The Charing Cross Symposium (CX) first took place in 1978 at Charing Cross Hospital, Hammersmith, London, and has gone on to become the leading global vascular symposium.
London (UK) has been the host city of CX ever since. Until 1998, the symposium was held at Charing Cross Hospital, and between 1999 and 2012 at Imperial College. In 2013, it moved to Olympia London’s National Hall, and in 2014 to Olympia London’s Grand Hall.
The first CX had 100 attendees. In 2019, the Charing Cross Symposium – Controversies Update had more than 4,000 participants, from nearly 80 countries, making it a leading global event.
The Charing Cross Symposium raises vascular and endovascular controversies so that a world-class faculty challenges the available evidence in order to reach a consensus after discussion with an expert audience. This forms a three-year cycle. Consensus will be discussed in 2020.
All Charing Cross Symposia are distinguished by a unique and logical programme, which focuses on identifying evidence for optimal vascular disease management from head to toe, catering for all vascular specialists.
Debate and emphasis on interaction with an expert audience are key aspects of the CX’s style. Education, Innovation and Evidence are CX core values.
Short presentations and time keeping are key characteristics of the CX sessions; these enable the right time for comments and questions by the audience.
At the sessions, there is a chairman who monitors time, encourages audience and speaker interaction and conducts the discussion; there is also a moderator who assists the chair with questions to and from the audience.