President’s Message January 2020

Dear Friends and Fellow Hepatophiles,

The USCAP meeting is on the horizon and we are looking forward to welcoming everyone to the HPHS reception. The details are available on the USCAP website, and will soon be sent to all by email, and also posted on the HPHS website and Twitter. You can expect the usual amalgam of camaraderie, effervescent spirit, synaptic connections with old and new friends, book raffle etc. In addition, this year’s reception will feature the launch of an HPHS Lifetime Achievement Award. Please join the revelry and ensure a great start to the meeting. The HPHS website is being revamped to make it user friendly and also enable members to manage their own profiles. Most aspects of the new website are currently functional, while a few final details will be worked out in the next few weeks. Kudos to Dora, the website committee chair, and her team for getting this accomplished. The Society is doing well with a robust membership, enthusiastic participation of committee members, an increasing social media footprint, a lively annual reception, several member-centered activities such as Journal Watch and Case of the Month, and newly introduced endeavors like member surveys and potential HPHS-related publications. I would urge everyone to pitch in with ideas of new activities that can be beneficial to members.

We have an excellent line-up for the Companion Society meeting featuring updates from the 2019 WHO blue book (Drs. Torbenson and Paradis) as well as focus on challenging areas like cystic lesions (Dr. Singhi), pediatric cholestatic disease (Dr. Kim) and recognition of close mimics of HCC (Dr. Adeyi). This year will feature a new session in which practical points from selected publications highlighted in the preceding year’s Journal Watch will be discussed (Dr. Allende). Please stay on for the Business meeting following the Companion Society session. Annual reports will be presented by the President, Secretary-Treasurer and Committee Chairs. The winners of the Abstract awards will be announced at the Business Meeting.

The Business Meeting will also be the time for me to pass on the baton and welcome Dr. Cynthia Guy, our incoming President. It has been a great honor to serve as the President of the Society following the lead of many illustrious mentors and colleagues, who have adroitly shepherded the Society over the years.

I am extremely grateful to the Executive Committee team (Mike Torbenson-Past President, Grace Kim-Secretary Treasurer, Cindy Guy-Vice President). The opportunity to contribute to the Society and working with this exceptional group of individuals has been one of the most gratifying experiences of my career. I also thank the committees as well as all the members for their support as well as their ongoing endeavors and participation to foster further growth of the Society, and accomplishment of its goal of improving the practice of liver pathology.

Regards,
Sanjay Kakar, MD
President, Hans Popper Hepatopathology Society