OCRI at the 5th World Congress International Federation of Head and Neck Oncologic Societies and the American Head and Neck Society Annual Meeting
Boston University’s Oral Cancer Research Initiative (OCRI) was represented at the 5th World Congress of the International Federation of Head and Neck Oncologic Societies (IFHNOS) and the American Head and Neck Society (AHNS) by OCRI Director and Associate Dean for Research Dr. Maria Kukuruzinska, who attended the meeting on Monday, July 28 and Tuesday, July 29.
The conference was held in New York City from July 26 to July 30th, 2014, and was jointly hosted by the IFHNOS and the AHNS to mark the centennial anniversary of the establishment of the first Head and Neck Cancer Surgery service in the world, at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC). This year’s World Congress was the largest conference on Head and Neck Surgery and Oncology to date, bringing together experts and leaders in the field from all over the world to participate in this historic event.
The objective of the event was to facilitate discussions on best practices in diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of head and neck cancer patients. The program included a variety of keynote addresses, panels, symposia, debates, video sessions, papers, posters, and instructional courses for participants. The opening ceremony for the IFHNOS/AHNS World Congress took place on Sunday, July 27th. Welcoming remarks were given by IFHNOS Congress Chair, Dr. Jatin Shah, who is Chief of the Head & Neck Surgery Service at the MSKCC. Dr. Shah is also a member of the OCRI’s External Advisory Board, and gave the keynote address at Boston University’s Head & Neck Cancer Symposium in April 2013.
Other members of the OCRI in attendance included Dr. Robert Haddad from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Dr. Gregory Grillone and Dr. Minh-Tam Truong both from the Boston University School of Medicine.
“Participating in conferences such as the IFHNOS/AHNS Annual Meeting is very important for the visibility of the Initiative,” said Dr. Kukuruzinska. She added, “This event was informative, relevant, and an excellent opportunity to increase the presence of the OCRI in the field of head and neck cancer research.”