European Society of Medical Oncology announces new executive director

Alan Howard, who has managed professional medical organizations for more than 20 years, has been appointed as the new Executive Director of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO), and will begin his term on 1 April 2009.

ESMO President, José Baselga expressed his confidence in ESMO’s decision; “Mr. Howard has vast experience in running and building up professional medical societies and his impressive track record is proof that he is the right person, at the right time, to work with the ESMO leadership to drive ESMO forward.”

Alan Howard, originally from the UK, has spent over 20 years of his professional life in France. Mr. Howard was formally trained as a Barrister-at-Law at London University and held several positions as Legal Counsel in the UK followed by a position as Legal and Regulatory Affairs Director in France. For 10 years he worked as Managing Director of a leading medical device consulting firm in Europe until being appointed Group Chief Executive of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) based in Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France.

When Mr. Howard began at ESC in 1998 with a staff of 26 employees, the ESC Annual Congress was the Society’s only product. Under his leadership the Society has grown to 125 employees and the ESC Annual Meeting is now recognized as the largest scientific meeting in Europe and the largest cardiology meeting in the world. In addition, ESC has become a leading provider of scientific products, education, guidelines, surveys and journals. Mr. Howard has also enjoyed success in political circles and has helped advance the cause of prevention in Europe, leading to the establishment of the European Heart Health Charter.

“I am honoured to have been selected as the new ESMO Executive Director. ESMO has ambitious goals of reinforcing and expanding its profile, product offer and services. I wish to assure ESMO that I accept this challenge with enthusiasm, and am certain that we will achieve great success together,” acknowledges future ESMO Executive Director, Alan Howard.

ESMO’s objective is to best serve the community of oncology professionals. We do this through the generation and dissemination of knowledge, and providing the highest quality of educational, training and research programs. The ultimate goal of the Society is to advance cancer research, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care so that all patients receive the high-quality care they deserve.

When ESMO was founded more than 30 years ago, cancer was still an unbeatable disease and medical oncology a new specialty. Since that time, the oncology community has made significant strides to increase the survival rates of patients afflicted with cancer. Innovations in medical oncology have contributed to that progress and to improved patient care. The role of ESMO has been instrumental in this success, because the Society is uniquely positioned as a knowledge hub and an oncology platform accessible to all medical professionals. ESMO addresses and meets the universal needs in oncology by being a reliable partner to all stakeholders in the multidisciplinary oncology environment, because ESMO knows the battle against cancer cannot be fought alone.

About the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)

The European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) is a European non-profit, professional organisation for medical oncology promoting multidisciplinary cancer treatment around the world.