EONS15, Paris 2022 – Quality cancer care: pathways to clinical excellence in cancer nursing
The EONS15 hybrid conference took place in Paris, France, from Saturday-Monday 10-12 September 2022, in partnership with the ESMO 2022 Congress (9-13 September). The theme of our conference was: ‘Quality cancer care: pathways to clinical excellence in cancer nursing’.
EONS President Johan de Munter welcomed participants at the Opening Session of EONS15 in Paris
The EONS15 hybrid conference in Paris, France, from Saturday-Monday 10-12 September 2022 began with a warm welcome from our President Johan de Munter in which he outlined all the work that EONS is doing to advance the status of cancer nursing with educational, research and advocacy initiatives throughout Europe. Pascale Dielenseger then welcomed us on behalf of the French Oncology Nurses Society. Next up was Carolina Espina on the World Code Against cancer Framework: evidence-based recommendations for cancer prevention. She was followed by Dame Lesley Jean Fallowfield of Sussex University who spoke about Psycho-oncology in cancer nursing. Last but not least, cancer patient Martin Inderbitzin gave an inspiring talk entitle ‘My Survival Story’ – What we can learn from each other to get through cancer.
The EONS15 Conference was under way!
EONS15 featured a wide range of high-quality sessions led by top experts of the cancer nursing world. The EONS Scientific Committee put together an exciting programme and created an excellent event where cancer nurses developed their careers and expanded their knowledge: the programme for EONS15 is available in the Further Information column of this page.
Participants joined sessions on many fascinating themes, from ‘Professional and educational issues in cancer nursing in Eastern European countries’ to ‘Building resilience among YCNs, and attended symposiums on a range of topics, from cancer pain management, to prehab and rehab for patients with CAR T cell therapy, and much more.
PrEvCan – The launch of a major cancer prevention initiative led by nurses
Former EONS President Lena Sharp officially launched the PrEvCan campaign at EONS15/ESMO22. This ground-breaking drive to reduce rates of cancer across Europe is initiated and led by EONS with ESMO as key partner, alongside the European Cancer Patients Coalition (ECPC) and more than 60 other international and national organisations. The campaign is based on the European Code Against Cancer (ECAC), which sets out 12 recommendations ranging from physical activity and dietary guidelines to tobacco use and second-hand smoke. Over a year, starting from October 2022, each month will be dedicated to promoting one of these recommendations and highlighting the scientific evidence supporting it, with the dual objective of increasing awareness of how to prevent cancer among the general public and of providing healthcare professionals with a more comprehensive toolkit for communicating the importance of cancer prevention effectively.
A special policy session between ESMO, EONS and ECPC on the oncology workforce in the frontline for cancer prevention across Europe highlighted cancer prevention from several different perspectives (cancer nursing, medical oncology and patients) as well as from the European union’s political agenda.
Explaining why nurses are perfectly placed to lead such a campaign, Lena said: “Cancer nurses are ranked the most trusted profession and are the largest group of healthcare providers. They interact with people throughout their lifespan, are involved with people during treatment, follow-up and survivorship phases and are thus perfectly placed to educate, inform and support patients and their friends and families on cancer prevention and risk reduction strategies.”
More information and campaign resources are available at the webpage www.cancernurse.eu/prevcan
Awards presented at EONS15
Congratulations to two EONS stars! Theresa Wiseman (UK) received the EONS Lifetime Achievement Award and Nikolina Dodlek (Croatia) the RECaN Award from EONS President Johan de Munter. As Professor of Applied Health Research in Cancer Care at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, Theresa Wiseman is held in high esteem and deep affection by all those she has worked with and those she has mentored and supported. She has made a huge contribution to the work of EONS as a highly-valued Board member over many years and at a senior level on the EONS Education Working Group. Her contribution to the advancement of cancer nursing education and research through teaching and writing has been immense and is greatly appreciated by the entire nursing community across the UK and Europe. The RECaN award is presented annually to a cancer nurse who has made an outstanding contribution to our profession and to our organisation. Nikolina Dodlek was instrumental in organising ECND22 in Zagreb, is a very active member of the EONS Young Cancer Nurse Network and an EONS Board member. She is also involved with the recently launched PrEvCan campaign.
Novice Research Dissemination Award
The winner of this award in 2022 was Silvia Ucciero, from Italy, for her abstract ‘Informal caregivers’ contributions to self-care for patients treated with oral anticancer agents: A qualitative study’. Silvia is a PhD student in nursing and public health at the University of Rome – Tor Vergata, and she deals with self-care in cancer patients taking oral anticancer drugs. She is a nurse at the onco-hematology department of the Hospital of Romagna, Ravenna, Italy and assistant professor of palliative care at the University of Bologna, Italy.
Download Abstract
Best Poster Award 2022
This award acknowledges the scientific quality, structure and organisation of the poster presentation.
Congratulations to Dr Koralia Michail and her team at Cyprus University of Technology – Nursing Science, Nursing Department, Limassol, for the poster ‘Reducing fear and stress through educational interventions during therapeutic procedures in children and adolescents with cancer – a systematic review.’
EONS President Elect unveils updated Cancer Nursing Education Framework
EONS President Elect Virpi Sulosaari announced the launch of a new updated version of the EONS Cancer Nursing Education Framework. She explained how a task group of experts began the update process in September 2021 and have now reviewed all sections of this resource to ensure it is fully up to date with all the latest knowledge and practice. The Framework is proving instrumental in transforming cancer nurse training across Europe.
Find out more and download the new edition
European College of Cancer Nursing
Also, at the Closing Ceremony, EONS Board member Wendy McInally introduced the European College of Cancer Nursing, outlining it’s Career Pathway structure and explaining how it will enable cancer nurses to access e-learning modules aligned to the EONS Cancer Nursing Education Framework. Twenty nurses are participating in a pilot of the Early Career/Registration and participation in the first interactive level will begin in January 2023.
The ECCN has been developed with the ongoing support and collaboration of the European School of Oncology (ESO) and ESCO – The College of the European School of Oncology.
Find out more
EONS PRESIDENTS ON THE BENEFITS OF ATTENDING THE EONS15 CONFERENCE!
EONS President Johan de Munter – Welcome to three inspirational days:
“The EONS15 conference is a must for all European cancer nurses. It’s about learning and growing your knowledge and skills, but it’s also about being inspired, networking with colleagues from other countries and gaining the confidence to develop your career in exciting new ways. Year after year, we hear from cancer nurses who tell us that attending the conference was a turning point for them, providing a new foundation on which to build the rest of their careers. When I attended my first EONS conference, I never thought that one day I would be EONS President! Trust me, these three inspirational days will change your working life for many years to come ¬– whether your dream is to be a cancer nurse leader, a specialist in a particular field or simply, and most importantly, to be the best cancer nurse you can be.”
EONS President Elect Virpi Sulosaari on the ‘pure gold’ to be found at conference:
“I remember my first EONS conference – I learnt so much and met so many wonderful people. The educational sessions and symposia are of course very important, but there’s also something really special about meeting colleagues from across Europe and hearing about their day-to-day experiences with people affected by cancer. This is what is so exciting about being able to come together again after Covid-19 – there’s a special magic that you just don’t experience from being online. Those conversations we have around the conference centre, over coffee, out for dinner in the evening, are pure gold. I still have many professional friends I met at my first conference.”
Amanda Drury, EONS Board member and Scientific Committee Co-Chair, added: “We were really excited to introduce our first hybrid EONS Conference, alongside ESMO Congress this year. After two years of virtual conferences, we were delighted to offer our community of cancer nurses the opportunity to connect both in-person and virtually, to hear from expert speakers, network and learn more about new developments in research, education or practice innovations.”
EONS15 industry-sponsored symposia
In addition to the EONS15 educational sessions, six EONS15 industry-sponsored symposia took place throughout the conference. They featured top cancer nursing experts and provided excellent learning opportunities on the following themes:
- Experience of living with Early Breast Cancer, treatment and beyond: What are we missing – Saturday, 10 September from 12:00-13.30 CEST
- Cancer Nursing Considerations for comprehensive care in CAR T-Cell Therapy – Saturday, 10 September from 15:00-16.30 CEST
- Pain management in people with cancer – Sunday, 11 September from 12:00-13.30 CEST
- Nursing Considerations with EGFR Inhibitors in NSCLC – Sunday, 11 September from 15:00-16.30 CEST
- Person-centred interprofessional practice in nutrition – from dream to reality – Monday, 12 September from 12:00-13.30 CEST
- Cancer care: there is no place like home? – Monday, 12 September from 14:00-15.30 CEST
*Click on the titles to view recordings of the symposia on the ESMO platform – you will need your registration log-in details.
On top of the EONS15 cancer nursing sessions, participants also had access to the huge range of excellent sessions available on the ESMO 2022 programme – you can check it out here
With thanks to all our sponsors and collaborators:
*Support was given by the Cancer Nursing Fund, managed by the King Baudouin Foundation, for the participation of nine oncology nurses at EONS15 in Paris.