A Report on the 21st Brazilian Congress of Clinical Oncology
The Brazilian Society of Clinical Oncology (Sociedade Brasileira de Oncologia Clínica, SBOC) hosted the 21st Brazilian Congress of Clinical Oncology (Congresso Brasileiro de Oncologia Clinica) on October 23-26, 2019 in Rio de Janeiro in partnership with the Brazilian Society of Oncological Surgery and the Brazilian Society of Radiotherapy. The Congress, directed by Sérgio Simon, MD, PhD, President of SBOC, and Rachel Riechelmann, MD, President of the Scientific Committee, also incorporated the 20th Congress of the Brazilian Society of Oncology Nursing and the 6th International Symposium on Psycho-Oncology, Pre-Congress Courses on Oncogenetics and Immunotherapy, and several other courses (e.g., on legal issues, oncological dentistry, and ocular oncology, among others). The focus of the 2019 Congress was multidisciplinarity, a key element in the success of any cancer treatment and one that increases favorable patient outcomes — in terms of both health and quality of life. The event included dozens of speakers representing numerous specialties. Presentations addressed major advances in the systemic treatment of each tumor type, with modules led by renowned experts.
The 2019 Congress included the first-ever joint session between MASCC and SBOC, titled “Supportive Care in Cancer.” This joint session was chaired by MASCC President Rajesh Lalla, DDS, PhD, and MASCC member Nivaldo Farias Vieria, MD, PhD (Brazil). Speakers representing MASCC in this joint session were past MASCC Board Member Matti Aapro, MD, who spoke on “MASCC/ESMO Guidelines for Chemotherapy-induced Nausea and Vomiting (CINV), MASCC President Rajesh Lalla, DDS, PhD, who spoke on “MASCC/ISOO Guidelines for Mucositis Management,” and MASCC Executive Director Melissa Chin, HBSc, MBA, CHE, who spoke on “Supportive Care in Oncology Worldwide: The MASCC Perspective.” Dr. Lalla and Ms. Chin presented in English with simultaneous translation to Portuguese available over headsets. Dr. Aapro, who self-identifies as a “carioca” (a native of Rio de Janeiro), spoke in Portuguese.
The Congress also included a symposium on Oral Oncology that featured several MASCC and ISOO members. This session was organized and moderated by ISOO President-Elect Eduardo Fregnani, DDS, PhD. Speakers included MASCC President Rajesh Lalla, DDS, PhD, who spoke on “A Contemporary Approach to Oral Side Effects of Radiation Therapy,” and MASCC/ISOO member Nathaniel Treister, DMD, DMSc, who presented “An Interactive Discussion of Clinical Cases in Oral Oncology.” Dr. Treister is also President-Elect of the American Academy of Oral Medicine.
Among the other speakers in the 2019 Brazilian Congress of Clinical Oncology were MASCC members Drs. Ricardo Caponero, Don Dizon, Auro del Giglio, Alessandra Menezes Morelle, Hope S. Rugo, and Nivaldo Farias Vieira.
