Over the last years, therapeutic endoscopy has progressively become the first-line treatment for a variety of pathologies involving the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract. Superficial early gastrointestinal neoplasia and preneoplastic lesions may safely be removed with endoscopic mucosectomy (EMR), endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD), and endoscopic full-thickness resection (EFTR): these organ-sparing procedures have completely changed the approach for a multitude of patients benefiting from early diagnosis thanks to major advances in endoscopic imaging.

Many benign esophageal diseases (e.g. Zenker’s diverticulum, achalasia, symptomatic esophageal diverticula, gastroesophageal reflux) may also benefit from a minimally invasive endoscopic approach. The course will focus on
the technical aspects, treatment of potential complications, results and novelties of these endoscopic treatments. The IRCAD course is a unique opportunity to learn about modern
approaches to a wide range of clinical scenarios, and to train for the management of digestive diseases.