After comparing the five-year operational costs, while taking into account the use of AWS Reserved instances, decision makers at the Center report that the costs of cloud use will be about equivalent to those of on-premises operations. But the security achieved from migrating to the AWS cloud brings signifigant additional benefits.

The Center also believes the migration to AWS will improve operational loads on internal systems. It plans to continue to make the cloud a top priority for its public website, which collects data on cerebral and cardiovascular diseases.

Ryo Haraguchi, assistant director, department of medical informatics, at the Center says, "Before installing the cloud infrastructure, we needed to undertake various technical studies and adjustments, as well as attending to security, governance, and contractual details. Considering the security and operational benefits over the long run, however, it has been worth the effort."