The group conclude their thoughts on the upcoming Paris NASH conference after taking a thorough look at the diversity of topics in Session 5. Roger poses the closing question: What insights or energy would you like to see come out of this event? What is the immediate response, and what’s going to stick after 3 to 5 years?

Anticipated Aftermath: Outcomes of Paris NASH

Jörn is interested in the future of drug development and what implications this meeting will have on it. In a more immediate sense, he notes an interest in the more recent learnings of disease biology covered in Scott Friedman’s basic science sessions.

Louise is looking for an immediate integrated response as a result from this meeting. She suggests a joint meeting between specialists to tease out the implications of liver health in a holistic outcome. “We don’t try and repair a car without opening the bonnet to look at the engine – but we’re trying to solve diabetes, cardiovascular disease and all of the other linked metabolic diseases without taking the lid off the liver.”
Rachel is looking for a joint response across specialities to activate steps to break down thinking in terms of “organ silos.”

Roger provides his final thoughts by way of a double entendre on the word “global.”. Global refers to how widely NAFLD-associated challenges vary in different parts of the world, but it also refers to the liver as part of a holistic web of non-communicable metabolic diseases. He concludes, “We need to understand how we’re going to address this in different parts of the world, but as the challenges vary, we also need to understand how we’re going to address the whole body in the context of the liver.”