The 121st Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons (ASCRS) convened April 30–May 4, 2022 in Tampa, FL, the first in-person meeting of the organization since 2019 under the slogan, “Together Again”. The hotels and convention center overlook Tampa Bay. The meeting was attended by 1036 physician registrants.

The convention included several firsts, such as the first Live Surgery Workshops which included: (1) Ventral Mesh Rectopexy combined with sacral colpopexy performed by Amy J. Thorsen and a colleague urogynecologist in Minnesota, and (2) robotic Low Anterior Resection with diverting loop ileostomy performed by Jamie A. Cannon in Birmingham, Alabama. A pre-recorded Endoscopy Symposium on endoluminal surgery featured procedures using double-channel EMR and ESD colonoscopes (including techniques to accomplish closure of full thickness endoscopic resection) and robotic endoluminal surgery. Symposia topics included multiple sessions on diverticulitis, pelvic floor, and inflammatory bowel disease, along with geriatrics/prehabilitation, genetic cancers, prevention/treatment of anastomotic leaks, and lessons from the COVID 19 pandemic.

Other panel sessions included, “In search of the Holy Grail: Prevention and treatment of anastomotic leaks”, “Rectal Cancer organ preservation”, and “Critical review of manuscripts (DCR)”. The “Best of the Diseases of the Colon and Rectum (DCR) Journal” session included select DCR articles on varied topics from recent years. One of the selected articles considered the question of how soon after the diagnosis of colon cancer should patients undergo resection? A delay of 3–6 weeks from discovery was found to be the optimum time period, balancing time for patient preparation for operation with oncologic probity [1]. Another article was a randomized clinical trial that revealed transvaginal repair of anterior rectocele achieved better improvement in constipation and sexual-related quality of life than transperineal repair [2]. Another article from the 2015 European Society of Coloproctology Collaborating Group found anastomotic leak after right colectomy for cancer to be “a frequent complication” at 7.4% and associated with increased mortality. The key contributing surgical factors for anastomotic leak were: longer duration of operation, anastomotic technique (stapled anastomoses had a higher leak rate), and operative approach (open operations had a higher leak rate) [3].

The ASCRS 2022 Barton Hoexter Best Video Award went to Rodrigo Perez (Sao Paolo, Brazil) for “Laparoscopic lateral-node dissection for rectal cancer: See one, do one & teach one?” Of the named lectureships, the “Masters in Colorectal Surgery Lectureship” (a senior surgeon who has made a considerable contribution to the specialty and the ASCRS) honored H. Randolph Bailey (Houston, TX) and was delivered by Debra Ford of Howard University (Washington, DC). The Harry E. Bacon Lectureship, “The Digital Surgeon: A Glimpse into the Future of Metrics and Outcomes”, was introduced by Sharon Stein (University Hospitals, Cleveland, OH) and delivered by Carla Pugh of Stanford University (Palo Alto, CA). The Ernestine Hambrick lectureship was introduced by Dr. Hambrick herself, the 1st woman diplomate of the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, and presented by Ann Lowry (University of Minnesota) on the topic, “Diversity in ASCRS- Where We Came From and Where We are Going” (Fig. 1).

Fig. 1
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Ernestine Hambrick (left) (Stanley, VA) delivering a certificate to Ann Lowry (University of Minnesota) for presenting the annual Ernestine Hambrick Lectureship

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The Norman D. Nigro Research Lectureship, “The Optimal Neoadjuvant Therapy Strategy for Organ Preservation”, was introduced by former DCR Editor-in-Chief, Robert Madoff (University of Minnesota), and delivered by Julio Garcia-Aguilar of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC, New York, NY). The Nigro Research Lecture was attended by Dr. Nigro’s son Norman Nigro, Jr. and daughter-in-law Vicki Johnson. The couple also attended the History Symposium, which marked the 1st time that the ASCRS allotted a portion of the convention to the topic of history. The History Symposium included a 39 min video of living legends, including Ernestine Hambrick and ASCRS past presidents Herand Abcarian (University of Illinois), Stanley M. Goldberg (University of Minnesota), and Terry C. Hicks (Ochsner Clinic, New Orleans, LA) followed by “The Hirschman branch of the APS/ASCRS Proctology Tree: The ‘Next Wave’ after the Founders”, presented by William Cirocco (Phoenix, AZ), which focused on the connections between 4 past presidents, Louis J. Hirschman (1912–1913), Edward G. Martin (1928–29), Garnet W. Ault (1964–65), and Norman D. Nigro (1965–66) (Fig. 2).

Fig. 2
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Participants in the Norman D. Nigro Research Lectureship (left to right), ASCRS immediate Past President (2021–22) Thomas A. Read (University of Florida), Julio Garcia-Aguilar (MSKCC, New York, NY), Robert Madoff (University of Minnesota), Norman Nigro, Jr. with wife Vicki Johnson, Ronald Bleday (Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA), and William Cirocco (Phoenix, AZ)

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A memorial lectureship honoring ASCRS past President Peter Volpe (1990–91), “The Growth of a Specialty”, was introduced by Peter W. Marcello and presented by David J. Schoetz, both of the Lahey Clinic (Burlington, MA). The 2022 Presidential Address “Swimming with Sharks and Other Sea Creatures” was introduced by Peter W. Marcello (Lahey Clinic) and delivered by ASCRS President Thomas E. Read (2021–2022) of the University of Florida (Gainesville, FL).

The business meeting saw the transition from outgoing 2021–22 ASCRS President Thomas E. Read (University of Florida, Gainesville, FL) to 2022–23 ASCRS President Conor Delaney (Cleveland Clinic Florida, Weston, FL) (Fig. 3) with Matthew Mutch (Washington University, St. Louis, MO) elevated to ASCRS President-Elect.

Fig. 3
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Immediate Past President (2021–22) Thomas A. Read (left) with the ASCRS President’s Medallion draped around his neck, just before handing over the medallion to current ASCRS President (2022–23) Conor Delaney (right) at the conclusion of the 2022 ASCRS business meeting

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The 2023 ASCRS Annual Scientific Meeting will be held June 3–7, 2023 at the Washington State Convention Center (Seattle, WA). The online abstract submission site is open for the 2023 meeting and may be accessed via the ASCRS website (www.fascrs.org). The abstract submission site will close on Sunday October 16, 2022 at 11:59 pm EST.