My name is Ramon Baeza and I am a radio oncologist and I am working in collaboration with Jorge Gallardo in SLAGO, we began about two years ago, and we never imagined that our work would be as successful as it has come to be, our initial goal our expectation was that our project would grow, but it has turned out to grow and function substantially, we are very happy. That is why I believe it is timely to begin with SLAGO, because gastrointestinal cancer is very important in Latin America, particularly in Chile, and personally I believe that it is absurd that people from other countries come and resolve our own problems, problems that for them aren’t of importance, that is why start from here. Yesterday I gave three presentations. The first one was about an upgrade in treatment of gastroesophageal cancer, a pathology that has seen a significant increase in the first world, and our treatment is beginning to grow in a very important manner, particularly because the epidemiological conditions are changing. Thus showing new effects, how to manage them and what it is we have to do. Another presentation was given surrounding esophageal cancer, looking into if different tumour distributions in the esophagus required different treatments.  What was learned as basic in relation to esophageal cancer is what is being applied in all areas, and precisely, it is the fact that we’re finally learning to work together. It is no longer a case for different specialists in different areas, but the fact that we all have to work together, all of us deciding what it is we have to do, how much and how we must do it, what sequence we should follow. It’s the only way to achieve a patient that improves within a certain time period, if we learn to work together.

The last conference, which took place last night, didn’t really have any relation to oncology precisely. It was a presentation of what the technology was like before Columbus arrived in this part of the world. For additional reasons, pre-Columbian archaeology fascinates me, it’s always fascinated me. I’ve travelled that entire area, I read a bit and presented why it is that it evolved as it has done from the moment the first men arrived from Asia 12-30 thousand years ago, and what happened before the arrival of the first conquistadores when everything stopped. This way we study the evolution of literature, mathematics, metallurgy, architecture, all of those things.  I’m fascinated by all of these things; it’s more entertaining than cancer.

What might be the impact of this issue in future developments of oncology?

We have various research cases running, and have already published a few. We began with the introduction of conservative treatment in breast cancer, which initially was quite resisted, there was a lot of disagreement, in Chile currently standard treatment has become the most recommended by the medical authorities. We started about 15 years ago with combined treatments of radio-chemotherapy in gastric cancer. The first results were published about ten years ago in the United States, and at present it is a standard treatment. We’ve also done a lot of research in gallbladder cancer, applying the same principles, using post-operatory radio-chemotherapy, selecting only patients that are at risk that has been presented outside as well and is being incorporated to different centres around the country, as standard treatments after surgery.

In other areas we are doing a series of studies surrounding different tumours, some have already been published and form part of standard treatments, so that aspect has resulted to be quite successful. It has been a little bit challenging but we achieved what we wanted, thanks to the younger generations in all honesty, because older people already know everything, younger people however are ready to apply change and use different methods. Here we’ve been able to introduce new ways of thinking, new focus targets; we’re trying to get the people used to having doubts and voicing them. Local problems should be resolved on a local standard, we can’t expect for someone to cross over to the north of Rio Grande and resolve our problems in English when they are in Spanish. It is completely irresponsible on our behalf to expect that someone with different problems come and resolve ours.