ESTRO School Anniversary

By Prof Jesper Grau Eriksen, Past Chair, ESTRO Education Council & Director of the ESTRO School (2016–2024)

Being involved in ESTRO education is an enormous privilege. Nowhere else in the world will you be able to find such a huge group of experts working voluntarily and dedicated to the creation of possibly the best postgraduate courses in radiation oncology. This has always been the driver and motivation for for me.

The attached picture says it all without the need for words. It was taken on 2 February 2019 – less than one month before the world changed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This dedicated group, together with more than 200 teachers, worked hard to continue to bring postgraduate radiation oncology education wherever it was needed across the world.

Why are we doing this? Because it matters and because ESTRO education created by world experts, as cheaply as possible and free of industrial interests, is the best way to elevate the standards of radiotherapy provided to patients: not just in Europe but with all the societies with which ESTRO collaborates across the world.

For me, ESTRO education is not just one of the pillars of the ESTRO house but essentially the foundation that must be strong and of high quality before we can build a strong and long-lasting ESTRO house.

My way into ESTRO education

2007-10: Part of the working group for a third of the ESTRO core curriculum

2010-16: Became responsible for online courses for the Fellowship in Anatomic Delineation and Contouring (FALCON) group, together with Carl Salembier.

 

2012-22: Member of faculty for the Combined Drug-Radiation Treatment course

2012-18: President European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS)

2012-16: ESTRO Education and Training, core group

2013-present: Member of faculty for FALCON Head and Neck Online Delineation course

2013-present: Member of faculty for multidisciplinary teaching course on Head and Neck Oncology

2016-24: Chair, ESTRO Education Council, and Director of the ESTRO School

2023-present: Association of Radiation Oncologists of India-ESTRO Head and Neck teaching course

 

Prof Jesper Grau Eriksen
Aarhus University Hospital, Denmark
Past Chair, ESTRO Education Council & Director of the ESTRO School (2016–2024)