Celebrating the 10th H-ECCO IBD Masterclass
Aart Mookhoek, H-ECCO Committe Chair
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At the 20th Congress of ECCO, held in Berlin, Germany from February 19 to 22, 2025, we organised the 10th H-ECCO IBD Masterclass. The aims of our meeting were to discuss the histopathological aspects of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), to highlight the multidisciplinary approach to the diagnostic process – also illustrated by the similar number of pathologists and gastroenterologists in the audience – and to look towards the future.
In a lively first session, the basics of IBD were covered. The kick off, a tandem talk by Murat Toruner (gastroenterologist from Ankara, Turkey) and Arzu Ensari, showcased how working as a team can improve the diagnostic process. Roger Feakins presented the definitions of the histopathological changes that we see in biopsies from patients with IBD. Using these definitions, Aart Mookhoek (on Ulcerative Colitis) and Helder Oliveira Coelho (on Crohn’s Disease) discussed the classical patterns of IBD, while Pamela Baldin addressed the non-classical patterns that can be so challenging in clinical practice.
In the second session, the focus was on mimics of IBD. Johan Burisch (gastroenterologist from Copenhagen, Denmark) gave a comprehensive overview of the diseases that can mimic IBD clinically and endoscopically. Afterwards, Roger Feakins (on drugs and on rare diseases), Ann Driessen (on infections) and Helder Oliveira Coelho (on diversion colitis and diverticular disease) discussed diseases that can pose as mimics under the microscope.
The third session contained several talks on difficult subjects. In a tandem talk, Fernando Magro (gastroenterologist from Porto, Portugal and ECCO President) and Aart Mookhoek discussed the role of scoring in endoscopy and histology. Afterwards, Paula Borralho Nunes shared her insights into the use of histological scoring systems in clinical practice and subsequently gave a talk on paediatric IBD. Arzu Ensari expertly discussed the overlap between IBD and primary immunodeficiencies. Ann Driessen discussed the topic of dysplasia in IBD, with a focus on non-conventional dysplasia.
The final session was dedicated to looking towards the future of IBD. Ann Driessen gave the traditional “hot topics” talk, in which she discussed several exciting manuscripts published within the last year. Helder Oliveira Coelho gave a talk on biomarkers in IBD, while Aart Mookhoek discussed spatial proteomics as an interesting technique for biomarker discovery. Iris Nagtegaal (pathologist from Nijmegen, the Netherlands) offered insights into the possibilities of synoptic reporting and the obstacles to implementation in IBD. Arzu Ensari gave an update on the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in IBD. This year’s “H-ECCO abstract” was presented by Ji Eun Kim (gastroenterologist from Seoul, Korea) on her study on the development of an AI algorithm for automated assessment of the most commonly used histological scoring index in clinical practice, the Nancy index.
This masterclass would not have been possible without the support of the ECCO Office, especially Beste Elveren, who made sure that everything behind the scenes was well taken care of. Moreover, a big thank you is due to our external speakers for providing us with their insights and to the audience for their attendance and active participation.
We look forward to welcoming you to the 11th H-ECCO IBD Masterclass in Stockholm next year with an exciting programme that has an even stronger focus on interaction.
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