Dear Colleague,

It is our pleasure to bring you details of the Irish Thoracic Society Annual Scientific Meeting 2008 which will take place in the Ramada Hotel, Belfast on the 7th and 8th November. We are delighted that the meeting is making a return to Belfast and in honour of this we've put together a programme that we feel sure will make for a highly interesting and worthwhile experience.

A central feature will be the presentation of original research in both oral and poster form. We are aware that there is a large amount of important and innovative work being done in research and the ITS Annual Scientific meeting is an ideal forum for this. The deadline for receipt of abstracts is Friday 12th September and we look forward to receiving a record number of high quality submissions.

The focus of this year's symposium is lung cancer, a topic that continues to grow in importance throughout Ireland. We are pleased to present a panel of distinguished international speakers including Professor Tom Keane, Interim Director, the National Cancer Control Programme, Dr Robert Rintoul, Consultant Respiratory Physician and Lead Clinician Thoracic Oncology, Papworth Hospital Cambridge and Professor Jan p. van Meerbeeck, Professor of Thoracic Oncology University of Ghent. Additional guest lectures will include a presentation on Ciliary Dyskinesia by Dr Jane Lucas, Southampton General Hospital and on Airway Remodelling in Asthma by Dr James Martin, McGill University.

The programme also includes breakout sessions for individual groups such as nurses, physiotherapists, respiratory scientists, paediatricians and a multi-disciplinary meeting hosted by the Irish Association of Pulmonary Rehabilitation.

Of course the meeting is also a great social event and as ever Friday's programme will end with the Gala Dinner, a great opportunity for friends and colleagues to catch up in a social context. We very much look forward to welcoming you to Belfast in November and we hope you will join us for what promises to be a highly valuable, thought provoking and social meeting.

Yours sincerely,

Dr Jackie Rendall
Consultant Respiratory Physician, Belfast City Hospital, Local Organiser, ITS Scientific Meeting, Belfast 2008