September 4 – 6, 2020
The 1st Annual Neuro-Oncology Symposium (1ANOS) was organized by the Pakistan Society of Neuro-Oncology (PASNO) in collaboration with Aga Khan University, Karachi. The symposium was held from September 4 – 6, 2020 and was endorsed by Society for Neuro-oncology, World Federation of Neuro-oncological Societies, European Society of Neuro-oncology, Asian Society of Neuro-Oncology and Society of Neuro-Oncology of Sub-Saharan Africa, among others. The list of speakers included some of the world’s best known experts in Neuro-oncology, including both basic scientists and clinicians. There were more than 40 international speakers, and around 20 national speakers, including AKU faculty from both Karachi and Nairobi campuses. The format was designed to have sessions both in the morning and evening, to insure participation from around the world, as there were speakers from five continents. The symposium featured a mix of state of art lectures, interactive panel discussions, multi-disciplinary case-based discussions, expert commentaries, and even featured highly moving talks by patient caregivers.
The response was overwhelming and more than 1400 participants, from more than 240 institutions across the world and from various countries, including Australia, Canada, China, France, India, Japan, Kenya, Korea, Malaysia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, UAE, UK, USA, registered for the meeting. The second day of the symposium also featured the launch of Pakistan Society of Neuro-oncology (PASNO), Pakistan’s first scientific society dedicated to research, teaching, capacity building and networking, in the field of Neuro-oncology. Professor Syed Ather Enam was announced as the Founding President of PASNO. The launch featured an enlightening panel discussion involving leadership from major Neuro-oncology Societies of the world, on the role of Neuro-Oncology Societies in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMIC). The leadership strongly praised the need of PASNO, and highlighted important role it will play to improve the care of brain tumor patients in Pakistan and in the region. They also congratulated the organizers on using 1ANOS as a platform to establish networks with centers like UCSF, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Hospital for Sick Children and Fudan University, and expected this as a first step towards further collaborations between these centers.
