Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation
(APDWF)

Upcoming Congress

Introduction

The Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation (APDWF) is set up by the four professional medical non-profit organizations: The Asian Pacific Association of Gastroenterology (APAGE), The Asian-Pacific Society of Digestive Endoscopy (A-PSDE), The Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL), The International Society for Digestive Surgery-Asian Pacific Section (ISDS-AP) to promote and organize an annual scientific meeting: Asian Pacific Digestive Week (APDW), devoted to all aspects of digestive diseases.



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Message from the President

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Justin CY Wu

President
Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation


It is my great honor to be the President of the Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation (APDWF) with four founding members, namely, Asian Pacific Association of Gastroenterology (APAGE), Asian-Pacific Society of Digestive Endoscopy (A-PSDE), Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL) and International Society for Digestive Surgery-Asian Pacific Section (ISDS-AP). Although the APDWF was corporatized in 2010, the federation has organized APDW since 2023 and the conferences have steadily expanded in terms of scope and quality of education and research on digestive diseases. This improved value of the convention has been reflected on the increase in attendance, attracting more than 3,000 these days.

Since 2020, the world has been beset by a medical crisis in the form of the Covid-19 Pandemic and APDW was turned virtual in 2021 and 2022. I am glad to report that our first in-person APDW since then was successful held in Bangkok from 5 to 9 December 2023 with more than 3,000 participants. All of us were excited with the return of the face-to-face meeting where we could renew old ties and meet new friends. It would not have been made possible without the tremendous effort of the APDW2023 Congress President, Professor Somchai Leelakusolvong and his Committee who put forth a robust scientific program and provided opportunities for exchange and interactions. You may click HERE to view the APDW 2023 PHOTO GALLERY and the ABSTRACTS which were published on the Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology (JGH).

APDWF remains committed to the expansion of education in gastroenterology and hepatology. To this end, we have committed to an expansion of the APDWF Travel Grants as well as the Young Clinician Investigator’s Program to encourage more aspiring young doctors to join us and advance their education at the Annual APDW Congress, and we are pleased to note that in recent years we are seeing greater participation of young doctors both in terms of participation but also abstract submissions for the congress, with over 1,000 abstracts approved as seen at the recent congress.


APDWF Board of Directors for the term 2023-2025

From left: Choon-Jin Ooi, Justin CY Wu (President) Hsiao Tajiri (Secretary General), Manoj Kumar Sharma, Diana Payawal, Kent-Man Chu (Treasurer), John Wong, Hyung-Ho Kim
 
Absent: Dai-Ming Fan (Ex-Officio), George Lau (Executive Member), Philip Chiu, Mitsuhiro Fujishiro, Kai-Chun Wu

 

Last but not least, I express my sincere appreciation to the enormous efforts made by previous presidents, Professor SK Lam, Professor KM Fock, late Professor KL Goh, Professor Kentaro Sugano and Professor Dai-Ming Fan, and all the council members of the past, and I do hope you will provide further support to the APDWF with the spirit of friendship, fairness and innovation, which is crucial for development of the APDWF into the globally renowned convention while embracing the rich cultural diversity unique to this region.


Introduction

The Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation (APDWF) comprises of four professional medical non-profit organizations, namely, the Asian Pacific Association of Gastroenterology (APAGE), the Asian-Pacific Society of Digestive Endoscopy (A-PSDE), the Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver (APASL), and the International Society for Digestive Surgery-Asian Pacific Section (ISDS-AP). These societies have common interest in diseases of the digestive system, including the oesophagus, stomach, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, intestine and bowel. The Federation is set up to organise an annual scientific meeting in collaboration with the member societies.

Historical Background

Written in 2018 by

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Khean Lee Goh

Late Past President
Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation
Emeritius Professor
University of Malaya

The Asian Pacific Digestive Week (APDW) was the brainchild of Professor SK Lam from Hong Kong. In 1999, at the Asian Pacific Association of Gastroenterology Meeting in Bangkok, he mooted the idea of a combined meeting with all “digestive disease” related specialties coming under one roof once a year. This model follows that of the American Digestive Disease Week (DDW). At that time the “United Gastroenterology Week” which also aimed to follow the lead of the DDW, was still a fledgling meeting.

SK Lam together with several key Asian Pacific leaders in gastroenterology, gastrointestinal endoscopy, surgery and hepatology such as Professors YF Liaw, Masao Omata, John Wong and William Chao came together to form a steering committee. Professor KM Fock was a younger member of the committee then but by 2004, he had taken over the chairmanship of the committee. Through his persistent and diligent efforts, the steering committee guided the APDW through the 2000s until he stepped down as president of the formalized APDW Federation (APDWF) in 2014.

The first APDW was held in 2001 under the Presidency of Professor Geoff Farrell as the organizing chairman in Sydney. It was a brilliantly organized meeting and held in a beautiful city. There was a distinct sense of euphoria of better things yet to come. Since its inauguration, the APDW has been rotated across a total of 14 cities, with Kobe, Taipei, Bangkok and Singapore having organized the meeting twice each. In 2002 and 2013, the APDW was organized in Bangkok and Shanghai in conjunction with the World Congresses of Gastroenterology. Without exception, they have all been wonderful meetings.

The meeting was administered by a steering committee with membership from the four founder Asian Pacific Associations: APSDE (Asian Pacific Society of Digestive Endoscopy), APASL (Asian Pacific Association of Study of Liver), APAGE (Asian Pacific Association of Gastroenterology) and the ISDS-AP (International Society of Digestive Surgery – Asia Pacific). In 2010, the APDWF was incorporated as a company in Hong Kong with our registered office based in Hong Kong. The APDWF Board consisted of 12 members, 3 from each sister Asian Pacific organization. From within the Board, executive committee members including the President, Secretary General and treasurer were elected. The executive committee is responsible for the day-to-day running of the APDWF. The Meeting Lab has provided loyal secretarial services from 2003. From 2014, all secretarial services have been formalized with contractual terms.

My involvement in Asian Pacific gastroenterology has been through APAGE, where I had served for many years as Secretary General, Vice President and then as President from 2010-2014. In 2010, Malaysia organized a highly successful APDW in Kuala Lumpur. I was President of that meeting and we were overwhelmed by a truly wonderful support and response from faculty and delegates.

I assumed the position of President of APDWF in 2014. This year marks my swansong and I will step down as President of the APDWF at APDW Seoul 2018, having served the APDWF for 8 years.

The APDWF weaves together the aims of four sister Asian Pacific Associations: APSDE, APASL, APAGE and the ISDS-AP in coming together on an annual basis, to hold a combined scientific meeting on fields-gastroenterology, Hepatology, gastrointestinal (GI) endoscopy and GI and liver surgery, where there is intrinsically much shared and overlapping knowledge, clinical practices and research. In an age where there are many small speciality meetings, the APDW provides a unified platform in organizing a common meeting in Asia-Pacific.

But the success of the APDW also depends very much on the contribution of the component associations and societies. Over the almost 2 decades since its inception, the “earth has moved under our feet”. While the four sister organization are now well established within each broad field, many subspecialties have emerged. With expanding knowledge through research and clinical practices, many of these specialities have become established disciplines in their own right. We have groups that focus on inflammatory bowel disease, liver cancer, fatty liver, minimally invasive surgery and many subgroups on different aspects of therapeutic endoscopy. Younger members of our GI fraternity, often helm these groups and they will prove to be an incredible resource, who will contribute greatly to the progress of all these disciplines. But they must be heard! To this end, all sister organizations of the APDWF, must reflect and represent fully their respective disciplines in a fair and democratic way. The structure and system of running organizations in our region must evolve and change and or else we will risk becoming irrelevant!

The Asian Pacific region is a diverse continent and because of this very diversity, we have become enriched. Although the APDWF sets certain guidelines for organizing meetings, we have enjoyed the many different styles of organization (and different venues). Each local organizing committee brings a distinct flavour to the meeting and that is the special characteristic of the our APDWs. And all have poured their “heart and soul” in organizing the “best meeting ever” in their city. The APDWF will always be eternally grateful to the Presidents and members of all the local organizing committees. It is through your sterling efforts that the APDW has progressed to its current high status.

The APDW will continue to grow but the APDWF but also must continuously look into itself to make it stronger to better lead the Asian Pacific region and serve the local organizing committee of our beloved yearly APDW!

Mission & Structure

Advance science and education in gastroenterology, hepatology, endoscopy and surgery for the benefit of public health.

Promote and co-ordinate, throughout Asia-Pacific countries and beyond, discussion and exchange of ideas and results relating to the diagnosis, treatment, research and prevention of digestive diseases.

To provide a suitable medium for the dissemination and discussions of the latest results in the field of gastroenterology, hepatology, endoscopy, digestive surgery and related subjects.

To promote and organize an annual scientific meeting: Asian Pacific Digestive Week (APDW) devoted to all aspects of digestive diseases.



The four regional bodies nominate three members each to sit in the Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation‘s Board of Directors. This Committee is responsible for setting the regulations for the bidding and conduct of APDW Congresses and overseeing the scientific and financial contents of these congresses. Two sub-committees, namely, the Scientific Planning Committee and the Finance Committee are set-up to review the respective areas and recommend areas to enhance the scientific content and financial status to the Board of Directors. The final approval of the program and budget lies with the APDWF Board of Directors.

The Key Executive Committee members, namely, the President, Secretary General, Treasurer and an Executive Member, oversee the daily execution and administrative matters.

APDWF Board of Directors (2023-2025)

Justin CY Wu

President

Director, S.H Ho Centre for Digestive Health
The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Hisao Tajiri

Secretary General

Professor, Department of Innovative Interventional Endoscopy Research
Jikei University School of Medicine

Kent-Man Chu

Treasurer

Director of Surgical Endoscopy
The University of Hong Kong

George Lau

Executive Member

Chairman
Humanity and Health Medical Group

Philip Chiu

Board Member

Associate Dean (External Affairs), Faculty of Medicine
The Chinese University of Hong Kong

Mitsuhiro Fujishiro

Board Member

Associate Professor, Department of Endoscopy and Endoscopic Surgery
The University of Tokyo

Hyung-Ho Kim

Board Member

Director
Comprehensive Cancer Centre
Seoul National University

Diana Alcantara-Payawal

Board Member

Chair of the Hepatology Unit, Section of Gastroenterology
Cardinal Santos Medical Cente

Choon-Jin Ooi

Board Member

Adjunct Associate Professor
Duke-NUS Medical School

Manoj Kumar Sharma

Board Member

Associate Professor of Hepatology
Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences

John Wong

Board Member

Honorary Clinical Professor, Department of Surgery
The University of Hong Kong

Kai-Chun Wu

Board Member

Honorary Clinical Professor, Department of Surgery
Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases

Daiming Fan

Ex-officio

Director
Xijing Hospital of Digestive Diseases

Lectureships, Awards and Grants

APDWF / JGHF LECTURESHIPS

The Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology Foundation (JGHF) provides funding for the following lectureships to be delivered at the APDW Congress:

1. APWDF-JGHF Okuda State of the Art Lectureship

2. APDWF-JGHF Marshall & Warren Luminal Gastroenterology Lectureship

3. APDWF-JGHF Emerging Leader Lectureship (Two per congress)

These Lectureships are administrated by the APDWF. The Terms & Conditions are available for download here

APDWF AWARDS

Several awards are available to applicants from Asia Pacific countries who attend the APDW Congress.

The awards are sponsored by APDWF & JGHF and are administered by the respective Local Organising Committee. The awards include:

1. APDWF / JGHF Young Investigator's Awards

  • 1st Prize - USD 2,000
  • 2nd Prize - USD 1,500
  • 3rd Prize - USD 1,000


  • 2. APDWF Poster Distinction Awards
    A maximum of five (5) posters of distinction at USD 1,500 each shall be awarded.

    The Terms & Conditions are available for download here

    APDWF / JGHF TRAVEL GRANTS

    A maximum of 70 travel grants shall be offered to clinicians and scientists in the early stage of their career (up to 5 years following the completion of training in gastroenterology/ hepatology) to broaden their education and experiences in the field of gastroenterology/ hepatology.

    The Terms & Conditions are available for download here

    APDWF Meritorius Award


    Professor Shiu-Kum Lam is conferred the first Asian Pacific Digestive Week Federation (APDWF) Meritorious Award at the APDW 2023. This prestigious recognition acknowledges individuals who have made substantial contributions to the consolidation and expansion of the Asian Pacific Digestive Week. The award specifically commends the significant impact an individual has had on fulfilling the objectives and advancing the work of the APDWF, particularly in the organization of high-caliber APDW meetings, one of the largest gathering of Gastroenterologists and Hepatologists.

    With numerous publications and global citations, Scholarometer of Google Scholar ranked him the world’s third most cited scholar in gastroenterology 2009-2018. He is a leading figure in gastroenterology, having founded the annual scientific conference, the Asian Pacific Digestive Week together with a group of like-minded physicians.

    He has dedicated his career to researching peptic ulcer and gastric cancer, achieving notable milestones such as the first double-blind placebo-controlled study on H. pylori eradication for peptic ulcer cure and the first gastric cancer chemoprevention study in China. His team also discovered that acupuncture produces a shearing acoustic wave, transforming traditional medicine into evidence-based practice. With numerous publications and global citations, he is a leading figure in gastroenterology, having founded the Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and played a key role in internationalizing Chinese gastroenterology conferences. Recognised with prestigious awards, including OBE from Queen of England, Bockus Medal from World Congress of Gastroenterology, Honorary Member British Society of Gastroenterology (<100 in the world), Master of American College of Gastroenterology (only awardee in Asian Pacific at the time), he remains an influential figure in the medical community and continues his mission to combat stomach cancer. In his later career, he invented an endoscopy method for treating gastric intestinal metaplasia, earning patents from Australia and the USA.

    Upcoming Congress

    APDW 2024

    21-24 November 2024
    Bali
    Visit Website

    Past Congresses


    APDW 2003

    Singapore

    Total Participation: 1200


    APDW 2004

    Beijing

    Total Participation: 2000


    APDW 2005

    Seoul

    Total Participation: 2400


    APDW 2006

    Cebu

    Total Participation: 1200


    APDW 2007

    Kobe

    Total Participation: 1500


    APDW 2008

    New Delhi

    Total Participation: 2000


    APDW 2009

    Taipei

    Total Participation: 2300


    APDW 2010

    Kuala Lumpur

    Total Participation: 2600


    APDW 2011

    Singapore

    Total Participation: 2300


    APDW 2012

    Bangkok

    Total Participation: 2400


    APDW 2013

    Shanghai

    Total Participation: 5500


    APDW 2014

    Bali

    Total Participation: 2900


    APDW 2015

    Taipei

    Total Participation: 3100


    APDW 2016

    Kobe

    Total Participation: 2900


    APDW 2017

    Hong Kong

    Total Participation: 2800


    APDW 2018

    Seoul

    Total Participation: 3500


    APDW 2019

    Kolkata

    Total Participation: 5000


    APDW 2021

    Kuala Lumpur (Virtual)

    Total Participation: 2400


    APDW 2022

    Xi'an (Hybrid)

    Total Participation: 3100


    APDW 2023

    Bangkok

    Total Participation: 3200

    Interested in Hosting APDW?

    APDW is an annual conference hosted by cities in the Asia-Pacific. Members from any of the APDWF Founding Member Societies are eligible to bid as host of an APDW congress. The bidding process will take place on every ODD year during the annual meeting of the Board of Directors at APDW. Interested parties must download all the documents below and complete them as instructed. The first set of documents must be submitted together with the notice of interest no later than 6 months before the congress that falls on the even year.

    APDW Bidding Instructions

    Click here to download the Bid Document Requirements
    Click here to download the Guidelines for the Bid and Conduct of an APDW
    Click here to download the JGHF Conditions for Lectureships
    Click here to download the Guidelines and Conditions for APDWF / JGHF Awards and Travel Grants
    Click here to download the Guidelines for Young Clinician / Investigator Program (YCIP)

    Calendar of Events



    APDW 2023

    6 - 9 December 2023
    Bangkok
    View Photo Gallery: https://www.apdw2023bangkok.com



    APASL 2024

    27 - 31 Mar 2024
    Kyoto
    https://www.apasl2024kyoto.org/



    DDW 2024

    18 - 21 May 2024
    Washington
    https://ddw.org/



    UEG Week 2024

    12 - 15 Oct 2024
    Vienna
    https://ueg.eu/week



    JDDW 2024

    31 Oct - 3 Nov 2024
    Washington
    https://www.jddw.jp/jddw2024/en/index.html



    APDW 2024

    21 - 24 Nov 2024
    Bali
    https://apdw2024bali.com



    APDW 2025

    10 – 14 Dec 2025
    Singapore



    APDW 2026

    25 – 29 Nov 2026
    Manila

    Contact

    APDWF Secretariat
    c/o The Meeting Lab

    Location:

    695E East Coast Road
    Singapore 459059

    Call:

    (+65) 6346 4402