PRESIDENT · MESSAGE

Leading Global
Collaboration in Liver Cancer
Research and Care

It is my singular honour and privilege to serve as the 7th President of the Asia-Pacific Primary Liver Cancer Expert Association (APPLE). When the first APPLE Conference was convened in 2010 in Incheon, South Korea, it brought to the world a fresh perspective - that there should be a multidisciplinary organization of experts in primary liver cancer in the Asia-Pacific region, which bears 80% of the world's burden of this malignancy.

Over more than a decade and a half, this vision has been brought to maturity through the zeal and efforts of previous Presidents and members of the Governing Board. I state with great pride that APPLE is today widely recognized as a premier association of expert professionals in this field.

During this period, the scientific understanding of primary liver cancer and advances in its treatment have progressed with greater speed and clarity than at any time in the preceding century. We are currently witnessing the evolution of multiple therapeutic modalities for every stage of the disease, as well as the emergence of multimodality treatment strategies. Clinical outcomes have improved dramatically, as have the precision of diagnosis, staging, and prognostication. In this dynamic environment, patients clearly benefit when the management of their liver cancer is undertaken by multidisciplinary teams of experts.

We stand on the threshold of even more exciting discoveries and developments in the science and clinical management of primary liver cancer. Over the next few years, we will see breakthroughs in the identification of predictive biomarkers, more granular profiling of patient phenotypes, the development of truly precise therapies, and the prevention of primary liver cancer. In this remarkable era, APPLE will continue to serve as a platform where these exciting developments are shared, discussed, analysed, and disseminated.

Together, we will build on the strong foundations laid by our predecessors and continue advancing APPLE's mission of improving outcomes for patients with primary liver cancer throughout the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

Thank you.