Second Congress of Pathologists - 2016

Second Macedonian Congress of Pathologists with International Participation
(Ohrid, September 1-4, 2016)

The Second Macedonian Congress of Pathologists with International Participation, organized by the Association of Pathologists of Macedonia, was held from 1 to 4 September 2016 at the Metropol Hotel, in Ohrid, Republic of Macedonia. The Metropol Hotel, together with the Bellevue and Turist Hotels, is part of the Metropol Lakeside Complex, located between the shores of Lake Ohrid and the green forests of the Galicica National Park. Given that it also has a well-equipped conference center, it proved to be an excellent location, so that most of the participants, together with the scientific content of the congress and the organization, were rated from very good to excellent.
The Congress was attended by 189 registered participants, including 35 invited lecturers. In addition to the 54 members of the Association of Pathologists of Macedonia, many other colleagues from the Republic of Macedonia also participated in the congress. Macedonia, as well as 93 participants from various countries, both from the neighboring countries – Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Kosovo, Slovenia, Serbia, Turkey, Croatia and Montenegro, and from more distant European countries such as Austria, Belgium, Belarus, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, and even from Azerbaijan and the United States of America. In addition, 16 accompanying persons and 16 other (unregistered) participants participated in the Congress, bringing the total number of participants to 221.
The scientific program of the Congress was to provide a thorough overview and update of the “hot topics” in various areas of our specialty, focusing on genitourinary, gastrointestinal, gynecological pathology, cytopathology and other topics. The scientific activities included 5 symposia in the field of genitourinary, gastrointestinal, gynecological pathology, cytopathology and other topics, the program of which included a total of 19 lectures and 4 slide seminars in the field of pathology of the genitourinary, gastrointestinal tract, gynecological pathology and cytopathology. Three distinguished professors emeritus of pathology shared with the participants their significant experience in their keynote lectures entitled “Molecular pathology of colorectal cancer” (“Molecular pathology of colorectal cancer” – Niki J. Agnantis, University of Ioannina, Greece), “The dynamic evolution of pathology” (“The dynamic evolution of pathology” Hans Konrad Müller-Hermelink, University of Wiesburg, Germany), and “Evolving classification of human tumors: a WHO perspective” (“Evolving classification of human tumors: a WHO perspective” – Fred T. Bosman, University Hospital of Lausanne, Switzerland). In addition, one pre-congress and 3 congress industrial symposia organized by commercial companies were held.

Participants submitted 112 abstracts (47% more than the 2011 congress), of which 15 were accepted by the Scientific Committee for oral presentation (five sessions), 82 as poster presentations (6 sessions), and 11 were included as case reports within the slide seminars in the field of genitourinary and breast pathology. Six of the authors of these selected case reports who submitted applications were awarded scholarships: For three of them presented at the slide seminars in the field of genitourinary pathology, the scholarships were provided by the Association of Pathologists of Macedonia, and the other 3 presented at the slide seminar on breast pathology within the Workshop of the European School of Pathology, the scholarships were awarded by the Association of Pathologists of Macedonia in cooperation with the Working Group on Breast Pathology as part of the European Society of Pathologists. The working presidencies in charge of the poster sessions completed their duties excellently, which related to the discussion with the authors of the posters. Three best posters were also selected, whose authors were awarded diplomas and special gifts at the closing ceremony of the Congress.
Part of the congress program was also the one-day Workshop of the European School of Pathology entitled “Breast Pathology in the 21st Century” organized by the Working Group of the European Society of Pathologists for Breast Pathology under the auspices of the European Society of Pathologists, which was held on September 3, 2016. The workshop was attended by 165 participants, 81 from the Republic of Macedonia and 84 from 24 other countries from Europe, North America and Asia. The prominent lecturers and experts in the field of breast pathology, Prof. Tibor Toth, Prof. Vincenzo Eusebi and Prof. Ana Sapino in her lectures covered the most up-to-date information on the general morphology of breast lesions with a focus on radiological-pathological correlations, invasive and in situ breast cancer, as well as predictive parameters in breast cancer and their correct assessment. Within the framework of the slide seminar, 12 cases of breast lesions were presented, of which 6 were presented by the lecturers at the workshop and the remaining 6 were selected from the cases submitted by the congress participants. Both benign and malignant lesions were included with an emphasis on differential diagnostic clues, immunohistochemical findings and selected molecular genetic tools.
It should be noted that both the Second Macedonian Congress of Pathologists and the Workshop of the European School of Pathology entitled “Breast Pathology in the 21st Century” were accredited by the European Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education. The Proceedings of the Congress include in extenso papers and/or abstracts from the lectures presented within the framework of the symposia, slide seminars and abstracts from the participants. All documents including the Final Program and the Proceedings, as well as all other information and the photo gallery, can be found on the Congress website http://www.map-mzp.mk/2ndCongress2016/.
The feedback from the participants received through anonymous surveys for the Congress as a whole and for the Workshop in particular was excellent. The majority of participants during the event, and later, in person and through e-mail communication, gave positive ratings and comments both about the lecturers and about the usefulness, educational value and high scientific quality of the program. Some of the participants also stated that their presence at the event benefited them a lot. The excellent organization of the event was also praised by many participants on many occasions during the Congress, as well as in the comments in the evaluation survey. The event was overall rated by the participants with an average score of 4.82 (out of 5).
Social activities included in the congress program began with the ceremonial opening held in the Labino Hall of the Metropol Hotel on September 1, which, after the welcoming speeches, culminated with the screening of an interesting film about pathology prepared by pathology trainees – members of the Association of Pathologists of Macedonia. The same evening, a welcome cocktail was organized on the terrace of the Bellevue Hotel, which was enriched by the performance of the Kalevala acoustic music quartet, which performs ethno, classical music and modern jazz.
On Saturday, September 3, a piano concert by our internationally recognized pianist maestro Simon Trpceski was held in the Church of St. Sophia, one of the most famous medieval buildings in Ohrid with frescoes from the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries, also known for its excellent acoustics. His inspired and virtuoso performance of the symphonic suite Scheherazade by Rimsky-Korsakov will be remembered as one of the main themes of the Congress. Finally, all participants and invited lecturers enjoyed the final joint dinner with Macedonian cuisine and music at the Bellevue Hotel, on Sunday, September 4.
Overall, the quality of the scientific sessions, the appropriate conditions in the facilities at the congress venue, as well as Ohrid, the city of exceptional natural beauty, archaeological treasures, 365 churches, traditional architecture and delicious food, made it possible to create a very stimulating environment for the exchange of knowledge and experiences, thus fulfilling our intention, declared in the motto of the congress, to gather in one place expert pathologists and cytopathologists coming from all parts of Europe and beyond, scientists and numerous colleagues to share and exchange knowledge and the latest achievements in research and practice in various fields of pathology. Therefore, we believe that the Second Macedonian Congress of Pathologists created conditions for all participants to spend days of intensive and constructive work, with the opportunity to establish future scientific cooperation and new friendly interactions with colleagues from neighboring countries, as well as from other European and more distant countries.
Finally, the Association of Pathologists of Macedonia and the Organizing Committee of the Congress feel indebted and grateful to many colleagues who collaborated with us in creating the program, as well as to all invited lecturers and all participants of the Congress. We are also grateful to the members of the Working Group of the European Association of Pathologists for Breast Pathology, especially to the lecturers who organized and prepared the Workshop of the European School of Pathology.
The Organizing Committee also expresses its gratitude for the financial support provided by the European Association of Pathologists for the organization of the Workshop “Breast Pathology in the 21st Century”. We also thank all the institutions that officially supported us, then the official organizer of the congress, despite serious remarks about the omissions made and the not always professional attitude, as well as the commercial companies that financially supported this event, namely our gold sponsor, Roche Macedonia DOOEL, official representative Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, our silver sponsor Adriamed Ltd., official representative and distributor of Roche Diagnostics, and all other sponsors and exhibitors.

Prof. Dr. Neli Baseska, Sr.
President of the Organizing Committee
of the Second Macedonian Congress of Pathologists with International Participation

Report – Second Macedonian Congress of Pathologists with International Participation