Event

Oncology Trends Ruby Hall Clinic, Pune

August 24-27, 2007

What's new in oncology? Is cancer vaccine more of hype than reality? Will chemotherapy become obsolete? Would laparoscopy surgery replace open surgery for colorectal cancer? These are some questions which around 350 oncologists tried to seek answers for. The venue for this knowledge sharing was Pune-based Ruby Hall Clinic's Kamalnayan Bajaj Cancer Centre. It witnessed the best experts from oncology world, nationally and internationally, in the aptly titled event—Trends in Oncology. "Biological therapy is a new era in cancer treatment. However, I strongly feel that in the foreseeable future it will not make chemotherapy completely obsolete—but both will co-exist synergistically," said Dr Sewa Legha, Clinical Professor of Haematology-Oncology Section, Baylor College of Medicine, US. To top it all, the Ruby Oncology Excellence Awards honoured the best in the field for their valuable contribution to the medical field. Dr K Dinshaw, Director, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai; Dr Rengaswamy Sankaranarayanan, Head of the Screening Group (SCR), International Agency for Research on Cancer, World Health Organisation, Lyon, France; and Dr Pankaj Manubhai Shah, Director, Gujarat Cancer & Research Institute-Ahmedabad, were the key recipients. A heated debate on laprascopy surgery vis-a-vis open surgery left the audience divided. "With my past 10 years of experience in laparoscopy exclusively for colorectal cancer, I am biased towards it, but I feel the prime factor is the right case selection," said Dr Eu Kong Weng, Head & Senior Consultant Surgeon, Department of Colorectal Surgery, Singapore General Hospital. The symposium encompassed a good blend of issues meant to be addressed in oncology—right from the basics to advanced technologies, making it one of the most awaited event for oncologists next year.

EH News Bureau