Madurai: Indian Association of Surgical Oncology (IASO), in association with Department of Surgical Oncology- Madurai Medical College, Tamil Nadu Association of Surgical Oncologists (TASO) and Intuitive India organized a National Conference on Surgical Oncology in Madurai. IASO NATCON 2022, 35th Annual Conference of Indian Association of Surgical Oncology was inaugurated by Dr. By Ashok Mehta, Founder Secretary and Ex-President- IASO, in the presence of Chief Guest, Dr. by Anil D’Cruz, President, International Cancer Control Union. Other dignitaries including Dr M Ramesh – Organizing Secretary, NATCON 2022Dr. T Subramnesh Rao-Director, Indo-American Cancer Center, Dr. SP Someshekhar, Senior RAS Surgeon, Aster Hospitals, Dr. Prashanth Penumadu, JIPMER, Dr Saravana Raja Manikam, Thangam Cancer Centre, were also present at the inauguration ceremony.
The objective of the three-day conference was to acquaint surgeons with the clinical application of the latest techniques in cancer treatment. The conference provided a unique opportunity for oncology surgeons and residents to interact with renowned international and Indian faculty to gain insight into making new technologies clinically relevant to their practice. During the sessions, experts discussed and demonstrated the importance of advanced technology in surgery focusing on areas like Head and Neck Oncology, Breast Oncology, Thoracic Oncology, Musculoskeletal Oncology, Gastrointestinal Oncology and Gynec Oncology, HPB and Uro Oncology etc.
Commenting on this initiative, Dr Ramesh said, “This is our humble endeavor to share knowledge, share views and novel ideas, network and collaborate for the common objective of advancing oncology surgery. We hope that our surgeons will be exposed to the latest medical advances such as robotic-assisted surgery through this special platform and will be enabled to provide better clinical outcomes to cancer patients. Robotic-assisted systems like the da Vinci allow surgeons to adopt a minimal access approach to disorders requiring surgery, with a much lower learning curve. This will not only help cancer patients, but also those with benign conditions.”
To ensure a comprehensive knowledge-sharing experience for the participants, live operative workshops, case-based discussions, panel discussions and presentations were organized during the conference.
Commenting on this joint initiative, leading RAS surgeon Dr. SP “Surgical oncology has become a significant surgical subspecialty in India, and the use of RAS in this field has many well-known advantages,” said Someshekhar. One of the most important benefits of the latest RAS systems like the Da Vinci Xi is that our surgeons will be able to perform complex surgeries using computer-guided, magnified, 3-D visualization, resulting in better patient outcomes. Additionally, the system improves our dexterity and ensures that we can better access difficult areas of the body.”
