ECCO News

ECCO News keeps ECCO Members up-to-date on what is going on within the organisation and reports on IBD activities taking place within Europe. Since Spring 2006, ECCO News has maintained the flow of information between Members of the organisation. 

ECCO News is an important part of the European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation’s ambition to create a European standard of IBD care and to promote knowledge and research in the field of IBD. 

Editor & Associate Editors

Edouard Louis
© ECCO

Nuha Yassin
© ECCO

Ignacio Catalán-Serra
© ECCO

Brigida Barberio
© ECCO

Spyros Siakavellas
© ECCO

Latest ECCO News Content


13June2024

Y-ECCO Members’ Address

Bram Verstockt, Y-ECCO Committee Chair

Bram Verstockt
© ECCO

Dear Y-ECCO Enthusiasts!

Can you believe that it’s been only four months since the last ECCO Congress? I bet that many of you are already knee-deep in exciting research for ECCO 2025 in Berlin, so mark your calendars and keep an eye open for the abstract submission deadline. You can’t miss that, as we want to see your top-notch research! Maybe you are the next Y-ECCO Best Abstract awardee!

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, Volume 19, Issue 2, Y-ECCO

13June2024

Tissue-based predictive biomarkers

Aart Mookhoek, H-ECCO Committee Chair

Aart Mookhoek
© ECCO

The last decade has seen a dramatic increase in drugs available for the treatment of IBD. However, each of these novel biologics or small molecules achieves disease remission in only a relatively small proportion of patients [1].To date, implementation in clinical practice of evidence that assists in better evaluating the chance of therapy success in a particular patient for a particular drug is limited. Therefore, when choosing a drug for a patient with IBD who is starting therapy or needs to switch drugs, a trial-and-error approach may be unavoidable.

To address this unmet clinical need, several research groups have now turned their attention to biomarker discovery to allow development of an evidence-based personalised treatment strategy [2]. At this year’s Congress of ECCO in Stockholm, I had the opportunity to provide an update on the field of biomarker discovery from the perspective of a pathologist. In this issue of ECCO News, I want  to share with you the most important points from that H-ECCO Masterclass talk.

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, Volume 19, Issue 2, H-ECCO

13June2024

Introduction of Caroline Nordenvall as new S-ECCO Member

Omar Faiz, S-ECCO Committee Chair

Omar Faiz
© ECCO

Caroline Nordenvall has recently joined the S-ECCO Committee. She works at the Karolinska University Hospital as an IBD surgeon and is head of the research group in colorectal surgery. She is an Associate Professor within the University.

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, Volume 19, Issue 2, S-ECCO

13June2024

The role of diet in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Emma Halmos, D-ECCO Committee Member, Hannah Gordon, GuiCom Chair and Richard Hansen, P-ECCO Committee Member


Emma Halmos
© ECCO
Hannah Gordon
© ECCO
Richard Hansen
© ECCO

Diet in Inflammatory Bowel Disease has become a hot topic in recent years, pushed forward by advances in our understanding of the microbiome and the promise of nutrition as therapy, particularly in Crohn’s Disease. One of the most important questions in clinic (and yet the hardest to answer) remains “What can I eat?” or variations of the same. The reason this question is so difficult to answer is the enormous complexity in how diet overlays IBD and also the lack of high-quality scientific studies addressing this specific problem.

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, Volume 19, Issue 2, GuiCom, P-ECCO, D-ECCO

13June2024

Introducing two new N-ECCO Committee Members

Simona Radice, N-ECCO Committe Chair, Maria de Jong, Cathy Walsh, N-ECCO Committee Members


Simona Radice
© ECCO
Maria de Jong
© ECCO
Cathy Walsh
© ECCO

Two new members joined the N-ECCO Committee in February 2024: Maria de Jong from the Netherlands and Cathy Walsh from Ireland. We all share the same mission: promoting IBD nursing in Europe, rolling out educational and research programmes, and developing patient care and education. We are looking forward to working together, and here Maria and Cathy introduce themselves and their aims while on the committee.

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, Volume 19, Issue 2, N-ECCO

13June2024

Letter from the e-Learning Ambassador

Pascal Juillerat, e-Learning Ambassador

Pascal Juillerat 
© ECCO

Dear ECCO Members,

I am delighted to share some exciting updates regarding our e-Learning platform. As we embrace the vibrant seasons of spring and summer, I encourage you to take advantage of the latest content we have recently added to the e-Library, including the latest Abstracts and Presentations from the ECCO’24 Congress.

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, EduCom, Volume 19, Issue 2

13June2024

EpiCom welcomes new faces and salutes outgoing members

Sophie Restellini, EpiCom Chair

Sophie Restellini
© ECCO

Change is the engine that propels scientific progress, and within this dynamic, committees evolve. As members transition, embracing fresh perspectives, the spirit of innovation flourishes, shaping the path ahead. Amidst this journey, EpiCom is pleased to introduce Paul Henderson while bidding farewell to Julien Kirchgesner.

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, Volume 19, Issue 2, EpiCom

13June2024

Coordinating research opportunities across geographies

María Chaparro, ClinCom Chair, Murat Toruner and Julien Kirchgesner, ClinCom Members


María Chaparro
© ECCO
Murat Toruner
© ECCO
Julien Kirchgesner
© ECCO

During the last ECCO’24 Congress in Stockholm, the ECCO Governing Board announced the new strategy REACH. The REACH strategy is the acronym of five clear goals to shape the current and future ECCO activities for the next years, better defining and expanding ECCO global mission to improve the care for all IBD patients.

Posted in ECCO News, Committee News, ClinCom, Volume 19, Issue 2

13June2024

Unveiling the unknown – genetic and environmental risk factors for IBD in Sub-Saharan Africa

Bella Ungar, SciCom Member


Bella Ungar
© ECCO

The first ECCO Global Grant was awarded at ECCO'24 to an international group leading a fascinating prospective study across Sub-Saharan Africa1. The study is focusing on IBD genetics in the region and is being led by Professor Nick Croft and Dr. Phoebe Hodges from Queen Mary University of London, Professor Paul Kelly and colleagues from the Tropical Gastroenterology and Nutrition Group, University of Zambia and Professor McGovern and his group at Cedars-Sinai, Los Angeles. I had the privilege of discussing aspects of the study with members of the study consortium.

Posted in ECCO News, SciCom, Committee News, Volume 19, Issue 2

13June2024

Call for Participants: The 23rd IBD Intensive Course for Trainees


IBD Intensive Course for Trainees
© ECCO

The 23rd ECCO IBD Intensive Course for Trainees designed for residents, fellows in gastroenterology and junior faculty will take place in Berlin, Germany, on February 19, 2025, immediately prior to our next Congress. We are pleased to inform you that the preliminary programme for this course is already available.

Posted in ECCO News, EduCom, Congress News, Volume 19, Issue 2