The Christian Medical Fellowship Breakfast at the RACS Annual Scientific Congress will be held on Saturday, 2 May. You are warmly invited to join with other people of faith for a time of fellowship and encouragement. We will be inspired by Dr Gary Hewett OAM, a Dental Surgeon from Perth, who will share how his Christian faith has shaped his long-term commitment to capacity building in Cambodia through Awareness Cambodia.

This masterclass, presented by Dr Matteo Rottoli, explores the implementation and clinical application of the Hugo Robotic platform in colorectal procedures. Dr Rottoli will share insights from one of the first high volume experiences with the system, including refined docking strategies and workflow optimisation for low anterior resection and deep pelvic surgery. The session will explore the Hugo platform’s modular design, multi docking configurations, and practical approaches to navigating its unique features, with a focus on efficiency, team coordination and facilitating the transition from laparoscopy to robotic colorectal surgery.

Tips and tricks to successful minimally invasive hepatectomy

Proudly sponsored by Solventum

Proudly sponsored by Johnson & Johnson

Bariatric surgery is increasingly recognised as metabolic surgery with broad systemic impact. This session examines emerging procedures, pharmacotherapy integration and digital innovation as the field continues to evolve beyond traditional weight-loss paradigms.

Children account for a significant proportion of trauma presentations, yet our trauma systems are largely designed with adults in mind. This conjoint session between the Trauma Surgery and Paediatric Surgery Sections explores what happens when children “end up in the adult pool.” Speakers will examine how adult trauma frameworks, including how activation criteria, verification processes, retrieval pathways, and resuscitation practices, can be adapted for the unique physiology and care needs of children. Just as importantly, the session will highlight the reverse translation: lessons from paediatric trauma care that could enrich adult practice, including family-centred models, non-operative management, and developmental considerations in rehabilitation. By placing adult and paediatric surgeons in the same forum, the session aims to foster collaborative exchange, identify gaps where systems “forget the shallow end,” and outline opportunities to build truly inclusive trauma systems for all patients, regardless of age.

Machine perfusion of solid organs such as kidneys, livers, hearts and lungs, aims to ameliorate ischemia related organ damage. It involves circulating a preservation solution through the organ to provide oxygen, nutrients, and remove waste products, simulating normal blood flow. There are two main types: hypothermic machine perfusion (HMP), which cools the organ to slow metabolic processes, and normothermic machine perfusion (NMP), which maintains the organ at around normal body temperature, allowing more active metabolic function and potentially better assessment of organ viability. This session aims to discuss currently used machine perfusion concepts in general and specifically in the context of joint organ retrieval.

Feedback and the isolated surgeon

Proudly sponsored by Medtronic

Complications remain an inevitable part of complex bariatric practice. This session focuses on multidisciplinary strategies to recognise, manage and prevent complications through coordinated surgical, endoscopic and radiological approaches.

Chest trauma is one of the most challenging arenas where trauma surgery and cardiothoracic surgery intersect. From emergency thoracotomy to complex sternal reconstruction, management requires both decisive action and technical mastery. This conjoint session brings together experts from both specialties to explore contemporary operative strategies across the spectrum of chest injury. Topics include resuscitative thoracotomy, operative repair of cardiac trauma, the emerging role of VATS in selected patients, rib fixation and chest wall stabilisation, and lessons from post-cardiac surgery sternal reconstruction translated into trauma. The session concludes with extracorporeal life support as an evolving adjunct in thoracic trauma. By combining trauma and cardiothoracic expertise, this program aims to highlight practical surgical decision-making, share cross-specialty insights, and define future directions in collaborative care. The session will provide both trainees and senior surgeons with high-yield, clinically relevant lessons in managing injuries where seconds count and survival depends on surgical precision.

The management of colorectal cancer is undergoing rapid transformation, driven by advances in surgical technology, precision oncology, and multidisciplinary care. Robotic platforms are redefining what is technically achievable, enabling greater precision and potentially improved functional outcomes. At the same time, organ-preserving strategies are challenging traditional operative paradigms, offering carefully selected patients the possibility of avoiding radical surgery without compromising oncologic safety. Parallel to these developments, immunotherapy is reshaping the treatment landscape for mismatch repair deficient cancers, with emerging evidence of durable and, in some cases, practice-changing responses. This session brings together experts across surgery and oncology to explore how these innovations intersect. From advanced robotic rectal surgery to non-operative management and immunotherapy-driven treatment pathways, the discussion will focus on how to integrate evolving evidence into contemporary colorectal practice. The session will provide insight into the opportunities—and challenges—of delivering personalised, outcomes-focused care in an era of rapidly advancing technology and therapeutics.