DEAR SIOP MEMBERS AND COLLEAGUES,

The 41st Annual Meeting of the International Society of Pediatric Oncology (SIOP) will be held in São Paulo, Brazil from October 5-9, 2009. We are pleased to host and welcome you to Brazil!

Brazil is a very attractive country with many places to visit. After Montevideo in 1995, this will be the second SIOP meeting held in South America. To host such an important event, we have chosen Sao Paulo, a city with 17 million people spread across 3,000 square miles, the third largest city in the world. Visitors to Sao Paulo get all the benefits associated with a sophisticated, cosmopolitan city, with the confort of infrastructure and excitement of its international cultural activities. Brazil’s major financial and commercial center can be easily reached from different cities (most international airlines fly between Sao Paulo and capitals all over the world). You will be able to plunge into the excitement of the city’s cultural experience of crossing industrial expansion and never-ending entertainment. We will also be pleased to organize trips for all sites around Brazil and South America so that you will have the opportunity to experience the “Latin way of life”.

The meeting will be held at Transamerica Hotel, which boasts a unique set of qualities for hosting such events, including excellent complete facilities for conventions, surrounded by an extensive green area and a close-range variety of hotels. The social events will cater to different palates, as visitors can choose between a soccer match and a Brazilian concert in a state-of-the-art concert hall built in an old train station. The last day will end with an unforgettable gala dinner, where Brazilian music (samba, bossa nova, lambada, frevo, axé) follows an exquisite cuisine with the enchanted Sao Paulo scenario as a background.

The Brazilian Pediatric Oncology Society (SOBOPE) is thrilled to host all professionals involved in childcare. Along with the scientific committee, I am sure this will be a well-organized and stimulating meeting. Our work in preparing this meeting for you will follow the motto of our Brazilian flag, which is: “Ordem e Progresso” - a meeting organized with “order as the basis and progress as the goal” towards success.

We look forward to welcoming all of you in Sao Paulo for SIOP 2009!

Sincerely yours,
Beatriz de Camargo

On behalf of the Local Organizing Committee