Date
23 October 2025
- 24 October 2025
Location
Kunstmuseum Brandts
Registration deadline
24 October 2025

Symposium – on organ-preserving treatment for rectal cancer

About the course

With funding from the Competence Enhancement Fund from the Region of Southern Denmark, the Surgical Department at Odense University Hospital will be hosting a two-day international symposium on organ-preserving treatment for rectal cancer.

There will be speakers from all over Europe, focusing on multidisciplinary and rectal-preserving treatment of rectal cancer.

The symposium will include a workshop where patient selection and follow-up will be the main focus.

The target audience for the course is all MDT participants from the entire Region of Southern Denmark.

Participants are responsible for their own hotel accommodation.
For our group, a discount is available until 9 October using the code “OUH2025”. – Rooms can be cancelled up until 18 October.

The dates for the symposium coincide with a particularly busy period in Odense, creating high demand for accommodation. To ensure you get the best rates and avoid missing out, we strongly recommend making your reservation as soon as possible.

Situated 0.4 km from the Brandts Art Museum – the conference venue -First Hotel Grand is perfectly located in the heart of Odense. Established in 1897, the hotel combines its rich history and classic atmosphere with modern facilities.

09.00 -9.30 Coffee & Croissants

Session I "Curative Oncology"
Chairpersons Prof. Geerard Beets & Assoc. Prof. Lars Henrik Jensen

09.30 - 09.40 Welcome
Assoc. Prof. Issam Al-Najami

09.40 - 10.00 Induction vs. consolidation chemo in TnT
Prof. Julio Garcia Aguilar

10.00 - 10.20 DeRECT deescalation therapy for rectal cancer ; TNT vs TME TESAR
Prof. Jurriaan Tuynman

10.30 - 10.50 Radiotherapy- SCRT, LCRT, Escalation and brachytherapy
Assoc Prof. Laurids Østergaard Poulsen,

11.00 - 11.20 Immunotherapy in dMMR Rectal cancer
Prof. Per Pfeiffer

11.30 - 11.50 Updates from the RESET R trial
Dr. Line Tarpgaard

12.00 - 13.00 Lunch

Session II "Watch & Wait"
Chairpersons Profs. Chris Cunningham & Simon Bach

13.00 - 13.20 WW and the concept of Primary Organ Preservation
Dr. Brechtje Grotenhuis

13.30 - 13.50 WW the Dutch experience
Prof. Geerard Beets

14.00 - 14.20 WW the Danish experience
Senior Consultant Lars Henrik Jensen

14.30 - 14.50 WW cost and Qol considerations
Prof. Geerard Beets

15.00 - 15.30 Coffee and cake

15.30 - 16.30 Guided tour of the Art Museum Brandts

DAY 2
Session III "Response Evaluation"
Chairpersons Profs. Hans Rahr & Juriaan Tuynman

08.30 - 09.00 Coffee & croissants 

09.00 - 09.20 MRI
Prof. Regina Beets-Tan

09.30 - 09.50 TRUS
Prof. Søren Rafaelsen

10.00 - 10.20 Endoscopy
Prof. Chris Cunningham

10.30 - 10.50 CT-DNA
Prof. Claus Andersen

11.00 - 11.20 Near complete response management considerations
Prof. Simon Bach

11.30 - 11.50 The role of AI as a tool to aid surgical strategy, prehabilitations and surveillance in an organ oreservation perspective
Prof. Ismail Gögenur

11.50 - 12.05 Surveillance program after treatment of pT1 colorectal cancer in Denmark
Prof. Hans Rahr

12.10 - 12.50 Lunch

Session IIII "Preservation by local excision"
Chairpersons Profs. Gunnar Baatrup & Ismail Gögenur

12.50 - 13.10 STAR-TREC- roll out of non-operative management avoiding local
excision, across 5 countries, 12 month outcomes of the phase II/III trial.
Prof. Simon Bach

13.20 - 13.40 Consideration in the management of early rectal cancer including local excision for rectal neoplasia
Prof. Chris Cunnigham

13.50 - 14.10 Local excision and adjuvant radiotherapy. Latest updates from TESAR
Prof. Jurriaan Tuynman

14.20 - 15.10 Key note virtual lecture “Colorectal surgery in 2040”
Prof. Julio Garcia Aguilar

15.10 - 15.30 Coffee, cake & goodbyes

 

 

 

Speakers

National & International experts.

Location

Kunstmuseum Brandts, Amfipladsen 7, 5000 Odense, Denmark

Other information

Accommodation:
FIRST HOTEL GRAND
Jernbanegade 18,
5000 Odense

Contact by Phone: 66117171

Fee

The symposium is free of charge, but registration is mandatory. If needed please cancel as quickly as possible, as spaces are limited and a colleague might be happy to get the space instead.