ICSN 2023 will provide an opportunity for international experts to exchange knowledge, research methods, practice challenges, and results in the field of cancer screening; and, to prioritize, develop and move forward research projects through interest and working groups. ICSN 2023 sessions will include research relevant to:

• Risk-based screening
• Blood/Multi-cancer test
• Screening as a research platform
• New technologies and screening tests
• Integrating primary and secondary prevention
• Alternative approaches to implement screening as a public health intervention
• Best practices
• Communication issues
• Hard-to-reach populations/Equity in cancer screening
• Meeting the clinicians
• Monitoring, evaluation and quality assurance

New screening programmes

After two years of health emergency, the next meeting of the International Cancer Screening Network, on June 21^st-23^rd, 2023, bringing together screening experts in several disciplines from all around the world, will offer the opportunity to share lessons learnt during the Covid 19 pandemic and to restart the screening activities with new impulses and renewed energy.

The event’s program will address various topics from new approaches to optimize screening and the potential contribution of new technologies to screening for established or new cancer sites.

The experience of using risk-based criteria for prioritization of delayed invitations showed that the adoption of this approach is expected to maximize the benefits and minimize the harms of screening and is now piloted in several settings.  Incorporating advances in genomics and biomarkers research in the screening process can offer new opportunities for a more precise risk assessment and for enhancing cost-effectiveness of screening. Moreover, a new era of early cancer detection with blood tests may change cancer screening paradigms.

Implementing new approaches requires collaboration between various stakeholders, policy makers and healthcare professionals, and the development of research efforts within ongoing screening programs.

It also requires the adoption of new and effective strategies to ensure equity of access and informed decisions for persons invited to attend cancer screening programs, avoiding exclusion of vulnerable sub-groups. Systematic monitoring and evaluation of screening programs’ performance will be necessary to support these innovations as well ensure quality of ongoing programs.

Other important issues addressed in this meeting include the integration of primary and secondary cancer prevention and communication with the screening target population as well as among health professionals.

Established interest working groups will also have the opportunity to meet again in person before the meeting to review achievements of their online activities during the past months and to plan new initiatives.

ICSN 2023 will be organized in Turin, North-West of Italy, and it will be again in person, four years since the last meeting in 2019. Apart from the session, the meeting will offer ample opportunities to network and interact with ICSN members. The health emergency has stranded us for two long years strongly affecting also our human relationships. Now it is time to restart. Welcome to Turin ICSN 2023!