Awards

Professor Angelita Habr-Gama is Professor of Surgery (Emeritus) at the University of São Paulo School of Medicine, Honorary Fellow of ASA, ACS, Royal College of Surgeons – England, ESA, Italian Society of Surgery, ALACP, ASCRS, ASTRO, ESTRO, Societies of Coloproctology from Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Ecuador, Colombia.

She was Head of the Department of Surgery of the Colon, Rectum and Anus and Head of the Gastroenterological Department of the University of São Paulo Medical School during 1998 and 2001.

Her research interests are Colorectal Cancer: Epidemiology, Pathogenesis, Diagnosis, and Treatment, Oncogenesis and Oncogenomics of Colorectal Cancers, Neoadjuvant treatment for rectal cancer, and Prevention and screening for rectal cancer, and is internationally recognized for describing and disseminating the ‘Watch & Wait’ strategy in the treatment of distal rectal cancer. Professor Habr-Gama has published 264 articles in peer-reviewed medical journals and was awarded the Bigelow Medal granted by Boston Surgical Society in 2023.

Prof. Beate Rau is Professor of Surgery at the CHARITÈ Medical University in Berlin. Her journey into surgical oncology began in 1984 during her internship, where she was drawn to the challenges of oncology. In 1992, she specialized in surgical oncology, focusing exclusively on cancer patients. Early in her career, she encountered limited treatment options for metastatic cancers, which motivated her to contribute to overcoming these limitations.

In 1996, Prof. Rau became involved in the treatment of Peritoneal Surface Malignancy (PSM), and by 1998, she was working with Cytoreductive Surgery (CRS) for peritoneal metastases. Initially skeptical, she soon recognized the potential of CRS, contributing to the development of staging laparoscopy for better visualization and diagnosis of abdominal metastasis.

She is dedicated to educating the next generation of surgeons, focusing on the skills and knowledge needed to handle complex oncological surgeries. Her work has greatly contributed to the development of educational programs for surgical oncology, ensuring that future surgeons benefit from her experience. Her key Contributions and Achievements includes:
• Cytoreductive Surgery (CRS) & HIPEC: Prof. Rau played a pivotal role in the development of the CRS and HIPEC course with the European Society of Surgical Oncology (ESSO).
• GASTRIPEC Trial: Managed a randomized clinical trial for gastric cancer, further advancing treatment protocols for gastric tumors.
• Mentorship: With mentorship from renowned surgeons such as Prof. I. Vogt-Moykopf, Prof. P. Schlag, and Prof. P. Hohenberger, Prof. Rau established a solid foundation in surgical oncology and has since focused on training future surgeons in complex cancer surgeries.

Looking to the future, Prof. Rau aims to create a global platform for surgeons to share knowledge and raise standards of care for cancer patients. She also values her private life with her husband, which contributes to her well-being and work-life balance. Prof. Rau’s career continues to be driven by a passion for progress in cancer treatment, education, and patient care.

Prof. Sylvie Bonvalot received her MD with a surgical specialty in 1990 and completed her PhD in 2006. She held the position of Chief of Sarcoma Surgery at Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, France, from 1997 to 2005 before joining Institut Curie, Paris, in May 2015.

With a clinical practice and research focus on sarcoma and desmoids, she has been an Investigator or Principal Investigator of National and International trials on desmoid and sarcoma. She has authored more than 280 scientific publications on this topic and serves as Editor for the sarcoma section of the European Journal of Surgical Oncology.

Actively involved in professional societies, she chairs the regional treatments of soft tissue sarcoma of the French Sarcoma Group, is a member of the EORTC Soft Tissue and Bone Sarcoma Group, and co-founded the Trans-Atlantic Retro Peritoneal Sarcoma Working Group (TARPSWG). She also holds a membership on the Scientific Committee of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO). She served on the Board of Directors of the Connective Tissue Oncology Society (CTOS) from 2005 to 2008. Her dedication and contributions to the field were further recognized when she was honored with the 2020 Nina Axelrad gratification from the same society. She is a full Member of the National Academy of Surgery in France, and holds the position of Professor at the University of Paris Cité.

Notably, she initiated and directs the Sarcoma National University Diploma in France, which is specifically tailored for surgical, medical, and radiation oncologists. This diploma serves as a pivotal qualification for sarcoma care within the country. Additionally, she contributes to the International Sarcoma Course from ESSO on sarcoma.

Prof. Mitsuru Sasako is the Chairperson of the board of directors of Yodogawa Christian Hospital, Professor Emeritus at Hyogo College of Medicine and Past Chairman of the Stomach Cancer Group of Japan Clinical Oncology Group (JCOG).

He was born on July 20, 1950 at Nishinomiya Japan and grown up in Kobe. Graduated from Tokyo University School of Medicine in 1976, he got his PhD in 1984.

Specialized in Upper Gastrointestinal Surgery and Surgical Oncology he spent 20 years at National Cancer Center Hospital (NCCH) in Tokyo and established a method and system of evaluating oncological surgical procedures.

He contributed enormously the globalization of D2 surgery for potentially curable gastric cancer. He demonstrated D2 surgery in more than 15 countries to teach how to perform it. He accepted many foreign visitors from various European countries to teach tips and knacks of D2 surgery.

He was one of pioneers who realized the telling the truth to patients, real informed consent and shared decision making in Japanese medical practice.

Dr. Paul Hendrick Sugarbaker was born in Baltimore (MD, USA). His college education took place at Wheaton College in Illinois. He graduated from Cornell University Medical College in New York (USA) and from there went for his surgical training at the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston (MA, USA). Following his surgical residency, he completed a Master’s Degree in Immunology at the Harvard School of Arts and Sciences.

From Boston, he went to Bethesda, Maryland. At the NIH he was a Senior Investigator from 1976 to 1986. After 3 years in Atlanta at the Emory Clinic, he moved back to Washington (DC, USA) to become the Medical Director of the Washington Cancer Institute. He was at the Washington Cancer Institute for 31 years as Director of the Program in Peritoneal Surface Malignancy.

His continuing interests are in gastrointestinal cancer, gynecologic malignancy and peritoneal mesothelioma. Currently, his investigative work is directed at the peritoneal surface component of gastrointestinal and gynecologic cancer dissemination, referred to as peritoneal metastases.

Dr. Sugarbaker is a strong critic of surgical tradition; he believes that major changes in the technology of cancer resection are necessary. His theme, ‘It’s what the surgeon doesn’t see that kills the patient’, summarizes the concepts behind many of his publications both in the peer-reviewed medical literature and in the lay press. In the opinion of Dr Sugarbaker, peritonectomy plus perioperative intravenous and intraperitoneal (bidirectional) chemotherapy are essential parts of many cancer interventions.

Prof. Lynda Wyld underwent surgical training in the UK, spending time in Sheffield, Nottingham and Manchester. She did her PhD at the University of Sheffield.

She was appointed to an academic post at the University of Sheffield in 2002 and is now a Professor of Surgical Oncology.

Her clinical interest is the management of breast cancer and she practices as a Consultant Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon at Doncaster Teaching Hospitals in the UK. Her main research interest is in age related inequalities in cancer surgery where she has led projects to improve outcomes and develop decision aids for older women with breast cancer.

Her other career focus has been to develop training in cancer surgery and she has worked with ESSO, as chair of the education and training committee, to develop a curriculum for cancer surgery training and was the chair of the UEMS Surgical Oncology Exam board, developing the exam by increasing its validity and rigour and gaining formal quality approval from CESMA.

She is now the secretary and President-Elect of the UEMS Breast Exam board where she has led the development of conversion of the exam to an online platform and improved the quality and rigour of the exam.

Prof. Graeme Poston was appointed in 1990 consultant hepato-biliary surgeon at the Liverpool University Hospitals, UK, and Professor of Surgery in the School of Translational Studies of the University of Liverpool until his retirement at the end of 2018. He continues to enjoy an international reputation in hepatobiliary surgery. He personally performed over 1000 major hepatobiliary resections and with his colleagues this service is one of the largest tertiary resectional hepato-biliary practices in the UK, having performed over 4,000 liver resections over the last 30 or so years. He gained his undergraduate medical training at St Georges Hospital Medical School, London, graduating in 1979, and postgraduate training with Professor Leslie Blumgart at The Hammersmith Hospital and St Mary’s Hospital, London, and Professors James Thompson and Courtney Townsend Jr at the University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas.

He is the Chair of the Editorial Advisory Board of the European Journal of Surgical Oncology, President of the Mersey Medico-legal Society and Past-President of the Liverpool and North West Surgical Association, the European Society of Surgical Oncology, the Association of Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeons of Great Britain and Ireland, and the British Association of Surgical Oncology. He is a Past-Council Member of the Association of Surgeons of Gt. Britain & Ireland, British Society of Gastroenterology and the UK & Ireland Neuroendocrine Tumour Society. He is a Past-Chair of NHS England HPB Specialised Commissioning Clinical Reference Group, NHS England Specialised Commissioning Internal Medicine Programme of Care, National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) Colorectal Cancer Guideline Development Group and Quality Standards Committee, and the Cancer Services Committee of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. He is the principal investigator of a number of national and international clinical trials in hepato-biliary surgery, and co-author of numerous national and international guidelines for the management of Hepatobiliary cancers, ten textbooks of surgery, and over 300 scientific papers.

Honours and distinctions include Doctorate of Science honoris causa, King George V Medical University, Lucknow, the Ernest Miles Medal of the Royal Marsden Surgical Society, Olaf ac Acrel Medal of the Swedish Surgical Association, Stanford Cade Medal of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Kilroe Medal of the Christie University Cancer Centre, Manchester, N K Misra Medal of the Indian Association of Surgical Oncology. He is an Honorary Fellow of the American Surgical Association, the Chinese College of Surgeons, Association of Surgeons of India, and the College of Surgeons of Sri Lanka. He has been awarded the Hunterian Professorship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England and has held numerous international visiting Professorships around the world. In what little spare time he has, he enjoys trekking in high places (climbed Kilimanjaro, trekked to Everest and Annapurna Base Camps, climbing Kala Pattar en route, and crossed the Lakya La on the Manaslu Circuit in Nepal) and travelling in polar regions (Svalbard, Shackleton Crossing South Georgia, Antarctica and successfully crossing the Northwest Passage).

Dr. Klimberg has over 30 years of experience in breast surgical oncology. She has pioneered innovative breast cancer treatment methods for patients, authored over 350 publications in peer-reviewed journals and 15 books, and has held over 25 editorial board positions for surgical journals and publications. Additionally, Dr. Klimberg has won over 75 awards in teaching, research, and clinical care, and is the past president of three major American surgical organizations and current President of the Southern Surgical Association. She is also the Chair for the UTMB Cancer Committee and was a founding member of the ACS NAPBC (National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers). She is a Senior Director for the American Board of Surgery, the American Board of Plastic Surgery, and the American Board of Complex Surgical Oncology.

Dr. Klimberg chairs the Oncoplastic Breast Hands-on Skills Course at the American College of Cancer and has chaired this course for the U.S. Fellows in Diseased of the Breast. She is currently and previously funded by the NIH, American Cancer Society, Merit Review, the Susan G. Komen Society, the Fashion Footwear Association of New York, and the Alliance Cooperative Group for the ARM trial.

She has held the Muriel Balsam Kohn Chair in Breast Surgical Oncology which was given in her honor and was presented with her own named lectureship by her colleagues and friends at UAMS. Her proudest accomplishment is the success of the nearly 40 breast fellows that she has trained.

Prof. Riccardo A. Audisio’s professional life has been fully dedicated to the advancement of surgical oncology as a discipline, and he has led a fruitful activity in clinical practice, research, teaching and leadership in this field.

Riccardo A. Audisio was born in Milan, graduated in Padua (1980) and specialized in General Surgery (University of Verona-1985) and in Radiology (University of Milan-1994).

Trained at the National Cancer Institute of Milan (1980-94) he was appointed deputy director at the Department of General Surgery, European Institute of Oncology, Milan (1994-8). He moved to the UK 1999 to become Consultant Surgical Oncologist and Honorary Professor at the University of Liverpool. As of February 2018 he is Professor at the Institute of Clinical Sciences, University of Göteborg, Sweden.

Past Editor of Surgical Oncology, Elsevier Publisher (2007-13) he is Editor-in-Chief of the European Journal of Surgical Oncology (2013-present). Author of 260 peer-reviewed publications and 36 book chapters, Professor Audisio edited 23 book projects and is guest reviewer to 39 international scientific journals.

Professor Audisio is past-president of SIOG (International Society of Geriatric Oncology), BASO (British Association of Surgical Oncology) and ESSO (European Society of Surgical Oncology). He served as an advisor to the Department of Health, UK and to the All Party Parliamentary Group on Breast Cancer in Older Women. His clinical research focuses on Breast Cancer, Geriatric Oncology, Education/Certification in Surgical Oncology and the optimization of Surgical Oncology in Low/Middle Income Countries.

Prof. Marjut Leidenius´ professional life has been fully dedicated to the advancement of surgical oncology and especially high-quality breast cancer surgery. She has had numerable activities in clinical practice, research, education and certification in this field.

As the President of UEMS Breast Surgery Division, Prof Leidenius launched UEMS European Board of Surgery examination in Breast Surgery in 2010. This examination has currently an established role in European certification in Breast Surgery. She has also collaborated in building and developing the Core Curriculum and the UEMS examination in Surgical Oncology

Prof. Leidenius has contributed the ESSO activities for 16 years, as a member in the Education and Training Committee, as a Board Member and from 2014 as the ESSO Honorary Secretary. She is also the author of more than 100 articles and book chapters on different aspects of breast cancer.

Marjut Leidenius gained her medical degree in 1983 and the PhD degree 1997 from Helsinki University, Finland. Currently, she is the Head of Breast Surgery, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Helsinki University Hospital. She was nominated as Professor in Breast Surgery 2018.