of China (Changsha) Science and Technology Achievements Transformation Fair; undertaken by the Central South University; and co-organized by the Centre for Food and Drug Safety, Faculty of Medicine, CUHK. Prof. Zhou Hong-hao chaired the organizing committee. Prof. Thomas Y.K. Chan, Department of Medicine and Therapeutics, CUHK; and Prof. Vivian W.Y. Lee School of Pharmacy, CUHK, were guest speakers at the conference.