My Picks for Fellows Attending TCT 2016

2016-2017 Fellow Talk Bloggers    

The Halloween weekend is upon us, as is Diwali, and we’re also facing the homestretch of the US presidential election. But among all of this excitement, it’s show time for arguably the biggest star-studded ensemble in interventional cardiology—the Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) meeting—which has top-notch interventional cardiologists from around the world lining up to present, debate, and disseminate cutting-edge science in Washington, DC beginning this Saturday, October 29.

Aside from the late breaking clinical trials, there’s much more great content throughout TCT’s 5-day feast for interventionalists. Unfortunately, I am unable to make the meeting this year, but I wanted to highlight a few agenda items that may slip under the radar for delegates but promise to provide cutting-edge data for the practicing physician.

Saturday, October 29, 2016: The bells will be ringing in the posters hall (Hall B, Lower Level) starting at 6:15 PM when discussants will settle accounts on four contentious issues in interventional cardiology in a boxing ring-themed session called Saturday Night Fights at TCT. Don’t miss the high-octane action on bioresorbable scaffolds, TAVR for low-risk cohorts, revascularization in stable coronary artery disease, and dual antiplatelet therapy duration following PCI. This is sure to be an innovative way to get attendees engrossed in the science. If anything, I’m sure the Twitter posts will be worth paying attention to.

Sunday, October 30, 2016: Spend your first full day at TCT in the Presentation Theaters watching the International Sessions. With contributions from over 25 countries and their society representatives, these sessions promise great content and incredible international exposure to case complexity and cath lab tips and tricks, especially valuable to fellows and other trainees.

Monday, October 31, 2016: Find the time to tuck into the Featured Clinical Research sessions (Rooms 150 and 152 from noon to 2 PM) where discussants will present their original research to editors of three of the top cardiovascular medicine journals—the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, Circulation, and the European Heart Journal. Not only will you get to hear great science, but this session will provide an unparalleled opportunity to “go behind the scenes” of the peer-review process.

Tuesday, November 1, 2016: The Food and Drug Administration Town Hall session that kicks off at 2:30 PM will bring together innovators and regulators to talk about bioresorbable scaffolds, expanding TAVR indications (bicuspid aortic disease, low-risk patients, and aortic insufficiency), and new transcatheter mitral and tricuspid devices on the horizon. For the budding structuralist, this will be a unique chance to delve a little deeper into the field you have chosen to pursue

A few more events that I would definitely attend are the Career Achievement Award session to celebrate the life and career of Dr. Runlin Gao, the Thomas J. Linnemeier Young Investigator Award, and in keeping with the US presidential election spirit, a session with the presidential historian Jon Meacham.

On Monday night, be sure to also meet your peers for a fellows reception outside Room 145 at 6:30 PM. Fellows Forum editor Yael Maxwell will be there filming on-camera interviews for the site, so make sure you see her and say hello! For more on what the TCT organizers recommend for fellows, click here.

And if feasible, try and spend some time outside the Walter E. Washington Convention Center to experience DC’s museums, monuments, and restaurants. My favorites are the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, the Lincoln Memorial, and Georgetown Cupcakes!