Report from ICON 2024: The 9th BDIAP Sri Lankan School of Pathology
Colombo Sri Lanka, October 2024
22 January 2025
(Last updated: 22 Jan 2025 15:38)
Report by Professor Ian Ellis
The BDIAP Sri Lankan School of Pathology is a biennial event which arose through contacts initially with the late Professor Bryan Warren in Oxford and also by Professor Neil Shepherd. It is a collaboration between the BDIAP and the Sri Lankan College of Pathologists. The topic areas are selected by the local pathologists in the Sri Lankan College of Pathologists and the British Division provides pathologists willing to travel to deliver intensive courses in the chosen areas. 
The BDIAP in the form of the Sri Lankan British School of Pathology and the Sri Lanka College are both dedicated to fostering pathology education through various initiatives, with the highlight of their collaboration being the Biennial International Conference, ICON 2024 being the 9th meeting. The Conference was hosted by Dr Priyanka Harshani Abeygunasekara, President of the College of Pathologists of Sri Lanka in 2024. It took place in Sri Lanka’s capital city Colombo and was attended by most Sri Lankan Histopathologists. The two days focussed on Lymphoma, Thyroid and Breast pathology, delivered as six lectures and a slide seminar on each topic, by Professor Stefan Dojcinov, Dr David Poller and Professor Ian Ellis respectively.
The Conference was intense for the speakers and participants but was great fun and educational. Sri Lanka's pathologists are extremely knowledgeable and motivated. There were many searching questions.
Personally I was also moved by the opening speech given by Dr Abeygunasekara. Addressing ‘Breaking the Chain: Battling Brain Drain in Histopathology in Sri Lanka’ which affects the future of healthcare in Sri Lanka. She focused on the migration of skilled professionals from Sri Lanka, Dr. Abeygunasekara said it is not a new phenomenon, but its impact on the field of pathology is becoming increasingly profound. This exodus of talent, particularly from among the brightest and most promising pathologists, threatens the very future of this specialty in the country. Currently, there are only 53 board-certified histopathologists serving in the Health Ministry, with 42 concentrated in the Western, Central and Southern Provinces, leaving just 11 to cover the remaining provinces. The ratio of pathologists is 73 to a population of 23 million – each pathologist serving around 315,000 people. In 2017, there had been 70 Health Ministry pathologists. Despite the expansion of the healthcare system and an increase in surgeons and surgical specialties, the number of pathologists had notably decreased. About 20 pathologists are trained annually, but only 2–3 return to the country each year following foreign training, some may argue that this is a natural outcome of globalization, the reality is that the loss of skilled pathologists is creating a void that is difficult to fill. The effects are felt in every corner of the healthcare system, from diagnostic delays to a decline in the quality of education and research. 
Stefan, David and I felt it a privilege to participate in Sri Lanka ICON 2024 and can reflect back the tremendous level of appreciation expressed by all Sri Lankan pathologists present for the BDIAP's ongoing highly valued support. These meetings are their must attend educational and social highlight.
The next BDIAP Sri Lankan School of Pathology will take place in 2026.
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