CX 2022 returns to in-person format once more in the London spring 26-28 April 2022
BE A PART OF IT!
It is my personal pleasure and on behalf of the teams of CX 2022, Vascular News, Interventional Radiology News, Venous News, Cardiovascular News and Renal Interventions to invite you to the 44th Charing Cross International Symposium which has some differences this year.
As always, every three years we raise vascular and endovascular CONTROVERSIES to CHALLENGE the available evidence in order to reach CONSENSUS after a discussion with an expert audience. It is certainly a CHALLENGE year in the cycle, as CX 2022 is the first ever hybrid global vascular meeting in this transitional year. The vascular and endovascular community aches to meet together again in London as in normal times in late April, which is well into springtime. The whole profession wants to meet together again and so does industry to return to the way that we all work together in the patient interest. CX 2022 is transitional simply because Olympia is being refurbished and we cannot predict the speed of return to normality. In addition, COVID-19 has dominated choices in patient management. Prevalence varies even now in various zones of the 80 or so countries who attend CX. In the meantime, we have “pivoted” to broadcast CX virtually and enabled education to reach far and wide despite the difficulties. So, hybrid it must be to be sure to reach you all. This year we shall meet at and stay in the Hilton London Metropole hotel, which can provide for us the equivalent of the Upper main, Lower main and Pillar Hall auditoria of Olympia Grand. We visualise an audience of around 2,000 on site with live broadcast of all programmes to those of you who cannot make it to be with us. We have reached more than 6,000 additional audience members with our broadcasting live streaming. It is not the time to discontinue that at this moment, but the aim is to be present in person, rekindling the collective spirit of camaraderie and sharing of ideas that can only be fully realised when we meet together personally. We are in transition for other reasons. It is evident that global practice of vascular management has been disturbed recently. Some of you have not been able to leave your homes. When you have, your hospitals have focused upon COVID-19 and less urgent matters have been placed on the “back burner” as waiting lists rise and diseases progress—this is reflected in the programme of CX 2022.
We therefore begin CX 2022 with “CX effect of COVID-19 challenges upon vascular management now and future”. We shall hear input from Great Britain, Ireland and Finland before turning specifically to address “Challenges to skills learning and training of vascular specialists” with contributions from Rouleaux club trainees in Great Britain, Ireland and European Vascular Surgeons in Training as well as the secretary of the World Federation of Vascular Societies (WFVS), Palma Shaw. Then it is a privilege that the president of the Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) has nominated Jason T Lee, president of the Association of Directors of Vascular Surgery in North America to inform us of the concerns within the SVS on effect of the dreaded virus upon vascular training. Indeed, there is a need to recruit the finest of tomorrow’s physicians to our wonderful speciality where so many world leaders will educate at CX 2022. Whilst some aspects of our practice are subdued, this does not apply to urgent matters such as the “hurting leg”, at risk of major amputation mainly from either peripheral arterial or venous disease, which is occurring in apparently thriving countries like the UK and Germany. We shall hear that legs are being amputated under our very noses without investigation to detect underlying vascular disease. It is not a time for physicians and surgeons to take a rest but to rise to the challenge. Aortic aneurysms can still rupture whilst eyes are turned to COVID-19 patients. Vascular trauma continues. As such, the CX programme reflects the challenge faced by the global community in 2022. We hope that you will come and join us in London. Though, understanding the challenging times we currently face, if you register and are then unable to travel, we shall return the difference in registration fee so that you may still tune in virtually to the outstanding education from the very finest healthcare professionals of the world of surgery, radiology and cardiology. So looking forward to greeting you. Yours, Roger Greenhalgh
Register now www.cxsymposium.com/cx2022/registration/