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Sustainability

CME

Healing Our Patients and Our Planet: Surgical Oncologists at the Intersection of Cancer and Climate Change

Friday, March 6, 2026
1:00 PM - 2:30 PM MST
Location:106A-C
CE: 1.5

Modern surgical practices, although central to the treatment of cancer, have led to undeniable impacts on environmental sustainability. Generating over four billion pounds of waste each year, the healthcare system in the United States is the second largest producer of greenhouse gas emissions, with one-third of this produced by operating rooms. The extent of the problem is staggering and presents a mandate for wide-scale implementation of perioperative measures that can yield near term impact. Cancer surgeons can influence this agenda and can be agents for awareness and change.

Learning Objectives:

  • Have awareness of the impact of cancer treatment on patients and greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Describe current initiatives that surgeons can consider to impact climate change both locally and globally.
  • Acquire tools to identify opportunities which can mitigate the impact of perioperative activities on climate change.

Presentations:

  • 1:05 PM - 1:20 PM MST
    Climate Change and Why it Matters to Surgical Oncologists

    Faculty: Rebecca C. Auer, MD, MSc, FRCSC, FACS (she/her/hers) – Ottawa Hospital Research Institute

  • 1:20 PM - 1:35 PM MST
    Designing a Fundable and Actionable Perioperative Sustainability Plan

    Faculty: Colette R. Pameijer, MD (she/her/hers) – University of North Dakota School of Medicine and Health Sciences

  • 1:35 PM - 1:50 PM MST
    Reducing Perioperative Waste - Local Initiatives for Broad Impact

    Faculty: Gary Mann, MD (he/him/his) – Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Department of Surgical Oncology

  • 1:50 PM - 2:05 PM MST
    Sustainability and Health Equity

    Faculty: Ricardo J. Bello, MD, MPH – Virginia Commonwealth University

  • 2:05 PM - 2:20 PM MST
    Environmental Sustainability from a Quality Improvement Framework

    Faculty: Emmanuel M. Gabriel, MD, PhD – Mayo Clinic Florida

  • 2:20 PM - 2:30 PM MST
    Panel Discussion