Congress report
Loving your liver at the RAI
RAI AMSTERDAM SHARES WITH US THE STORY OF HOW ITS RECENT INTERNATIONAL LIVER CONGRESS SPREAD THE WORD AND HEALTH AWARENESS AMONG THE LOCAL POPULATION
T he RAI Amsterdam
hosted the EASL( European Association for the Study of the Liver) conference in May, an event that brought together thousands of doctors, nurses, and scientists from around the world. The 2025 Congress attracted 8,000 international delegates from 100 + countries and brought cutting-edge science to the forefront, leaving a lasting impression on both the global hepatology community and the host city, Amsterdam.
One highlight of the event involved a special impact programme to raise awareness about liver health. A‘ Love your liver’ progamme was organised in the run-up to and during the conference – a collaboration between the EASL conference organisers, Amsterdam UMC, the Amsterdam Convention Bureau of amsterdam & partners, and RAI Amsterdam. The key element was an offer of free liver tests for over 18s, 7-11 May.
The test, carried out by medical professionals using a method called FibroScan, took approximately ten minutes. This scan measures the speed at which sound waves travel through the liver. Results were available immediately and explained by a doctor or nurse.
“ Early detection can prevent a wide range of health problems, especially as liver diseases are often only diagnosed at a late stage,” says Dr Bart Takkenberg, a gastroenterologist and hepatologist at Amsterdam UMC.“ It is estimated that
two million people in the Netherlands have a fatty liver. Many are unaware of this. Around 400,000 people are at risk of developing serious liver damage or liver cancer.”
The goal was also to raise awareness of the topic in political circles in The Hague and Amsterdam, and position the RAI as a driving force for knowledge sharing and progress.
The Amsterdam Convention Bureau, in collaboration with EASL has also organised the Love Your Liver Project for schools, with pupils receiving lessons on the importance of liver health, led in part by gastroenterologists from Amsterdam UMC and Haaglanden Medical Centre( HMC).
Thanks to the Love your liver programme EASL was able to deliver a highly visible event that truly resonated with the public and extended the
Top left: EASL Congress
Bottom left: Free liver testing
Top right: EASL test
Bottom right: Registering an interest at the RAI
Congress’ impact beyond the walls of the venue, said Claire Chombeau, events manager.
Ben Hainsworth, executive director EASL, said:“ Amsterdam is one of the leading places to meet, and the RAI is one of the leading venues where we can do events like this. It would be fair to say that the city and the RAI have actually helped shape the evolution of events like EASL and many other events.” Dennis Speet, director of Amsterdam Convention Bureau stressed the importance of the EASL organisers using the local Amsterdam network and knowledge to make the conference resonate beyond just the conference days.“ When you work with a Convention Bureau that’ s really committed to impact, the doors open to doing something meaningful. In this case, that meant collaborating with schools in Amsterdam region and local doctors to deliver hands on educational sessions.”
Maurits van der Sluis, COO RAI Amsterdam, echoed the sentiment:“ If you collaborate with the relevant parties in the city and the organiser EASL in this case, you can create something really everlasting with a lot of impact from all parties.”
EASL is a medical association with more than 7,700 members worldwide. n
ISSUE 138 / CONFERENCE & MEETINGS WORLD / 67