ESCP President’s Greeting
Dear Members,
It is my privilege and honor to serve you as the president of the European Society of Coloproctology (ESCP) in 2023-2024. Only 17 years from its conception in 2006, the ESCP has become a worldwide leading society in colorectal surgery, which continues to thrive and gives high value to its members.
Since the first annual meeting in Lisbon in 2006, with Adam Dziki as the first president, John Nichols as the first Program Committee Chair, and attendance of 565 professionals, the ESCP Annual Scientific Meeting continues to be the major event, a must for any colorectal surgeon and general surgeon with special interest in colorectal surgery in Europe and beyond. The 2022 meeting in Dublin attracted more than 2000 participants, with a superb scientific program balancing original scientific papers, keynote lectures by key opinion leaders, and new young stars in colorectal surgery, coming from around the world.
In addition to the annual meeting, the ESCP provides high value to its members throughout the year. This includes ongoing educational activities, including multiple webinars, masterclasses, online educational content, and guidelines for clinical practice in colorectal surgery. The ESCP fosters high-quality research throughout Europe, including the revolutionary pan-European snapshot audits that resulted in landmark scientific publications. All of these activities are supported by the great work of the Communications and Membership Committees, which make sure that members’ benefits are significant and visible.
The ESCP is a forward-looking organisation, which aims to provide more and more value to its members each year. Despite being a European-based society, the ESCP wishes to attract colorectal surgeons from all over the world and become the most prominent colorectal society globally. Global Reach is a new Committee, aiming to find the best ways to collaborate with surgeons based outside of Europe. This is likely to include the humanitarian aim to support education and training in low-income countries around the world. In addition, the ESCP wishes to take a sentinel role in surgical innovation in our profession, with the understanding that technology is an integral part of contemporary colorectal surgery.
It is a great pleasure for me to hold a leading position in this great Society. The ESCP leadership is here for you. We would always like to hear any suggestions and comments from our members, and wish to put your needs as a priority. Please feel free to contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the colorectal surgeons who volunteer for various ESCP related activities, including the various committees and working groups, and the executive committee, made up of busy well-known surgeons, that spend huge amount of time and effort for the success of the Society. Special thanks to Eloy Espin-Basany, the immediate past President, for great visionary leadership.
Hope to see you all taking part in ESCP activities throughout the year, and in the 2024 annual meeting in Thessaloniki.
Oded Zmora, ESCP President
ESCP Secretary’s Message
It is a great honour to serve the ESCP, a society which has gone beyond all expectations from its inception in 2006. It was in the late 1980s when three UK colorectal surgeons - Roger Grace, John Nicholls (my great mentor) and Philip Schofield - approached the ECCP (European Council of Coloproctology) and European Association of Coloproctology (EACP) with the idea of a single, specialist, pan‐European coloproctological society. They coalesced in 2006 to form the ESCP.
This year, we are delighted to come together in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania in southeastern Lithuania, at the confluence of the Vilnia and Neris rivers. Several countries claim that the geographical centre of Europe is located in their territories. Its location depends on which definition of the extent of Europe is chosen; the Guinness Book of World Records has recognised a point near Vilnius as the continent's centre.
The original planned annual meeting in Vilnius in 2020 was a victim of the Covid pandemic but now we come together here for the 18th Scientific and Annual Conference of our society.
A huge thank you to all of our members across the globe for making ESCP such a success even through Covid. Treasurer Miguel Pera has kept us afloat with his very astute financial management despite the loss of revenue from the in person meetings.
As well as the annual meetings it is a great pleasure to return to the ESCP Regional Masterclass. At the beginning of this September a masterclass was combined with the SASES (South African Society of Endoscopic Surgeons) in Cape Town. Those of us who were lucky enough to be included benefitted from a very educational meeting with a level of hospitality which is unique to South Africans.
I would like to personally thank Eloy Espin, himself a former secretary of ESCP, for his leadership during his Presidency in 2023. Eloy now hands over to Oded Zmora, who it will be my privilege to work with over the next year.
In the words of Andrew Shorthouse and John Nicholls, authors of A History of the European Society of Coloproctology, Colorectal Disease 2020: “collaboration is the key to future success”. May the ESCP continue from strength to strength, transcending politics and borders for the good of all of our colorectal patients.
We hope to see everyone again next year in the historic port city of Thessaloniki, for ESCP 2024!
Carolynne Vaizey, ESCP Secretary
