The IHU Strasbourg welcomed the CIFGE of the Lions Clubs of France: a meeting at the crossroads of youth, science, and the French-speaking world
On July 16, the IHU Strasbourg had the honor of welcoming the delegation from the CIFGE (Centre International Francophone Grand Est) of the Lions Clubs of France. This visit is part of a relationship of trust built up over the years, making the IHU an essential stop on their program every two years.
The CIFGE brings together young French speakers under the age of 40 from all over the world for an immersive experience in the French language, culture, and the richness of the region. The IHU Strasbourg, a leading center for medical innovation, is fully committed to this dynamic of openness and knowledge sharing.
This year’s chosen theme—artificial intelligence—resonates particularly well with the Institute’s activities. On this occasion, a dedicated conference will present the IHU’s vision for the integration of AI into the medicine of tomorrow, as well as several flagship projects led by our teams at the intersection of surgery, imaging, and artificial intelligence.
The IHU Strasbourg’s hosting of this program illustrates our desire to be at the heart of societal issues by promoting intercultural exchanges, supporting the international appeal of Strasbourg and the Grand Est region, and encouraging young French-speaking talent to engage in research and innovation within our ecosystem.
By forging these links, IHU Strasbourg is affirming more than ever its role as a committed partner in the service of progress and Francophone cooperation.
📍 IHU Strasbourg | 🗓️ July 7-11, 2025 👥 24 participants | 🌍 12 countries | 🧠 +40 global experts | 🔬 5 intensive days of immersion
This week, IHU Strasbourg is hosting the 4th edition of its Summer School in Surgical Data Science, organized in partnership with the CAMMA research group of the Robotics, Data Sciences & Healthcare Technologies team (ICube Laboratory, University of Strasbourg) and supported by France 2030. The event brings together young talent from around the world to address a fundamental challenge for the future of medicine: the use of data to improve the quality and safety of surgical procedures.
A vision led by Prof. Nicolas Padoy
At the helm of this initiative is Prof. Nicolas Padoy, Scientific Director and Director of Research in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence at IHU Strasbourg. A pioneer in augmented surgery, he has been working for over a decade to build bridges between the worlds of surgery, data science, and artificial intelligence.
His commitment has made the IHU Strasbourg a key global player in the field of data-driven surgery. This summer school fully embodies his interdisciplinary vision: to train the next generation of clinician-researchers and engineers capable of advancing surgical practice through digital technologies.
A mission to serve the medicine of tomorrow
The school’s mission is clear: to train future experts capable of designing, analyzing, and deploying digital tools for surgery, taking into account the realities of the operating room. It encourages cross-disciplinary collaboration and dialogue to transform surgical data into concrete and safe solutions for the benefit of patients.
A high-level international faculty
Alongside Prof. Padoy, the 2025 edition brings together leading speakers, including:
Brice Gayet (Université Paris Cité, France),
Debby Keller (Mayo Clinic and Arizona State University, USA),
Evis Sala (Gemelli IRCC University Hospital, Catholic University, Italy),
Hongliang Ren (The Chinese University of Hong Kong, China),
Nassir Navab (TU Munich, Germany),
Silvana Perretta (IHU Strasbourg et Strasbourg University Hospitals, France),
Pierre Jannin (Inserm Rennes, France),
Paul Barach (Thomas Jefferson University, USA).
A rich and immersive program
Alternating between lectures, keynote, practical work, laboratory workshops, and group projects, the 2025 program explores strategic themes:
AI for surgical gesture recognition,
Multimodal language models for surgical AI,
Endoscopic and robotic simulation,
Analysis of communication in the operating room,
Transfer to industry and healthcare entrepreneurship.
Participants also have the opportunity to work in advanced simulation environments and meet experts from the MedTech ecosystem, in connection with the research and innovation projects of the IHU Strasbourg.
International influence, in the heart of Strasbourg
This edition brings together 24 young researchers and clinicians selected for their excellence, from Europe, North America, Asia, and the Middle East. The IHU Strasbourg is thus strengthening its position as an international leader in the field of data-driven and artificial intelligence-guided surgery.
An initiative to transform the healthcare system with a project that will shape the future of surgery
More than just an academic program, this Summer School embodies the values of the IHU Strasbourg: innovation, interdisciplinarity, openness, and clinical impact. It is part of a broader strategy promoted by the institute: to develop breakthrough surgical technologies, support high-level training, and accelerate transfer to the industrial and hospital sectors. An exemplary model of the interconnection between science, care, and innovation.
On June 12, 2025, during the FORCE Foundation Awards Ceremony for Innovation and Research in Health, seven projects were recognized for their potential to transform the healthcare system. Among them, the FAST-Tx project, led by the Strasbourg University Hospital Institute, was hailed as a potential major breakthrough in the field of thoracic oncology.
An innovative patient pathway for personalized lung cancer treatment
FAST-Tx offers a paradigm shift in the care pathway for patients with suspicious lung nodules: diagnosis and intervention in less than 24 hours.
This integrated approach is based on a completely original technological and organizational ecosystem that will leverage synergies between world-class medical and surgical expertise, unparalleled clinical infrastructure, and innovations from companies.
The project illustrates the IHU Strasbourg’s strong commitment to developing image-guided, minimally invasive surgical pathways enhanced by robotics and artificial intelligence. The objective of FAST-Tx is clear: to accelerate patient care in order to increase the chances of recovery, improve the rates of complete resection of cancerous nodules, and offer a new standard of care that can be exported to other hospital facilities.
An exemplary collaborative dynamic
The project led by the IHU Strasbourg brings together key partners:
The thoracic surgery center and the diagnostic and therapeutic interventional bronchial endoscopy department of the Strasbourg University Hospitals,
Visible Patient Lab, the leading online laboratory for 3D modeling of medical images for the creation of digital twins,
ASARIA – Assisted Surgery by Augmented Reality & AI, which has developed an augmented reality device for pre- and intraoperative assistance in interventional procedures.
Led by Prof. Christian Debry (Director General of the IHU Strasbourg), with Prof. Pierre-Emmanuel Falcoz (thoracic surgery), Dr. Cezar Matau (bronchial endoscopy), Luc Soler (Visible Patient Lab), and Bernard Dubois (Asaria), the FAST-Tx team shares the same vision of a new generation of precise and personalized minimally invasive procedures. This synergy between clinical excellence, cutting-edge technologies, and hospital engineering demonstrates the ability of local stakeholders to innovate together for the benefit of patients.
A trophy that symbolizes a vision for the future
Awarded by the FORCE Foundation, which supports the emergence of innovative solutions to improve healthcare in the future, this trophy rewards boldness, scientific rigor, and collective commitment. The FAST-Tx project embodies a concrete response to the challenges of oncology, placing medical time, precision, and patient well-being at the heart of the system.
The IHU Strasbourg is delighted with this recognition and will continue to work alongside its partners to advance medicine that is increasingly rapid, personalized, and efficient.
A second meeting to stimulate medical innovation in Strasbourg
On June 5, 2025, the IHU Strasbourg will host the second IHU Strasbourg I ITI HealthTech meeting, organized in partnership with the Institut Thématique Interdisciplinaire HealthTech of the University of Strasbourg and the ICubelaboratory. This meeting is a continuation of the dialogue initiated in 2022 on the dynamics of translational research, at the crossroads of engineering sciences, medicine and health technologies.
This new edition will bring together researchers, clinicians, engineers and project leaders to share their advances and explore new synergies around the design, prototyping and validation of innovative medical devices. The afternoon will feature a number of highlights, including presentations of results from projects supported in 2022, a spotlight on current proofs of concept, a poster session devoted to 2024 projects, and an overview of the technological platforms that accelerate the transition from idea to clinical application.
In particular, the event will showcase the cross-disciplinary expertise of IHU Strasbourg – with its preclinical and clinical research divisions and its DIAMS service dedicated to healthcare data and artificial intelligence – as well as ICube’s IRIS platform, specialized in rapid prototyping for medical robotics.
The meeting will conclude with a convivial moment and the possibility, upon registration, of visiting the IHU’s technical facilities. This initiative illustrates the partners’ shared desire to create an environment conducive to innovation, anchored in the region, serving research and the transformation of medical practices.
From April 14 to 17, 2025, IHU Strasbourg welcomed participants in the University Diploma (DU), Master 1 and Master 2 programs in surgical endoscopy for a intensive training session. Under the guidance of Prof. Silvana Perretta, Director of Educational Programs at the IHU, this session enabled future experts to perfect their skills in the most advanced techniques of interventional endoscopy.
A rich program combining theory, demonstrations and advanced practice
Each morning began with a series of high-level lectures and live demonstrations from the IHU operating theater. Highlights included:
Endoscopic management of complications in bariatric surgery (Dr. P. Riva)
Primary bariatric procedures and gastric complication techniques (Pr S. Perretta)
Basics of endoscopic resection (EMR, ESD) and POEM (Pr S. Perretta, Dr R. Maselli)
The approach to complex biliary lesions and the fundamentals of ERCP (Dr B. Dallemagne, Dr T. Voiosu)
The lectures were enriched by remote presentations from European specialists, providing a multidisciplinary perspective.
Practical immersion in ex-vivo and in-vivo models
The afternoons were devoted to technical training on the IHU’s experimental platform. Participants were able to perform complex gestures in an environment that faithfully simulated operating room conditions. The program included :
Navigation and endoscopic suturing
Perforation closure
Placement of bariatric stents
Vacuum therapy
EMR, ESD, POEM and ERCP on simulated models
Introduction to cholangioscopy and LAMS (Lumen apposing metallic stent)
Master 2 students were able to deepen their knowledge of dissection and resection techniques.
Excellent training for tomorrow’s practitioners
This week of training illustrates IHU Strasbourg’s strong commitment to developing skills in surgical endoscopy. Thanks to teaching that combines clinical expertise, technological innovation and simulation, the DU and Masters courses are training a generation of professionals ready to meet the challenges of tomorrow’s surgery.
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