Joint EAU-Urological Society of India Session explores hot topics
The afternoon of the first day of EAU17 featured a further six Urology Beyond Europe Sessions, in addition to those held in the morning. The session was chaired on behalf of the Urological Society of India (USI) by its President, Prof. Prem Nath Dogra (IN) and on behalf of the EAU by Prof. David Manuel Castro Díaz (ES).
While the two and a half-hour session covered a wide variety of topics, the main focus was on the lower urinary tract. Topics included Peyronie’s disease, the etiopathogenesis of LUTS, minimally invasive therapy for BPH, radical cystectomy and the use of meshes for reconstructive urology.
Each topic was covered by an Indian urologist, and then by a European colleague. This way, the audience could refl ect on differences in approach. Dogra explained: “When composing the scientific programme for this session, we wanted topics with some controversy, topics that are perhaps not completely clear to all urologists. By combining an Indian speaker with a European one, some of these issues can be explored, and the attending urologists can practice with a clear mind.”
“In fact,” Díaz added, “there isn’t such a big difference in approaches between Europe and India, medically speaking. Of course there are large differences in population, available technology and budgets, but urologists on both continents have the same medical approaches.”
One set of differences was summarised in Dr. Sarakanur Raghunath’s (IN) talk on the Indian approach to prostate cancer castration resistance. For instance, more than 75% of patients are not insured, and over 80% cannot afford all available CRPC treatment options.
Raghunath: “More than 98% of CRPC patients are treated by medical oncologists only, with urologists only involved when surgical interventions are required.”
Historic ties
Nevertheless, the EAU Guidelines are also followed on the subcontinent. Dogra: “Historically, having been part of the British Empire, we follow Europe and the UK, particularly with medical guidelines. We apply the same in our practice. The USI endorses the EAU Guidelines, this is part of our memorandum of understanding.”
It was these same historic ties that presumably contributed to the large attendance at the EAU-USI Session. Dogra was very happy with the scope for interaction: “This meeting was very well attended, compared to some earlier meetings. This time it was much more interactive due to the high attendance.
Of course there is a large contingent of Indian urologists living in the UK. But naturally the subjects that we chose were attractive and interesting for urologists of any background.”