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The Royal Marsden has been awarded a rare and special accolade for its contribution to, and support of, cancer education and training in Europe.
The hospital received the award at this year’s 2009 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Congress in Berlin.
It was presented to just two organisations from across Europe to mark the 20th anniversary of the ESMO Fellowship Program.
Cancer education and training
The award, which recognised the support The Royal Marsden gives to ESMO Fellows, was collected on behalf of the Trust by Medical Director, Professor Martin Gore.
He said: “It was a privilege and an honour to receive this award on behalf of The Royal Marsden Hospital.
“We were one of just two organisations to receive this award, and the only one in the country, which is an exceptional achievement. It reaffirms The Royal Marsden’s position as a leading cancer centre in Europe and the contribution we make to education and training.”
And along with this award, the Trust was also formally recognised for its commitment to providing comprehensive services in supportive and palliative care.
Integrated oncology and palliative care
The Royal Marsden received accreditation as an ESMO Designated Center of Integrated Oncology and Palliative Care – one of 27 centres across Europe to be awarded this status.
The bid for this accreditation was compiled by Anna-Marie Stevens, Macmillan Nurse Consultant, Palliative Care, with the help and support of the Trust’s Palliative Care team.
She said: “We are delighted to receive international recognition from ESMO of the excellent care that The Royal Marsden provides to patients with cancer at all stages of their journey and of the full integration of the Palliative Care service with the acute cancer treatment services provided by the trust.”
Lifetime achievement
Professor Alan Ashworth, Director of the Breakthrough Breast Cancer Research Centre at the Institute of Cancer Research, The Royal Marsden’s academic partner, was awarded the 2009 ESMO Lifetime Achievement Award. The award celebrates international research teams or individuals who have demonstrated commitment to cancer research treatment.
ESMO fellowship
And concluding a very successful ESMO congress for The Royal Marsden, Clinical Research Fellow in the Head and Neck Unit, Eleni Karapanagioutou was awarded an ESMO fellowship.
She works in Dr Kevin Harrington’s team working in both clinics and laboratories on combining virus therapies with chemotherapy drugs. She looks after patients with both head and neck cancers and myelomas.
