President's Message
Since my last communication with members of the IHPBA through our Newsletter published in September 2003, a lot of things have happened, and I feel it appropriate that I should update you on what the Council has been doing.
We had a very successful 7th Congress of the Asian Society of HBP Surgery (ASHBPS) in Chennai, India, 28th to 31st August 2003. This regional meeting was extremely successful in terms of the scientific content, the social events, and the number of delegates. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who worked so hard to make this meeting such a success. During this Congress, the Executive Committee, the Scientific Committee and the Publication Committee of the IHPBA met and had the opportunities to discuss and decide many issues related to our future activities. One very important decision was the agreement between the IHPBA leadership and the ASHBPS leadership to form the new Asian-Pacific Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (A-PHPBA) from the ASHBPS. The signing of a written agreement by myself and Henry Pitt on behalf of the IHPBA and Tadahiro Takada and Yuji Nimura on behalf of the ASHBPS should pave the way for change for the better. The A-PHPBA will become one of the three Regional Associations of the IHPBA and will have similar Articles of Incorporation and Bylaw.
Following the signing of the new Publishing Agreement with Taylor and Francis for HPB, the Council also appointed a new Editor of the Journal, Professor Jim Toouli. I am sure that our Journal HPB is now on a firm foundation heading towards success.
In recognition to the contributions of Professor Robin Williamson, the Council of the IHPBA has decided to present a medallion to Professor Williamson during the forthcoming World Congress of the IHPBA to be held in Washington D.C. Professor Williamson's contributions to the IHPBA have been enormous. He was the President and the Secretary General of the IHPBA and the Immediate Past Editor of our journal HPB. The medallion comes from a donation, and the design of it has been endorsed by members of the Council of the IHPBA.
The next World Congress of the IHPBA in Washington D.C. from 2–6 June 2004 is going to be a success. The Organizing Committee reported to the Council that on the deadline for abstract submission on 12 December 2003, 920 abstracts were submitted from 45 countries. The Committee also received a number of requests for late submissions. The Scientific Committee has been working very hard to come up with a good scientific program, and the Local Organizing Committee has been planning to come up with a good social program as well. So, please mark the dates on your diaries, and I look forward to seeing you in Washington D.C.
New National Chapters of the IHPBA have been formed in many countries. In addition to the meetings held by the National Chapters in India and Brazil, which I have attended, the Chinese Chapter of the IHPBA has also been inaugurated.
We have been making progress in a number of areas. At the time of writing this President's Message, I have about 6 months before my term ends as your President. I would like to take this opportunity to thank every one of you once again for your support during my Presidency of the IHPBA.
Joseph W.Y. Lau
President, IHPBA
6th World Congress – June 2–6
The Sixth World Congress of the IHPBA will be held in Washington, D.C. June 2–6, 2004. The American Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (AHPBA) is the Local Organizer, and the AHPBA President, C. Wright Pinson is the Congress Chairman. An outstanding scientific program has been organized by the IHPBA Scientific Committee, chaired by Jacques Belghiti, in conjunction with the Local Organizing Committee chaired by Ravi Chari. Over 175 international experts have accepted invitations as speakers and/or moderators. In addition, 920 abstracts were submitted to the main program. Moreover, additional symposia have been organized for interventional radiologists and liver transplant anesthesiologists on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Thus, the educational aspects of the meeting should be outstanding. Therefore, we strongly encourage participation by IHPBA members, colleagues in radiology and anesthesiology, fellows, residents and nurses.
The Congress will be held at the Hilton Washington where rooms have been reserved at a competitive rate. Special arrangements have also been made for dormitory rooms at nearby George Washington University for those with limited resources. The Opening Ceremony and Reception will be held at the Hilton Washington on Wednesday evening, June 2. Tickets are available for a Baltimore Oriole Baseball Game on Friday night, June 4. The IHPBA banquet will be held at the Hilton on Saturday, June 5 with a special performance “Rock the Congress” by Soul Incision”, the Congress Chairman's Band! Moreover, a Capitol Hill afternoon tour has been arranged for Thursday, June 3, and a Washington Art Treasury tour has been organized for spouses on Friday, June 4. Thus, the social aspects of the meeting should be as outstanding as the scientific program! For more information, please go to our websites www.ihpba.org or www.ahpba.org.
Warren Fellowship Update
The second Warren Fellow, Andrew Biankin, MD from Australia, completed his research year with Steven Leach, MD at Johns Hopkins in December, 2003. Aspects of Dr. Biankin's researcher entitled “Novel Gene Discovery in the Development and Progression of Pancreatic Cancer” will be presented at the 6th World Congress. The third Warren Fellow, Mickaël Lesurtel, MD from France began his fellowship in October, 2003 with Pierre-Alain Clavien, MD of Zurich, Switzerland. A report of his research will also be presented at the World Congress in Washington in June.
Applications for the fourth Warren Fellowship are now being accepted. The Warren Fellow must be an IHPBA member who wishes to work in the laboratory of an IHPBA member in another country. The Fellowship provides US$20,000 to help defray the expenses of this research year. Applications are due April 30, 2004. A decision will be made regarding the recipient during the IHPBA World Congress in June, 2004. The research year may begin by January, 2005. For application details, please go to www.ihpba.org.
HPB – Toouli New Editor
HPB, the official journal of the IHPBA, now is in its sixth year of publication. Professor Robin Williamson guided the journal as the editor through its formative years. In 2003 the IHPBA Publishing Committee went through a formal process of choosing the next Editor to serve for five years. Professor James Toouli of Adelaide Australia, a former IHPBA President, was chosen as the new Editor. The three Regional Editors, Masatoshi Makuuchi for the Asian-Pacific region, C. Wright Piuson for the Americas, and Thomas N. Van Gulik for Europe and Africa, will continue to support the Editor.
Taylor and Francis with over 200 years of publishing experience took over the production of HPB in September, 2002. A year later a new publishing agreement, which will run for six years beginning January 1, 2004, was signed. Key aspects of this agreement are that the IHPBA owns the journal and that profits will be shared between the IHPBA and Taylor & Francis. Abstracts from the World and Regional Congress will be published in HPB. In addition, the IHPBA leadership strongly encourages all members to publish papers presented at World and Regional Congresses as well as other original papers and review articles in HPB.
New National Chapters
The IHPBA leadership has been encouraging growth through their Regional Associations and National Chapters. The AHPBA is working with national chapters in the Americas to obtain bids for the 2010 World Congress. In addition to existing Argentinian and Brazilian Chapters a new Canadian HPB Chapter was founded in 2003. The European Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (EHPBA) has begun to collect dues and is working toward incorporation and updating their Bylaws. A new German HPB Chapter was also founded in late 2003. As mentioned in President Lau's message, a new Asian-Pacific Hepato-Pancreato-Biliary Association (A-PHPBA) will be developed. The A-PHPBA will be founded in 2005 and hold its first meeting in Fukoka, Japan in 2007. In addition, a new Chinese HPB Chapter was developed in 2003. For more information on Regional Associations and National Chapters, please review our website: www.ihpba.org.
Call for Nominations
The IHPBA Bylaws state that “Nominations for persons to serve as officers of the Corporation should be submitted to the chair of the Nominating Committee, the immediate Past-President, in writing not less than one month before the General Assembly.” The General Assembly will be held during the 6th World Congress in Washington. Thus the deadline for nominations is April 30, 2004. The following positions are open: President-Elect, Members-At-Large of Council, and members of the Scientific Committee. Please send nominations to Professor James Toouli at Jim.Toouli@flinders.edu.au.
Executive Secretarial Available
For any questions regarding your membership status, dues or change of contact information, please contact Bridget Fischer or Laura Myers at:
MedConnect GmbH
Bruennstein Strasse 10
81541 Munich
E-mail: IHPBA@medc.de
Website: www.medconnect.biz
Tel: +49 89 4141 9249
Fax: +49 89 4141 9245
Future World Congresses
6th World Congress Washington, D.C., USA
Dates: June 2–6, 2004
Chairman: C. Wright Pinson, MD
Secretariat: BSC Management, LLC
11300 West Olympic Blvd., Suite 600
Los Angeles, CA 90064
Telephone: +1 310-437-0557
Fax: +1 310-437-0585
E-mail: info@bscmanage.com
Homepage: www.ahpba.org
7th World Congress Edinburgh, Scotland, UK
Dates: September 3–7, 2006
Chairman: O. James Garden, FRCS
Secretariat: Department of Surgery
University of Edinburgh Royal Infirmary
Edinburgh, EH39YW
Scotland, United Kingdom
Telephone: +44-131-536-3812
Fax: +44-131-228-2661
E-mail: OJGarden@ed.ac.uk
8th World Congress Mumbai, India
Dates: February, 2008
Chairman: Dr. Palepu Jagannath
Secretariat: Department of Surgical Oncology
Tata Memorial Hospital
Lilavati and Jaslok Hospitals
Mumbai, India
Telephone: +91-22-413-7316
Fax: +91-22-413-6937
E-mail: jagannath@vsnl.com
2005 Regional Association Congresses
8th Asian SHBPS Congress
Date: February, 2005
Location: Manila, Philippines
E-mail: shilvano@uplink.com.ph
5th Americas HPB Congress
Date: April 13–16, 2005
Location: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Homepage: www.ahpba.org
6th European HPB Congress
Date: May 25–28, 2005
Location: Heidelberg, Germany
E-mail: Markus_Buechler@med.uni-heidelberg.de