Cardiovascular Safety at the Heart of Cancer Care

Objectives of the CRT meeting

As the landscape of cancer therapy continues to evolve rapidly — driven by advances in early diagnosis and personalised treatment that are significantly improving prognosis — cardiovascular safety is no longer a secondary concern. It has become a shared responsibility at the heart of effective and sustainable cancer care. The ESC Cardiovascular Round Table (CRT) on Cardio-Oncology will bring together key stakeholders from academia, regulatory bodies, industry and patient organisations to address this urgent need through structured dialogue, scientific insight and collaborative problem-solving.

This high-level strategic meeting will focus on three overarching goals:

• Advancing a unified approach to cardiovascular safety assessment for modern and emerging cancer therapies, through improved risk stratification, better representation of diverse patient profiles - including sex, age and underlying cardiovascular disease - and alignment of safety endpoints across trials and clinical practice.
• Exploring innovative strategies for acute and long-term cardiovascular surveillance, integrating imaging, laboratory and genetic biomarkers with digital health solutions to promote equitable, continuous and high-quality care for patients with cancer and survivors.
• Promoting coordinated action across research, regulation and advocacy, laying the groundwork for harmonised data collection and continuity of cardiovascular care across the cancer trajectory.

The programme includes plenary discussions, expert-led workshops and patient contributions, creating a unique space for multi-stakeholder dialogue and forward-looking solutions in cardio-oncology. This initiative reflects the ESC’s commitment to improving outcomes not only by addressing evidence gaps but by anticipating the future of care.

Reference documents:

• EMA paper on the assessment of cardiovascular safety of oncology medicinal products 
• 2022 ESC Guidelines on Cardio-Oncology 

Read the participants' biographies

Programme

Day 1 | 20 January 2025

13:00 - 14:00 - Welcome Session Cancer therapy in transformation, moderated by: Teresa Lopez Ferandez and Eigil Samset (GE Healthcare)

• 13:00-13:05 - Welcome from the CRT Chairpersons by Cecilia Linde and Bettina Kraus (BI)
• 13:05-13:15 - Cardiovascular Safety During Active Cancer Treatment: What It Means in 2025 by Evandro de Azambuja
• 13:15-13:25 - Cancer Survivorship: Cardiovascular Risks, Challenges and Opportunities by Alexander R Lyon
• 13:25-13:35 - Patient Perspective: Living Between Two Specialties: A Survivor’s Story by Richard Stephens (ESC Patient Forum)
• 13:35-13:55 - PANEL DISCUSSION

14:00 -17:30 SESSION 1.1 – Advanced Cancer therapies and Evolving risks, moderated by: Thorsten Fuereder and Alexander R Lyon

• 14:00-14:10 - Evolving Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products: CAR-T Cells, TILs and Beyond by Attila Sebe
• 14:10-14:20 - Next-Generation Targeted Therapies: Opportunities and Emerging Risks by Valentina Guarneri
• 14:20-14:30 - The Onco-hematologist’s View: Integrating Novel Therapies and Cardiovascular Safety by Annamaria Brioli
• 14:30-14:40 - Regulatory Perspective: How the EMA Addresses Cardiovascular Safety in Innovation by Antonio Gómez Outes (EMA)
• 14:40-15:00 - PANEL DISCUSSION
• 15:00-15:30 - Coffee break
• 15:30-16:30 - BREAKOUT SESSIONS: Identifying the Key Problems, CHAIRS: Peter van der meer and Eigil Samset (GE Healthcare)
  
  • Group 1: meeting room: Warpen - Defining Cardiovascular Safety Endpoints: Regulatory and Clinical Alignment
    Lead: Carlo Gabriele Tocchetti, Rapporteur: Alar Irs (EMA)
  • Group 2: meeting room: Hollandia A -Personalised Risk Scores in Clinical Trials: Opportunities and Challenges
    Lead : Patrick Vrijlandt (EMA), Rapporteur: Geeta Gulati
  • Group 3: meeting room: Hollandia B - From Guidelines to Practice: Challenges in Reporting and Surveillance
    Lead:  Dinesh Thavendiranathan, Rapporteur: Bettina Kraus (BI)
  • Group 4: meeting room: Oranje - Minimum Dataset for Cardio-Oncology: Towards a Common Language
    Lead:  Dimitrios Farmakis, Rapporteur: Mirko De Melis (Medtronic)
• 17:10-17:30 - PANEL DISCUSSION

17:30-18:10 SESSION 1.2 - Getting Risk Stratification Right, moderated by: Bettina Kraus (BI) and Marianne Aznar

• 17:30-17:40 - Research perspective by Pietro Ameri
• 17:40-17:50 - Clinical perspective by Teresa López Fernandez
• 17:50-18:10 - Wrap-up and summary Day 1 – by Alexander R Lyon & Bettina Kraus (BI)

Outlook to Day 2
END OF DAY 1
19:30 - APERITIF+DINNER

Day 2 | 21 January  2026

08:30-08:40 - Summary of day 1 by Teresa Lopez Fernandez & Andre Ziegler (Roche Diagnostics)

8:40-11:10 - SESSION 2.1: MONITORING in Motion: Tools for Real-World Safety and clinical trials, moderated by: Cecilia Linde and Andre Ziegler (Roche Diagnostics)

• 08:40-08:50 - Harnessing Artificial Intelligence in Imaging to Advance Cardio-Oncology Care by Chiara Bucciarelli Ducci
• 08:50-09:00 - Patient perspective by John Berry
• 09:00-10:00 - BREAKOUT SESSIONS: Smarter Monitoring, Safer Care : Thomas F Lüscher and Cecilia Linde
  
  • Group 5: meeting room: Warpen - Tackling Sex-Related Differences in Diagnosis, Treatment, and Outcomes in Cancer Care
    Lead: Ariane Macedo, Rapporteur: Mirko De Melis (Medtronic)
  • Group 6: meeting room: Hollandia A - Diagnostic Challenges and Technological Opportunities in Valvular and Vascular Toxicities
    Lead: Victoria Delgado, Rapporteur: Steve Archibald
  • Group 7: meeting room: Hollandia B - Diagnostic Challenges and Technological Opportunities in Heart Failure and Immunotherapy-Related Myocarditis
    Lead: Eigil Samset (GE Healthcare), Rapporteur: Mariana Mirabel
  • Group 8 meeting room: Oranje - Patient-Facing Cardiovascular Digital Technologies in Patients with Cancer
    Lead: Giuseppe Boriani, Rapporteur:  Joerg Herrmann
• 10:00-10:30 - Coffee break

11:10 - 12:15 - SESSION 2.2: SURVIVORSHIP AND SYSTEMS: DESIGNING SAFER THERAPIES FOR THE LONG TERM, moderated by: Filippo Crea and Antonio Gómez Outes (EMA)

• 11:10-11:20 - From Drug Design to Long-Term Care – Making Safety Sustainable by Valentina Guarneri
• 11:20-11:30 - Advocacy in Survivorship: Driving Policy, Research and Access to Safer Therapies by Thomas  Lüscher
• 11:30-11:45 - New Consortia Tackling Unmet Needs in Cardio-Oncology, 5 min presentation each
  
  • COMPASS by Stephen Archibald
  • GRACE by Teresa Lopez Fernandez
  • OSCAR Registry by Pietro Ameri
• 11:45-12:00 - PANEL DISCUSSION
• 12:00-12:15 - Next steps, Wrap-up & Conclusion by Cecilia Linde and Bettina Kraus (BI)

END OF DAY 2