The annual congress of the Spanish Society of Haematology and Haemotherapy (SEHH) and the Spanish Society of Thrombosis and Haemostasis (SETH) was held in Bilbao from 22 to 24 October, with the participation of numerous Clínic-IDIBAPS professionals. A highlight was the appointment of Dr. Armando López-Guillermo, a haematologist at the Clínic, as president of the SEHH for 2026-2030. Dr. Álvaro Urbano-Ispizua delivered the congress’s keynote lecture. In addition, two communications presented by haematology residents from the Clínic Barcelona Comprehensive Cancer Centre (4CB) were recognised as the best in lymphoma and gammopathies.
Broad participation in the scientific programme
Dr. Jordi Esteve, a haematologist at the Clínic and head of the IDIBAPS Myeloid Neoplasms research group, chaired the congress’s scientific committee, the body responsible for selecting the communications presented. The Clínic’s Haematology Department led 17 communications and took part in around thirty more, most of them presented by young haematologists.
Dr. Marina Díaz Beyá spoke about VEXAS syndrome, a systemic haemato-inflammatory disease first described in 2020 and caused by acquired somatic mutations in the UBA1 gene. It combines systemic inflammation, clonal haematopoiesis and haematological abnormalities such as cytopenias and bone marrow dysplasia. Dr. Díaz Beyá reviewed its diagnosis and treatment, focusing on the mechanisms that link the mutated UBA1 clone to inflammation and bone marrow failure.
Dr. María Rozman, senior consultant in the Haematopathology Section, discussed the morphological diagnosis of myelodysplastic/myeloproliferative neoplasms (MDS/MPN) and recent advances in their classification.
Dr. Marta Garrote explained how next-generation sequencing (NGS) in polycythaemia vera and essential thrombocythaemia makes it possible to refine prognosis and identify patients at higher risk of transformation, moving disease management towards more personalised medicine.
Dr. Laura Rosiñol presented the main updates in the revised response criteria for multiple myeloma, due to be published in 2026. Dr. Joan Bladé of the Clínic first established these criteria in 1998.
The story of ARI, in the Antonio Raichs Lecture
Dr. Álvaro Urbano-Ispizua is Professor of Medicine at the University of Barcelona, senior consultant in the Clínic’s Haematology Department and head of the IDIBAPS Haematopoietic Transplantation and Cell Therapy group. He delivered the Antonio Raichs Memorial Lecture, the congress’s keynote talk. Under the title The ARI Project and academic CAR-T: a story of science, solidarity and hope, he reviewed the journey of the CAR-T therapies developed at the Clínic.
The lecture spanned more than forty years of professional career, centred on the ARI programme and academic CAR-T therapies. These initiatives were driven by professionals, researchers, patients and civil society. The project has shown that public institutions can develop effective and safe cell therapies, and it has broadened access to innovative treatments. Hundreds of patients have already benefited.
In closing, Dr. Urbano-Ispizua stressed that major medical advances arise from unmet clinical needs and collective effort. He added that science, solidarity and hope must go hand in hand with humanism, because the person remains at the heart of medicine.
Two award-winning communications, presented by residents
Two of the Clínic’s oral communications were selected as the best in their areas: lymphoproliferative disorders and monoclonal gammopathies. Both were presented by residents of the Haematology Department and draw on decades of patient follow-up.
Dr. Jonathan Rafael Moreno presented an analysis of 900 patients with follicular lymphoma treated at the Clínic over four decades. The study assesses the impact of age, early relapse, histological transformation and second neoplasms on overall survival, and compares survival with that of the Spanish population of the same age and sex.
The results show that mortality from follicular lymphoma has fallen in recent years, although the disease remains a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Histological transformation, second neoplasms and early relapse have a major impact on survival. By contrast, patients who maintain a complete response for more than 10 years have mortality similar to that of the general population.
Dr. Carlos Jiménez-Mira shared the results of an analysis of 1,022 patients with monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) diagnosed at the Clínic over 50 years. MGUS is a clinical condition that precedes multiple myeloma and other haematological neoplasms.
With a median follow-up of more than 12 years, the risk of progression was approximately 1% per year, and higher in IgM-type MGUS. Patient survival is similar to that of the general population for the first five years and declines thereafter. The results provide data specific to the Spanish population, since most studies come from North American and Nordic series.
Dr. Carlos Fernández de Larrea, head of the Clínic’s Haematology Department, assessed the Clínic’s participation in the congress: “If there is one thing that particularly satisfies me, it is the future. We led 17 communications and took part in around thirty more, most of them presented by the new generations of haematologists. The two best communications in lymphoma and gammopathies were presented by residents from our department, with work based on decades of accumulated clinical experience. It is the result of the collective work of a team that combines patient care, research and teaching.”
The participation of the Clínic Barcelona Comprehensive Cancer Centre (4CB) in the SEHH-SETH congress reflects its commitment to research, patient care and training in haematology.
