IASO holds national conference on surgical oncology

Madurai: Indian Association of Surgical Oncology (IASO), together with the department of surgical oncology- Madurai Medical College, Tamil Nadu Association of Surgical Oncologists (TASO) and Intuitive India conducted a three day long national conference on surgical oncology in Madurai.

The conference named IASO NATCON 2022, 35th annual conference of Indian Association of Surgical Oncology, was inaugurated by Dr Ashok Mehta, founder secretary and former President- IASO, in the presence of Guest of Honour, Dr Anil D’cruz, president- union for international cancer control. Other dignitaries including Dr. M.Ramesh – Organising Secretary, NATCON 2022, Dr. T. Subramnyesh Rao-Director, Indo-American Cancer Centre, Dr. SP Somasekhar, Senior RAS surgeon, Aster Hospitals, Dr. Prashanth Penumadu, JIPMER, Dr Saravana Raja Manickam, Thangam Cancer Centre, were also present at the inaugural ceremony.

The three-day-long conference was aimed at familiarising surgeons with the clinical application of the latest techniques in treating cancer. The conference organised at a hotel in Madurai provided a unique opportunity for oncology surgeons and residents to interact with eminent international and Indian faculty to get insights into making the new technologies clinically relevant to their practice. During the sessions, the experts discussed and showcased the importance of cutting-edge technology in surgery, focusing on areas like Head & Neck Oncology, Breast Oncology, Thoracic Oncology, Musculoskeletal Oncology, Gastrointestinal Oncology and Gynec Oncology, HPB and Uro Oncology etc.

Commenting on this initiative, Dr. M Ramesh, Organizing Secretary, NATCON said, “This is our humble effort to disseminate knowledge, share views and novel ideas, network, and collaborate for the common objective to advance oncology surgery. We have created this national platform to bring oncology surgeons together with the goal of improving holistic patient care in the field of oncology surgery. We hope to familiarize our surgeons with the most recent medical advancements such as robotic-assisted surgery through this special platform and enable them to provide cancer patients with better clinical outcomes. Robotic-assisted systems like da Vinci allow the surgeon to take a minimal access approach to disorders requiring surgery, with a much lesser learning curve. This will not only help cancer patients, but also people who have benign conditions.”

To ensure an extensive knowledge-sharing experience for the attendees, live operative workshop, case-based discussions, panel discussions, and presentations covering many aspects of malignancies are arranged during the conference. All these topics are well-curated and presented by renowned national and international Faculty.

Commenting on this joint initiative, Dr. SP Somashekar, a leading RAS surgeon said “In India, surgical oncology has become a significant surgical subspecialty, and the use of RAS in this field has a number of well-known benefits. Today, more and more healthcare professionals are using advanced surgical technologies like RAS for better patient outcomes, particularly in cancer care. It’s no surprise that robotic surgery allows surgeons to perform many types of complex procedures with more precision, flexibility, and control than is possible with conventional techniques. One of the most important benefits of the latest RAS systems like da vinci Xi is that, our surgeons will be able to perform complex surgeries using computer-guided, magnified, 3-D visualisation, which results in better patient outcomes. Additionaly, the system improves our dexterity and ensures we gain better access to difficult parts in the body.”

“It is very important to familiarize our medical fraternity about such tech advancements in oncology surgency, and we thank the Indian Association of Surgical Oncology and Intuitive for bringing us all together under such an innovative platform for that cause. The surgeons’ participation on this platform, in our view, will undoubtedly show how valuable such programmes are for their own professional development as oncology surgeons,” Dr. SP Somashekhar added.

More than 400 postgraduates and trainees in surgical oncology across the country are presenting their research works in nine subspecialties, while 800 delegates including trainees are attending this event. The organizing committee is planning conduct this conference in the coming years as well.