The scientific programme comprised 20 Plenary Sessions (some of which focused on artificial intelligence [AI], including dedicated sessions courtesy of the Kidney Cancer Association); four hands-on training (HOTs); two European School of Urology (ESU) courses; the Fellowship in Anatomic deLineation and CONtouring (FALCON) Workshop; the European Society of Uropathology (ESUP) Symposium; and the “Soft skills” session organised by the Young Academic Urologists (YAU), to name a few. The congress commenced with EAU Section of Urological Imaging sessions, which was spearheaded by Section Chair Prof. Francesco Sanguedolce (ES). EMUC24 was organised through the collaborative efforts of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), the European SocieTy for Radiotherapy and Oncology (ESTRO), and the European Association of Urology (EAU), represented by Congress Chairs Prof. Karim Fizazi (FR), Dr. Alison Tree (GB), and EAU Secretary General Prof. Arnulf Stenzl (DE), respectively.

Read on for some of the EMUC24 highlights presented during the “Take-Home Messages” session.

Pathology matters
Chair of the EAU Section of Uropathology, pathologist Prof. Maurizio Colecchia (IT) initially cited the presentation “AI in genitourinary cancer pathology” by Dr. Yuri Tolkach (DE) which concluded that the prerequisite for using AI tools in pathology includes establishing digital pathology infrastructure and that at present, there is no reimbursement mechanisms for using AI tools.

On AI’s role in grading urologic cancers, Prof. Colecchia also discussed Dr. Gladell Paner’s (US) presentation, which stated that AI has comparable accuracy and reproducibility in grading of prostate cancer (PCa) with uropathologists. In addition, it can enhance PCa grading by assisting pathologists, identify other grade-derived elements (e.g. cribriform pattern and Gleason pattern 4 percentage), and help pinpoint the most objective morphometric features for grading bladder cancer.

However, the limitations of AI in the histopathologic diagnosis of PCa include costly digital pathology workflow; required human supervision; susceptibility to changes in input data leading to variable performance; lack of accountability for missed diagnoses, large-scale studies, and regulatory guidelines in the deployment of AI tools, to mention a few.

Some of the future prospects of AI-based diagnostics for PCa mentioned in Dr. Paner’s presentation included to help improve the understanding of PCa biology and beyond, and combine pathology with radiomics and genomics to provide the highest level of integrated diagnosis for urologic cancers.

Prof. Colecchia also cited Dr. N. Papanikolaou’s (PT) presentation on AI’s role in the EUropean Federation for CAncer IMages (EUCAIM) project. EUCAIM aimed to prevent the reproducibility crisis when dealing with imaging biomarkers, radiomics, and low level-of-evidence results; build an atlas of cancer images and stimulate AI research on images; and establish a network of distributed data repositories to foster federated machine learning/deep learning models and facilitate observational studies.

Prof. Colecchia also provided insights from the poster by Dr. Manju Mathew (GB), et al. which covered the concordance among mpMRI, biopsy, and surgical findings in patients undergoing prostatectomy. The conclusion was “Studies prior to the use of mpMRI showed a discordance in the Gleason scores between biopsy and surgical samples. Our analysis has displayed that since having adopted pre-operative MRI to guide biopsy, there is lower discordance between the two samples. The findings also highlight that occult MRI lesions exist in the prostatectomy cohort. Therefore, post-treatment MRI monitoring after focal therapy and in active surveillance cohorts should not only be considered to monitor the known disease, but also to survey for progression of disease which may not have been initially visible or sampled at biopsy.” Watch the full presentation of the pathology take-home messages here.

Radiation oncology essentials
Radiation oncologist Prof. Thomas Zilli (CH) provided updates on radiation oncology such as excerpts from Prof. Christophe Hennequin’s (FR) presentation on the GETUG 18 trial wherein high-risk patients with at least one risk factor who received 80 Gy dose-escalated radiotherapy (RT) with three years of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) showed improved progression-free survival (PFS), cancer-specific survival (CSS), and overall survival (OS) without an increase in toxicity rates.

Prof. Zilli cited the presentation on various views on AI by Dr. Jan Peeken (DE) such as for risk classification (using AI for histology) and in the radiotherapy workflow to improve volume definition, treatment panning, and adaptive treatment delivery. The abstract by Ms. Evelien Van Altena (NL) was also discussed by Prof. Zilli which stated that PSMA PET/CT can detect recurrences before the Phoenix criteria (nadir + 2ng/mL) at less advanced stage in 77% of the patients who were treated with definitive RT. This translates to a better outcome and potential for salvage local treatments or metastasis-directed therapy (MDT). Additionally, early PSMA-PET is associated with a delayed onset of ADT, castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC), and longer OS.

Prof. Zilli provided insights shared during the “Debate: Towards evidence for local tumour control in metastatic RCC”. With regard to Dr. Anna Bruynzeel’s (NL) presentation on stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy (SABR), he quoted the results of the FASTRACK II trial: 100% control rate and CSS, and 99% freedom from distant failure, with a minimal impact on renal function. He stated, “SABR is a highly effective and well-tolerated treatment option in patients with primary renal cancer. SABR as an alternative treatment option ticks all the boxes; it avoids general anaesthesia, can treat peri-hilar and large tumours, and it is non-invasive.”

Another notable abstract was cited by Prof. Zilli which focused on the RE-ARM trial results. Prof. Robert Huddart’s (GB) abstract stated that data were limited due to early closure, and RT failed to improve response in metastatic urothelial carcinoma treated with atezolizumab when used with an immunomodulatory intent. See full presentation on the take-home messages about radiation oncology.

Insights in urology
Chair of the European Urological Scholarship Programme Prof. Axel Merseburger (DE) presented the key takeaways in urology. He cited the abstract by Prof. Zilli which concluded that in patients with a very high-risk localised or locally advanced PCa treated with external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) and long-term ADT (i.e., 18 to 36 months), the gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH) antagonist
degarelix compared to luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) agonists failed to achieve a better PSA nadir within 6 months after EBRT, to improve PFS and urinary function. However, results of the trial suggest a reduction with degarelix in the risk of developing cardiovascular events (CVEs) and treatment-related deaths in patients with a previous history of a CVE.

Regarding penile cancer, Prof. Merseburger mentioned the poster by Ms. Ranya Kumar (GB), et al. which centred on the European report of long-term follow-up demonstrating the oncological safety of video-endoscopic lymph node dissection (VEILND). It has comparable outcomes of recurrence, OS and CSS with significantly reduced complication rates and length of stay in penile cancer at a minimum of eight years and a mean of 11.3 years follow up.

On the topic of testicular germ cell tumours (TGCTs), Prof. Merseburger provided insights from the abstract of Dr. Panagiotis Vlachostergios (GR). It illustrated that the potential value of two novel microRNA (miRNA) signatures which could be useful in differentiating between various subtypes of TGCTs upon prospective validation. This might be particularly useful for both diagnostic and prognostic purposes and allowing for patient stratification to different treatment options.

Prof. Merseburger cited the abstract of Dr. Antoni Vilaseca (ES) which focused on TAR-210, a novel intravesical drug delivery system. The abstract stated that TAR-210 was designed to release sustained local erdafinitib for three months in the bladder. The first-in-human results showed that TAR-210 demonstrated promising clinical activity in patients with fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR)-altered high-risk non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (HR-NMIBC) and intermediate-risk NMIBC (IR-NMIBC). Based on these first-in-human results, the phase 3 MoonRISe-1 study in FGFR-altered IR-NMIBC has been initiated.

Prof. Merseburger also shared insights from the presentation of Dr. Tamás Fazekas (HU) which touched on the OLIGOMET study. The presentation centred on the outcomes of local treatment for oligometastatic PCa diagnosed using PSMA PET imaging. The outcomes included CRPC-free survival, radiographic PFS, and clinical PFS. The study is currently collecting local treatment-related outcomes (e.g., pathological outcomes, complications, and functional outcomes) and survival outcomes (e.g., OS, CSS, and radiographic response).
(Re)view the key takeaways in urology here.

On medical oncology
Medical oncologist Dr. Elena Castro (ES) underscored the two overarching themes of EMUC24: multidisciplinarity and the rapidly evolving focus on genitourinary cancers (e.g., “new imaging techniques shaping the way we stage patients”).

In addition to commenting on the aforementioned abstracts of Prof. Huddart and Dr. Vlachostergios already discussed by her colleagues, Dr. Castro cited the poster by Dr. Ugo De Giorgi (IT), et al. which assessed the impact of talazoparib-dose reductions regarding the efficacy of combined talazoparib and enzalutamide treatment in patients involved in the TALAPRO-2 (TP-2) study. The conclusions included that talazoparib-dose reductions do not appear to lead to detrimental effects in clinical outcome, mostly maintaining quality-of-life endpoints. This information could contribute to the optimal clinical management of patients with metastatic castrate-resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC).

Another noteworthy poster that Dr. Castro mentioned was provided by Dr. Alejo A. Rodriguez-Vida (ES), et al. which concluded that in patients in the TITAN study who have high disease burden defined as >10 bone metastasis, the combination apalutamide (APA) and ADT resulted in robust long-term benefit in OS, rPFS and PSA response, compared to placebo and ADT. The findings provided strong evidence in favour of early intensification with APA in metastatic castrate-sensitive prostate cancer (mCSPC) patients with features of a more aggressive disease. Learn more about the take-home messages on medical oncology in detail here.

Explore all congress presentations, abstracts and presentations via the EMUC24 Resource Centre. In addition, check out the news coverage straight from the congress floor.

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According to Dr. Fankhauser, there are factors that are non-modifiable such as race and ethnicity, age, low socio-economic status, and education. But there are modifiable factors, and he called these “the 7 sins”. These include smoking, human papillomavirus, human immunodeficiency virus, phimosis (plus hygiene), penile inflammation, lichen sclerosus, and ultraviolet A phototherapy. Of these modifiable factors, Dr. Fankhauser placed extra emphasis on smoking cessation and made the comment that there are very expensive drugs for patients to gain a year of life but what about encouraging them to quit smoking. “Standard of care should be smoking cessation”.

Dr. Fankhauser cited his paper from 2022 on ‘Preoperative smoking cessation programmes in patients undergoing intermediate to high-risk surgery: a randomised, single-blinded, controlled, superiority trial”. The hypothesis was that a preoperative smoking cessation programme improved outcomes in smokers undergoing surgery. Secondary outcomes included the length of hospital stay, cost of care, quality of life, smoking abstinence, and reduction in nicotine consumption. He shared statistics from the Cochrane Library that smoking cessation pre-surgery reduced complications by 40%, and costs by approximately 10%.

To conclude, Dr. Fankhauser said “Think about screening and modifying important risk factors, encourage smoking cessation so you have fitter patients on the table, educate on safer sex, and treat lichen sclerosus/precursor lesion. Modifying the risk factors can prevent a lot of things, not just penile cancer.”

You can watch a webcast recording of Dr. Fankhauser’s full presentation on the EMUC24 Resource Centre, as well as the other lectures presented during the testicular and penile cancer plenary session.

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FASTRACK II

“Surgery is the standard of care for primary RCC, however older patients might have co-morbidities that may exclude them from this option,” stated radiotherapist Dr. Anna Bruynzeel (NL) in her presentation on the methodology and results of the non-randomised FASTRACK II trial (Focal Ablation Stereotactic Radiotherapy for Cancers of the Kidney). “The aim of the study was to investigate the efficacy of SABR as a treatment option for renal cancer patients who are unwilling or unfit to undergo surgery. This group of RCC patients who are medically inoperable with larger tumours, have limited curative treatment options and need an effective alternative.”

According to Dr. Bruynzeel, SABR is a precise, high-dose radiation treatment targeting tumours with minimal impact on surrounding tissue and the FASTRACK I study concluded this method for primary RCC was feasible and well tolerated. “These findings have been used for the design on this next phase 2 trial.”

Dr. Bruynzeel on the study results: “The medium follow-up was 43 months. For the primary endpoint assessment, local control at 12 months from start of treatment was 100%. There were no local failures observed during the trial. Freedom from distant failure was 97%. Cancer specific survival was also 100%. Overall survival was 99% at 12 months, and 82% at 36 months from the start of treatment.”

“The excellent oncological outcomes after SABR for primary RCC observed in this trial are concordant with those reported in the prospective and retrospective literature. SABR can be considered a proven modality in this group of patients with larger tumours.”

According to Dr. Bruynzeel, the next step is now randomised trial surgery versus SABR. She also concluded her presentation with some remarks to consider: “In comparison to prospective trials of surgery, FASTRACK II has a smaller sample size and less mature follow-up. The study did not have a control group, so it was not possible to access whether SABR is superior, inferior, or similar to other treatment options. Definitions of operability or technically high risk might vary between multidisciplinary teams.”

KEYNOTE 564 OS

Urologist Prof. Jens Bedke (DE) shared the study design and results of KEYNOTE-564 OS that was presented earlier this year at ASCO GU 2024, that indicated this phase 3 trial showed improved overall survival with an adjuvant therapy among patients with clear-cell-renal carcinoma who were at risk of disease reoccurrence after nephrectomy. In his summary, Prof. Bedke stated that pembrolizumab is the first adjuvant treatment in RCC with an improvement in overall survival (OS). In his opinion, there is risk of overtreatment and risk of life-long treatment related adverse events (e.g. life-long toxicities, and life-long L-Thyroxin). “Failure of CheckMate 914, Immotion010 and PROSPER with drugs active in the metastatic setting (nivolumab plus ipilimumab, nivolumab and atezolizumab) raises questions about patient selection and conduct of trials. Better selection criteria using a hybrid of pathological risk, somatic driver mutations and molecular subtypes are required beyond PD-L1 and sarcomatoid features and dosage. New therapy approaches such as mRNA vaccination plus ICI trials are recruiting.”

You can watch a webcast recording of the full RCC Plenary Session on the EMUC24 Resource Centre.

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Risk stratifications, can we do better?
In “The need for novel risk classifications in high-risk prostate cancer”, radiation oncologist Dr. Simon Spohn (DE) used the Spider-Man film franchise as an analogy to the transformation of risk classifications. Starting from the first Spider-Man starring Toby Maguire, Dr. Spohn described the fundamental risk classifications as “profound, solid, and very valuable” but raised the question, “Can we do better at this time?”. He then focused on tools such modern imaging and biomarkers.

According to Dr. Spohn, modern imaging defines state-of-the-art staging. The results have prognostic value, however, implementation in risk group classification is pending. In addition, radiomic signatures have not yet arrived in clinical practice. He compared modern imaging to Marvel’s Spider-Man movies starring Tom Holland. “[Modern imaging] looks and exciting, but then again, can we do better?”.

“Biomarkers as getting more interesting in this setting. They are genomic classifiers and there are AI-supported tools where genomic profiling is done with prostate cancer patients. These tools were designed to predict oncological outcomes. There are tests that are already commercially available,” stated Dr. Spohn.

He compared biomarkers to the latest Spider-verse Spider-Man movies: “innovative, taking on a new approach, and making things better than before.” However, he added that biomarkers still need to be validated.

According to Dr. Spohn, biomarkers may outperform classical risk stratification systems but mostly post hoc analysis of older clinical trials, and there is no strong evidence for the biomarkers’ predictive value.

“We have the right tools to develop novel risk classification but we need the right studies to generate high-level evidence demonstrating their benefits; to provide predictive value; and to consider cost-effectiveness,” Dr. Spohn concluded.

Intensification
Is intensification for every high-risk PCa patient? Urologist Dr. António Rui Azevedo Freitas (PT) addressed this question in his presentation “Intensification approaches in high-risk and locally advanced prostate cancer”. “Intensification is not for every patient due to the potential toxicity, and even long-term ADT (androgen deprivation therapy) has the potential increase in the risk of cardiovascular events, as seen in DART (Dexamethasone: A Randomized Trial).” He added that de-intensification is also important in some patients.

Dr. Azevedo Freitas stated, “Patients who have high-risk and locally advanced PCa are a heterogeneous population. High-risk and locally advanced PCa are responsible for two-thirds of prostate-cancer-specific mortality within the localised PCa setting. “We have tools to intensify treatments but some need more data and some come with an increased risk of toxicity. The risk factors, AI, and genomic panels can stratify patients that need intensification.”

Watch their full presentations on the EMUC24 Resource Centre.

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What is EU-ProPER?

EU-ProPER is a study that looks into the effects of PCa on the relationship, intimacy, sexuality, and social life. Available in 17 languages, a 20-minute online survey comprised of 80 questions and the SF-12v2® Health Survey was distributed in the EUomo member network. The survey collected 1,135 valid responses from 9 October to 31 December 2023.

The findings

Out of all the respondents, 46% reported that PCa has influenced their relationships. About 48% observed that their partners are not the same after PCa treatment(s). Around 32% reported effects on their social and family life and 19% reported reduced participation in own activities.

Sixty-seven percent disclosed a loss in intimacy. Only 27% of PCa partners are satisfied with their sex life. Around 73% declared that their sex life was better before the PCa diagnosis. About 32% reported frustration from their sex life. On communicating to their partners how they feel about their sex life, 29% disclosed they find it difficult.

Around 39% reported that incontinence is still taboo and has implications on their sex and social life (i.e. “Nobody apart from me is aware of my partner’s incontinence”). About 16% reported a need for mental support from a mental health professional.

Sixty-five percent were involved in the decision-making process regarding treatment. However, 16% were not aware of the consequences of the PCa treatment(s). About 20% received information about sexuality from healthcare providers (HCPs) and 52% searched for the information themselves.

The post Stepping into their shoes: EU-ProPER studies partners of PCa patients appeared first on EMUC25.

Dr. Yuri Tolkach (DE) presented a lecture on ‘AI in genitourinary cancer pathology’, focusing on the clinical relevance. He emphasised that there is work to be done before using AI tools for pathology, and even though digital pathology uses 50% less time, there are a lot of costs involved in the setup, the integration can be very difficult, and there are no reimbursement mechanisms for AI tools. “We need some support from clinical disciplines as this is something that urologists can help us with a lot, and other colleagues from oncology, because the application of AI tools brings a lot of benefits to the patients.”

According to Dr. Tolkach, “AI has virtually no limits in pathology but there is still only a handful of tools (which is the same as 3 to 4 years ago), there is still very limited use, mostly because we are not digitalised enough yet. There is a lot of ‘AI hype’ and lots of studies that have no clinical application.”

He cites the results of his digital pathology validation study (Tolkach Y, et. al. NPJ Precision Oncology, 2023). From over 7,000 biopsy cores, there was no 100% accuracy, but the sensitivity of the tools was very high, which is useful for alerting pathologists to areas considered suspicious, rather than the obvious.

A new access to tumour complexity?

“There are huge efforts ongoing, especially in the industry,” stated pathologist Dr. Markus Eckstein (DE) in his lecture on ‘Spatial transcriptomics/proteomics: How AI could improve our understanding of tumour complexity.’ He shared several methods with a review of their resolution, complexity and price, including array-based transcriptome, digital microdissection, mass spectrometry, CyTOF, High Plex ISH and RNA Scope. “All of these methods have pros and cons. You must know what spatial biology study you want to perform and then you can choose the best option.”

Dr. Eckstein was enthusiastic about the discovery earlier this year of the spatial niche interactions from Cellcharter (Varrone et al, Nature Genetics 2024). Cellcharter is an algorithmic framework to identify, characterise, and compare cellular niches in spatially resolved datasets.

Extending diagnostic capabilities

“There is promise in AI and pathology but there are also barriers to overcome, but they are not brick walls,” explained Dr. Gladell Paner (US) in his lecture on ‘Artificial intelligence in grading of urological cancers.’ Firstly, he clarified that “AI in the grading of prostate cancer is architecture-based and AI grading of bladder cancer is cytomorphology-based.” Dr. Paner shared several research studies with results indicating “AI has a comparable accuracy and reproductivity in the grading of PCa with uropathologists. It can be used to enhance the grading of PCa by assisting pathologists, and can identify other grade-derived elements, such as cribriform pattern. For BCa, AI can help identify objective morphometric features for grading BCa.”

According to Dr. Paner there are still challenges in the advancement of AI-based histopathology, and a lengthy list of limitations. “None of the current available AI algorithms are 100% perfect and they need human supervision. It is not superior to a specialist GU pathologist, and the digital pathology workflow for integration of AI-based diagnostics is a costly set up.”

You can watch the full ESUP presentations on the EMUC24 Resource Centre.

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Dr. Papanikolaou: “The main objectives of ProCancer-I is to deliver a PCa AI platform featuring a unique collection of PCa mpMRI images worldwide, in terms of data quantity, quality and diversity. This platform should produce novel AI clinical tools based on a three-stage ensemble modelling process for advancing characterisation of PCa lesions, assessment of the metastatic potential, and early detection of disease recurrence. Ultimately, the goal of this project is to contribute in the increase of the trust in PCa AI tools by introducing AI model interpretability functionality. We have been collecting data over 4 years, resulting in one of the biggest imaging databases for PCa with 12,816 patients and total images of 8,425,386, called ProstateNET.”

According to Dr. Papanikolaou, MRI issues include diagnostic delay, overdiagnosis, high interobserver variability (large differences between expert and non-expert radiologists), long exam times, and lack of predictivity. To address these issues, he outlines areas of the population screening pathway where AI could be a useful tool in the future. “The expectation of AI is for it to be more accurate (further increase in sensitivity and specificity), reduce reporting times and reduce unnecessary biopsies.”

Dr. Papanikolaou addressed several challenges with AI in the screening versus diagnosis set up, but also potential solutions. “A fundamental requirement in AI and machine learning is that someone should always use a model with data that are similar to the training dataset, which makes out-of-the-box use of diagnostic models to the general population not feasible. Not only are the imaging characteristics between the screening and the diagnostic scenario different, but most importantly, the prevalence of clinically significant disease is much lower in the screening population, as expected.”

“The simple way to solve this problem would be to collect data from the normal population and train new models from scratch, but given the very low prevalence of significant diseases, that would take a long time. A more sophisticated approach is transfer learning, where knowledge from one domain is adapted and transferred to another domain. Someone could consider the diagnostic models as the backbone of new screening models where, with fine-tuning, they can adapt to screening data. The latter scenario would need only a small portion of the entire dataset to be collected, which is more feasible than training from scratch.”

You can watch the full presentation at the EMUC24 Resource Centre.

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Pathology: Advances in AI 

The European Society of Uropathology (ESUP) Symposium will be held on Thursday, 7 November. According to Chair Prof. Maurizio Colecchia (IT), “The use of artificial intelligence (AI) and subtype of deep learning has been enabled by using labelled big data along with greatly improved computing power and cloud storage in medicine. This is starting to have a positive impact for doctors, especially through rapid and accurate image interpretation. In the ESUP Symposium, experts will explain the application of artificial intelligence in genitourinary cancer pathology in specific topics such as tumour classification, slide triage, quality control and improving biomarker evaluation. The fully automated system using deep learning capable of classifying prostate biopsies following the Gleason grading system will be discussed. With the collaboration of the EAU Section of Urological Research, the scientific programme also includes presentations on spatial transcriptomics and genomics, morphometry and mechanical instability in bladder cancer and storage in fully automated biobanks for precision medicines.”

What’s new in imaging?

The EAU Section of Urological Imaging sessions takes place on Thursday, 7 November. Chair Assoc. Prof. Francesco Sanguedolce (ES) shares details of the hot topics that will be addressed: “There will be updates from the prostate cancer screening projects, including the challenges that a large-scale screening programme may face in the near future. There is a detailed session on everything a urologist needs to know about prostate biopsy, such as technique, approach, guidance, and strategy. The latest innovations in imaging-guided surgery for undertaking a more precise prostatectomy will be featured, as well as how new imaging modalities in bladder cancer are needed in the era of targeted treatment. Looking into the future, we review how artificial intelligence is going to assist urological cancers management. And as always, there will be an exciting abstract plenary with the presentation of high-quality studies selected for the EAU Section of Urological Imaging Best Abstract awards. During each session this year, particular emphasis has been put in guaranteeing plenty of time for discussion and interaction with the audience.”

Young Academics: The power of soft skills in research

A new addition to the EMUC programme this year is the “Soft skills” session designed together by the Young Academic Urologists (YAU), ESMO YOC (Young Oncologists)  and Young ESTRO. According to Assoc. Prof. Juan Gomez Rivas (ES), “The session aims to enhance essential soft skills, provide guidance on career advancement, and promote effective presentation and communication of research. Through plenary discussions and brainstorming sessions, this session seeks to equip young professionals with the knowledge, skills, and strategies needed to advance their careers and contribute to the global healthcare community.”

Topics that will be covered include career opportunities as clinician-scientists in oncology, channelling your inner Da Vinci: the art of soft skills in urological oncology research (not robotic-assisted!), the importance of presenting your work at international meetings, how to write the perfect abstract, performing and reporting the perfect statistics, and how to present your project in an impactful way. The Soft Skills session takes place on Thursday 7 November from 16:00 – 17:30 CET.

Global health inequalities

On the morning of day four, Clinical oncologist Dr. Ajay Aggarwal (GB) will present an “out of the box” special lecture on global health inequalities, “Bridging cancer care disparities: Why politics, not science matters”. According to Dr. Aggarwal, “At present we spend billions on cancer research, however, in many countries, survival outcomes are stagnating or worsening post pandemic. Across all countries, the gaps in outcome between the wealthy elites and marginalised groups are increasing. This session will outline how politics, not science, ultimately will be the key to improving cancer survival in the next decade given most health budgets are falling in real terms. A clear societal strengthening agenda is essential as well as one that addresses the commercial determinants and political economy of cancer.”

Extra’s: Hands-on training, a workshop, and courses (for nurses too!)

There are Hands-on training sessions for Prostate MRI reading, MRI fusion biopsy, PSMA/PET image reading, and a FALCON workshop on optimal contouring for prostate, nodes and post-operative radiotherapy in prostate cancer. There are also two ESU courses, “Oligometastatic treatment in genitourinary tumours (bladder, renal, prostate)” and “Neoadjuvant and adjuvant treatment in genitourinary tumours”. Note: HOT, FALCON + ESU courses = Additional fee and registration is applicable.

A new addition this year are the two European School of Urology Nursing (ESUN) courses available for nurses. The first is on “Systemic treatment for prostate cancer: promoting wellness and improving quality of life and adherence”, and the second is on “Improving NMIBC patient pathways (incl. intravesical therapy and laser ablation)”. Note: a separate application is applicable for ESUN courses.

For more information, and to register, visit the EMUC website.

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Dr. Salvatore La Rosa (US), Chief Scientific Officer of the KCA is enthusiastic about their contribution to the EMUC24 programme: “As a non-profit advocacy organisation, we are thrilled to collaborate with EMUC this year to deliver cutting-edge research summaries and valuable kidney cancer education to attendees. Our aim is to empower clinicians with the knowledge and tools they need to provide the highest quality care for their patients.”

“In today’s digital age, patients and their families have access to vast amounts of information online about their diagnoses. However, it’s crucial that they receive accessible, evidence-based, and up-to-date information about kidney cancer to make informed decisions and advocate for their options. We hope to reach more health professionals with information that can be passed on to their patients, ultimately helping them to navigate their cancer journey with confidence.”

“For KCA, whose mission is to find a cure for kidney cancer, this collaboration is a unique opportunity to bring together experts from various specialties to address the latest topics and challenges in renal cancer. This is particularly significant with urologists, who are often not as involved in kidney cancer patient care as they should. By leveraging the EMUC platform, we also aim to draw more attention from other specialists to kidney cancer and attract them to the field by presenting them with the unique challenges our patients face at every step of their journey.”

What’s on the agenda?

The first KCA plenary session will take place on Friday 8 November from 16:15 till 17:30 and will feature presentations on several key practice-changing studies, including trial results from FASTRACK, KEYNOTE 564 OS, and SUNNiFORCAST. There will also be a debate on evidence for local tumour control in metastatic RCC with a review of current retrospective data and ongoing phase II and III trials in this setting. For cytoreductive nephrectomy, urologist Dr. Géraldine Pignot (FR) will present on PROBE and NORDICSUN, and for radiation oncologist, Dr. Anna Bruynzeel (NL) will present on stereotactic ablative body radiotherapy (SABR).

Experience a WoodFire® session

The second KCA Plenary Session will take place on Saturday 9 November from 11:40 till 12:45 and will introduce a unique format to the EMUC24 programme called a WoodFire® session.

Dr. La Rosa explains: “This is essentially a live tumour board. It got its name due to the quick-fire, high-pressure nature of how our late Board of Directors Chair, Dr. Christopher G. Wood, a renowned surgeon at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas, grilled his peers about how they might treat someone with kidney cancer – all in good fun! It is fascinating to hear how differently a surgeon might approach a single case versus a medical oncologist versus a urologist, and so on. WoodFire® is both a glimpse at how much we must learn from each other and a testament to how much everyone cares about achieving a good outcome for the patient.”

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The 16th European Multidisciplinary Congress on Urological Cancers (EMUC24) is set to take place in Lisbon, Portugal from 7-10 November 2024. Each year the congress brings together leading experts across various genitourinary cancer disciplines to share their insights on best practices, key clinical trial developments, and the latest scientific advancements. You can view the full EMUC24 scientific programme and take advantage of registration savings if you sign up before 24 October, 2024 (23:59 CEST).

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