Dear ESTRO friends and colleagues,

At the beginning of this new year, I want to take the opportunity to reflect on 2024 and give an outlook into 2025.

Substantial progress has been achieved in cancer research, prolonging the life of many cancer patients and increasing their quality of life. Radiation oncology continues to be an innovative and strong pillar in translational and clinical research. Outcomes of cancer patients have improved due to advances in the art of radiotherapy, meaning radiotherapy technology such as stereotactic radiotherapy for prostate cancer patients or patients with oligometastatic disease. Simultaneously, it has been proved again that radiation oncology is an ideal partner in combined multimodality treatment strategies, for example with immune checkpoint inhibition in patients with small-cell lung cancer or cervical cancer.

However, according to a recent study published in The Lancet, only 3% of public funding for cancer research is invested in radiotherapy, despite 50% of all cancer patients being treated with radiotherapy during the course of their disease. ESTRO is currently increasing its advocacy activities to inform political decision-makers about this gap.

This outreach is possible because ESTRO is considered THE voice and THE home of interdisciplinary radiation oncology in Europe. We now number 10,000 members; almost 3,500 abstracts have been submitted to our annual meeting and 14,000 colleagues are participating in at least one ESTRO activity. ESTRO is honoured by this trust among the interdisciplinary radiation oncology community, and I want to take this opportunity to thank all our valued members and colleagues.

This trust gives us confidence that we can provide even greater benefit for radiation oncology and cancer care in general. The intensified advocacy activity is one component of our strategy to strengthen radiation oncology and to strengthen ESTRO by innovation and partnership. The ESTRO board has established a series of task forces to translate its current strategy into action. These task forces aim to tighten our partnerships with patient organisations, with all the industry stakeholders, and our members and their national societies. We aim to innovate our scientific meeting strategy and to be the advocate for radiation oncology on the European, multidisciplinary and public stages.

All activities of ESTRO are the work of volunteers, of colleagues who share our vision of “Radiation Oncology, optimal health for all, together”. I want to thank all volunteers for their dedication, and I want to encourage especially the young generation to join ESTRO to shape the future of their disciplines and of radiation oncology.

There will soon be a call for applications for the Agora retreat, please stay tuned.

Last year, 2024, was a year of extremes, in our field of radiation oncology and globally. The Russian war against Ukraine is now almost three years old, with thousands of people dead and cancer care being severely affected. ESTRO urges all conflict partners worldwide to respect human rights and to ensure the safe continuation of cancer care. Colleagues from Ukraine will report on their experiences at ESTRO 2025.

The ESTRO 2025 conference will return to beautiful Vienna, in the centre of Europe (Austria). We aim to strengthen its scientific impact and its networking opportunities. The joint call for papers between The Lancet Oncology and the Green Journal, new guideline sessions that will emphasise interaction, and carefully designed tracks are just some of the innovations. I invite and encourage all radiation oncologists, clinical oncologists, medical physicists, radiation therapists and radiobiologists to join us in Vienna!

I am planning to provide insights, reflections, and updates from ESTRO on a more regular basis, to continue the dialogue within our society and to reinforce our commitment to advancing radiation oncology.

With this, I wish you a happy new year, and look forward to meeting you all in Vienna!

Best regards,

Matthias Guckenberger

ESTRO president