26th Annual ESGO 2025 Congress
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As part of our ongoing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion initiatives, ENYGO and ESGO are committed to erasing inequalities in our subspecialty that stem from gender biases. The ENYGO-ESGO Mentorship Programme is the inaugural project of this ENYGO-ESGO Task Force. It is a 24-month-long programme in which ENYGO members as mentees will match with distinguished ESGO members as mentors. The mentors will offer one-to-one support and counselling in the areas of interest for the mentees and during a specially tailored plan will guide their clinical and scientific development. The programme is expected to contribute to the improvement of mentees’ clinical and operative skills, realization of their own research ideas and publishing, and obtaining desired workplace positions after receiving career advice. This programme is designed especially for ENYGO members who do not have access to mentors at their home institutions. In the first stage, the programme will be open to female mentees only; and, subsequently, to all.
“The ESGO-ENYGO Mentorship program is one important puzzle piece among many project in the overall ESGO initiative „Embrace Gender Equality in Gynecological Oncology". This ESGO approach aims to enable equal opportunities for female and male surgeons, physicians, and scientists, to support women and men in reaching family and career goals, and to facilitate women and men to reach leadership positions.“
Prof Nicole ConcinInnsbruck Medical UniversityAustria
“As a woman, it took me several years and sacrifices before I could really say: yes, this is what I wanted to do, but now it is great! I hope that this important ESGO initiative will lead to an easier career path for the future generations of physicians, regardless of their gender. Through this project we aim to have an impactful role for an inclusive society where all of us have the same opportunities.”
Prof Anna FagottiFondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCSItaly
“When I finished my medical studies and wished to follow the pathway of general surgery; I was told thats not a path for a woman. When I wished, years later, to continue my academic career back in my home country I was told I was only a young woman so its not my turn yet.. We are now building within ESGO a strong initiative and network to aspire and inspire future generations to progress, thrive and receive support regardless of their gender. Women and men will fight as mentors and mentees hand by hand against inequalities that had been enrooted since centuries, to shape a better gynae oncology community with equal opportunities.“
ProfChristina FotopoulouImperial College LondonUK
“It has been a priority always for us to give more and more chances and support for females in surgical specialties in our region where many myths, misconceptions and false fixed believes have settled in the mindsets for decades about males privilege, we are all equal , and in a speciality like gynecological oncology our women has the right to have more and more talented doctors from both gendres EQUALLY”
Prof Basel RefkyMansoura University HospitalEgypt
"There is only one gynaecological oncologist and that is a gynaecological oncologist who is 100% committed to the patient and her disease. The gender of this gynaecological oncologist is simply irrelevant."
Prof Toon Van GorpUniversity Hospital LeuvenBelgium
+ Embrace equality and enable equal opportunities for female and male surgeons, physicians, academics, and scientist
+ Reduce the pay gap between women and men in our subspecialty
+ Enable and support women and men in reaching a family AND career balance
+ Enable equal opportunities for women and men to reach leadership positions
+ Raise awareness about inadvertent wording and term definitions in communication and publication that may work against equal treatment
+ Design and enforce a Zero Tolerance Policy on sexual harassment
Criteria to become a mentee
Application process
Mentors-mentees matches were announced in January 2024
All confirmed mentees will be asked for:
The program kicked off during the March 2024 Barcelona Conference, during which time mentors and mentees met and obtained detailed written tips and goals on the roles of their respective roles and obligations following with the Mentorship webinar.
Mentees will focus on three to five realistic goals as agreed with their mentor. The mentees and mentors will together create an action plan, record their progress, keep a meeting agenda and use evidence-based tools and methods to improve outcomes based on mutual interests and the mentor’s capacity.
These tools and methods were addressed in the webinar titled “Mentoring for Success”.
Facilitated by a EDI professional, the webinar included specific advice for mentors and mentees on how to proceed through their journey with tips on goal setting, measuring their success, and activities/strategies that will help them reach their goals.
Watch the video and learn more!
“Mentoring is an indispensable requirement for the medical doctors’ growth. Our mentors will give you guidance, advice and support. They will empower you to see a possible future and believe it can be obtained.”
Tanja Nikolova, MD, PhD
Chair
Klinikum Mittelbaden
Academic Teaching Hospital of Heidelberg University Baden-Baden
Germany
Esra Bilir, MD, MSc
Co-Chair
Koc University School of Medicine
Koc University Graduate School of Health Sciences, Istanbul
Türkiye
“We take immense pleasure in announcing the inauguration of our latest initiative, ENYGO-ESGO Task Force: Embracing Gender Equality in Gynaecological Oncology. We invite all eligible colleagues to seize the opportunity and apply for our mentorship program, providing a chance to collaborate with distinguished mentors from the renowned ESGO community."
Prof. Nicole Concin
Innsbruck Medical University
Austria
Prof. Anna Fagotti
Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli
IRCCS, Rome
Italy
Prof. Christina Fotopoulou
Imperial College London
UK
Prof. Mansoor Raza Mirza
Rigshospitalet Copenhagen
Denmark
Prof. Toon Van Gorp
University Hospital Leuven
Belgium
Joanna Kacperczyk-Bartnik, MD, PhD
Medical University of Warsaw
Poland
Nicolò Bizzarri, MD
Zoia Razumova, MD, PhD
Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm
Sweden
Aleksandra Strojna, MD, PhD
Evangelische Kliniken Essen Mitte
Sara Nasser, MRCOG
Charite Universitatsmedizin Berlin
Ilker Kahramanoglu, MD
Private Clinic of Gynecologic Oncology, Istanbul
Tibor Zwimpfer, MD
Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne
Australia
Richárd Tóth, MD
Semmelweis University, Budapest
Hungary
Khayal Gasimli, MD
W. Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main
ESGO fully supports working parents, and is delighted to offer complimentary childcare to all ESGO registered delegates. This initiative was first introduced at the ESGO 2023 congress in Istanbul and will be continued in the upcoming annual congresses.
This means that you could fully enjoy the ESGO 2024 congress experience, knowing that your little ones are well looked after. We believe that providing this support fosters an inclusive environment for all delegates.
Experienced and certified childcare providers will look after your beloved child in a separate room located at the congress venue, and designed for children with toys, games, and other equipment, such as a changing table. Age-appropriate activities will be organised as well.
Children from 1-12 years of age are welcome, however, places are subject to availability and on a first-come, first-served basis.
Parents are encouraged to pre-book childcare places.
Please first select the option of free childcare services as you register for the congress, and then indicate the dates and desired hours of childcare services in the childcare registration form HERE