Conference Reports

6th ALPS Meeting, Madonna di Campiglio, 26th - 30th January 2011

For the 6th year, the beautiful resort of Madonna di Campiglio hosted the Alpine Liver and Pancreatic Surgery meeting from 26th-30th January. This meeting continues to grow annually and there was again this year a high level of lively, informative presentations, followed by informal discussion around current hot topics in HPB surgery. For the first time the meeting was held in collaboration with the Dutch Society for Gastrointestinal surgery. As in previous years, contributions came from distinguished international guests, consultants and numerous trainees. Alongside the offerings from the surgical community we were pleased to be joined by expert speakers from related nonsurgical specialties and from industry.

Professor William Traverso (Idaho) opened the meeting with a discussion about the natural history of intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (IPMN) of the pancreas. As well as discussing the basic science of this disease process, and the treatment of it, his talk also included some fascinating endoscopic images of IPMN in the pancreatic duct. Later in the programme Professor Traverso discussed the importance of nonoperative alongside operative treatment of pancreatic cancer and the recipe for a perfect Whipples...READ MORE

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5th ALPS Meeting, Madonna di Campiglio, 27th - 31st January 2010

Surgeons from Europe and across the world retreated to the village of Madonna di Campiglio in the Italian Dolomites for the 5th Alpine Liver and Pancreatic Surgery (ALPS) meeting. This gathering constituted a forum for updates and subsequent discussion of pertinent topics, ranging from the basic science that underpins hepatobiliary and pancreatic disease, to advances in surgical technique and adjuvant treatment.

Professor Yuji Nimura (Nagoya University Hospital, Japan), the current president of the IHPBA, opened the meeting with a superb lecture on advanced resectional techniques for challenging cases of hilar cholangiocarcinoma. With several lectures and video presentations over the course of the meeting, Professor Nimura conveyed the importance of advanced, multi-modality imaging as a pre-requisite for designing resections of both biliary and liver malignancies, and shared his vast experience and expertise in this field... READ MORE

Click here to view the entire report of the 5th ALPS Meeting