Another initiative that is close to my heart is the Fellowship Grant Programme which allows CIRSE members to expand their knowledge by joining a European centre of excellence for one month. If you are interested, I encourage you to find out more here and apply by February 10, 2025.
The International Accreditation System for Interventional Oncology Services – IASIOS – can also look back at an extremely successful year, with early adopters becoming eligible for the prestigious Centre of Excellence status. The University Hospital of Strasbourg was the first hospital to achieve this distinction. Moreover, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital became the first paediatric hospital to join. With the rapidly growing global community in IASIOS, they were able to launch initiatives in benchmarking, education, and more.
2024 was also a year of milestones in terms of research supported by CIRSE and its contract research organization Next Research. CALCIO, its first endovascular research project, started patient enrolment with the first ever UK patients being included in a CIRSE research project. The design of BOREALIS a study focusing on the treatment of bone metastases, was finalized and presented at ECIO 2024. Lastly, Next Research launched a collaboration with Immunophotonics Inc., for a pivotal clinical trial on a new immuno-adjuvant.
In terms of congresses, 2024 also kept going from strength to strength. More physicians than ever convened for ECIO to discuss all interventional oncology can do for cancer patients in a truly multidisciplinary fashion. I was especially thrilled about the ECIO meets sessions which gave us the chance to provide outstanding lectures in cooperation with the European Society of Organ Transplantation and the European Society for Radiotherapy and Oncology. Both sessions as well as all other ECIO 2024 content are available to all CIRSE members and All-Access Pass holders in the CIRSE Library.
In June, ET 2024 gave us the opportunity to delve deep into one of interventional radiology’s most important fields: embolotherapy. A newly introduced FIRST@ET session provided new evidence, showing once more that embolisation treatments for a number of new indications are here to stay.
Throughout the year, the European School of Interventional Radiology offered nine clinical practice courses – a fantastic opportunity for interventional radiologists to focus on a specific treatment in a small setting with plenty of opportunities to have personal discussions and gain hands-on practice.
CIRSE 2024 was the highlight of the year, providing us with the most comprehensive platform to meet and connect. With a record number of physicians and students attending, it was certainly one for the books. The congress lectures and symposia are now also available in the CIRSE Library, providing yet another wonderful learning resource to our members.
At the General Assembly, the CIRSE leadership passed the baton to the newly elected committees. Since then, it has been a whirlwind of meetings to prepare the 2025 congresses and numerous other initiatives, and I can tell you that the Executive Committee and the Scientific Programme Committees are all in to provide you with the best CIRSE year yet.
Until we start into 2025 and our new endeavours, I wish you all a wonderful holiday season with your loved ones!
Philippe Pereira
CIRSE President
