The two major events of the year in Urology in the Ibero-American sphere, the CAU and SIUP congresses, have taken place simultaneously in the Peruvian capital, coinciding with ICE26, the annual meeting of the European section of Endourology held in Valencia. Specialists in urological health and male sexual and reproductive health from Fundació Puigvert have shared expert knowledge at all three events, culminating in the awarding of the First Prize ‘Rocha Brito’ of CAU 2026 to Andrés Kanashiro, head of the Urinary Lithiasis Unit.

Fundació Puigvert has had a prominent presence at three key scientific meetings in the field of urology held simultaneously last week: the congress of the Confederación Americana de Urología (CAU) and the congress of the Sociedad Iberoamericana de Urología Pediátrica (SIUP), from October 7 to 10 in Lima, and the International Conference on Endourology (ICE), from October 8 to 10 at the Valencia Conference Center.

The participation of professionals from the institution in these three settings highlights the international projection of the Urology and Andrology Services, as well as their contribution to the development of the specialty in areas such as endourology, urinary lithiasis, pediatric urology, sexual health, male fertility, including robotic surgery and innovation, both clinical and surgical.

First Prize ‘Rocha Brito’ for Dr. Andrés Kanashiro

One of the highlights of this international participation has been the First “Rocha Brito” Prize, awarded to Andrés Kanashiro during the CAU congress for the video presented on endoscopic evaluation in the diagnosis and treatment of nephrocalcinosis. This award recognizes a contribution focused on the use of endoscopy as a tool to improve diagnostic accuracy and guide the treatment of a complex pathology characterized by calcium deposits in renal tissue.

The award highlights the expertise of Fundació Puigvert in urinary lithiasis and endourology, as well as its ability to develop and share specialized surgical knowledge in international scientific forums.

Urology, pediatrics, and andrology in Lima

In Lima, Fundació Puigvert’s participation has translated into plenary sessions, debates, semi-live surgeries, and scientific communications, also contributing to the future of the specialty with activities aimed at residents and young specialists.

In the urological field, the team composed of Anna Bujons, Joan Palou, Josep Maria Gaya, Andrés Kanashiro, Juan Osorio, Iván Schwartzmann, and Enver Moncada shared clinical and surgical expertise in urological cancers (bladder, prostate, upper urinary tract, kidney, penis, and testicle), and in benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Also regarding urological pathology in children and adolescents, such as urinary stones, both in adults and children, from incontinence due to neurogenic bladder to bladder exstrophy – in which Fundació Puigvert is a Center of Excellence – covering disorders of sexual development or differences in sexual development (DSD). Together, they demonstrated robotic surgery and minimally invasive treatments, challenged the urological community with clinical challenges by sharing some of the most difficult cases, and provided keys and promoted paradigm shifts in the approach to urological pathology.

Moreover, Fundació Puigvert has had a representative role, with Dr. Anna Bujons – Director of Operations and Head of Pediatric Urology – in charge of the presidency of the SIUP, reinforcing the institution’s role in promoting pediatric urology in the Ibero-American sphere.

On the other hand, the speakers from the Andrology Service of Fundació Puigvert Eduard Ruiz Castañé, Josvany Sánchez Curbelo, Luís Malca, and José Antonio Arrús have opened spaces for debate and knowledge exchange on male infertility, erectile dysfunction, testosterone deficiency, Peyronie’s disease, and the impact of oncological treatments for testicular cancer on fertility. They have posed new diagnostic and therapeutic challenges, with a critical view of the available scientific evidence, and shared Fundació’s experience in the most current treatments in male sexual and reproductive health. Among them, testosterone replacement therapy, penile prosthesis surgery – including over 30 years of accumulated experience in penile prosthesis implants -, cryopreservation in oncological patients, regenerative therapies in erectile dysfunction, or new technologies in daily clinical practice.

Endourology in Valencia

In Valencia, Fundació Puigvert participated in ICE, the annual congress organized by the Endourology Section of the European Association of Urology. The meeting brings together expert professionals from around the world in minimally invasive procedures to treat kidney stones and other urinary tract pathologies, with special attention to artificial intelligence, new technologies, and innovation applied to clinical practice.

In this context, the team of expert speakers from Fundació Puigvert composed of Oriol Angerri, Alejandra Bravo Balado, and Paula Izquierdo presented contributions in advanced endourological surgery, with the projection of semi-live surgeries commented on live by the surgical team. Among the highlighted techniques is retrograde intrarenal surgery (RIRS), which allows access to the kidney through the urinary tract to treat stones in a minimally invasive manner, and flexible ureteroscopy with FANS, a system that combines flexible navigation and aspiration to improve control during the procedure.

Participation in ICE26 also included sessions on technological innovation, personalized medicine, and patient safety. In this regard, they discussed monitoring pressure within the urinary tract, the use of new lasers for the treatment of urinary stones — such as holmium laser and thulium fiber laser — and the study of temperature and intrarenal pressure during ureteroscopy. The team also participated in sessions on sustainability in surgery and new clinical scenarios, such as endoscopic treatment of urinary stones in patients with severe obesity or minimally invasive surgery (PCNL) in both kidneys asynchronously to reduce risks.

The simultaneous presence of Fundació Puigvert at these three congresses reinforces the center’s role as a reference in highly specialized urology and evidences the commitment of its teams to research, training, innovation, and continuous improvement of patient care.