The Polish Study Group of Head & Neck Cancer was established in 2003 as an interdisciplinary institution bringing together specialists from laryngology, maxillo-facial surgery, neurosurgery, radiology, pathology, molecular biology, radiotherapy, clinical oncology, in other words - all specialists involved in the care of patients with head and neck cancer.
Promoting an interdisciplinary treatment is the most important purpose of our scientific society.
For the first time in over a decade, the Polish Study Group of Head & Neck Cance is a member of the International Federation of Head & Neck Oncologic Societies (IFHNOS). As a part of this organization, we are trying to notify our members of all courses and conferences held, as well as of all grants and scholarships available. We also participate in creating specific forms of promoting of prevention of treatment and new directions of development in head and neck cancer.
During last three years we organized five national meetings with lectures of eminent specialists in head and neck cancer (prof. Jean Louis Lefebvre, prof. Reidar Grenman, prof. Jochen Werner, prof. Jan Olofsson). These meetings are always organized in different place in Poland, which gives possibility of promoting the idea of mutual interdisciplinary treatment in head and neck cancer. Full lecture rooms are the best evidence of their huge popularity among clinicians in Poland.
By courtesy of the Polish Society of Radiation Oncology, the Polish Study Group of Head & Neck Cancer is co-editor of "The Reports of Practical Oncology and Radiotherapy".
As a first society, we declared our intention of joining access a new programme proposed by prof. Jatin Shah "Global CME (continuing medical education)". In 2008, IFHNOS experts: Drs. Patrick Gullane, Jean-Louis Lefebvre, Willian Wei, Christopher O'Brien and Jatin P. Shah, will be giving lecturers and courses not only for the colleagues from Poland, but also from the whole Central-Eastern Europe.
Recently, the website of the Polish Study Group of Head & Neck Cancer has been launched, where all the most important information for the members of the society will be available.
We also participated in the works of the European Head & Neck Society. As a consequence we were honored to have the possibility of organizing the 5th European Workshop on Basic Biology of Head and Neck Cancer in Poland.
From the perspective of these three years I may say that the idea and initiative of creating this society proved most rightful. I would like to warmly invite all clinicians and scientists interested in head and neck cancer to involve in the work of our society.
