Meet your new President: Martin Reincke

Meet your new President

We welcome Martin Reincke as the new President of ESE. His term began at the AGM during e-ECE 2021 in May. Here, we take the opportunity to ask him a few questions, to get to know him better.

How did you become interested in endocrinology?

This is an unusual story. When I started as a junior doctor on a general internal medicine ward in Cologne University Hospital, I accidentally met Bruno Allolio. Bruno later became a renowned professor and teacher, but died much too early in 2015. He was a senior resident at the same hospital, and he was – an endocrinologist! Bruno was so unbelievably inspiring, enthusiastic and open-minded, I asked him immediately whether he would be my mentor. Without question − I wanted to become an endocrinologist myself. So I had found a life-long mentor and friend, and my field of specialisation. It was a coincidence, but a very lucky one. If Bruno had been an oncologist, I would probably be an oncologist today.

What inspires you, and why?

My very spontaneous answer of today, writing this just after returning from a gorgeous skiing trip in the Engadin Alps in Switzerland, is a non-scientific one. We had great weather and toured through the most impressive mountain scenery, with winter still on the peaks, and beautiful spring in the valleys. This experience of eternity, which nature gives us in rare moments when heaven and earth are in flow, can be most inspiring.

What would you have done if not medicine?

I have a deep affection for philosophy, art and music. This I owe to my parents, who raised me and my three siblings in a humanistic tradition. Therefore, a realistic option would have been to study humanities with a focus on classical philosophy. However, we also had to learn to play instruments, so I might have followed my younger brother who became a professional viola player. Today, I frequently play violin in various chamber music groups, from Bach to Shostakovich.

What areas of endocrinology most interest you?

My research focuses on the pituitary and the adrenal gland. I have, so to say, adopted two diseases, Cushing’s syndrome and primary aldosteronism, like children. My own research is mostly dedicated to improving the diagnosis and treatment of both devastating, deadly conditions. In this context, the €2.5million European Research Council Advanced Grant, which I was lucky enough to be awarded in 2017, has been a great help in identifying disease mechanisms and finding innovative treatments. Still, there is much to do!

Where are we most likely to find you on a day off?

Sitting in the bright sunshine in the garden, extensively reading the newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung and drinking a Darjeeling tea.

What are endocrinology’s greatest challenges?

Fighting obesity effectively, beating endocrine cancers, understanding and avoiding the adverse long term health consequences of endocrinedisrupting chemicals, finding treatments for rare endocrine diseases and, finally, anticipating and preventing the dramatic consequences of global warming for our endocrine health.

How can ESE best support its members?

ESE is still a rather young scientific society, founded in 2006. But it has grown to adulthood in less than 15 years, into its current format. Today, ESE has a broad spectrum of remits, ranging from delivering the best endocrine education for scientists, clinicians, nurses and other healthcare professionals, organising congresses of the highest scientific quality, increasing awareness of endocrine topics through policy and advocacy, and supporting endocrine research and publishing top science in its own journals. Our Past President Andrea Giustina has done a wonderful job through his ‘inclusion plan’ to reach out to every stakeholder in the endocrine community: clinicians, scientists, affiliated and associated societies, allied international societies and industry partners, among others. A centrepiece was the intensified collaboration with the national endocrine societies though ECAS (the ESE Council of Affiliated Societies). Strong national societies will make ESE strong, and the other way around. Together, we can give our individual members the necessary network for their daily professional lives and careers. As President, I am proud to serve!

What are your priorities as President of ESE?

The current pandemic is an unforeseen stress test for ESE: are we fit for the future? After just over a year in lockdown with all its terrible consequences, we can say ‘Yes, ESE has done much better than expected.’ Despite all the shortcomings, the Society has been growing in membership and has achieved most, if not all, of the goals of its 5-year plan. Nevertheless, we also know that many more challenges are ahead of us, and that we can do even better in some areas. Therefore, my presidency will be dedicated to ‘innovation’. How can we optimise virtual meetings? How can we

‘My presidency will be dedicated to ‘innovation’. How can we optimise virtual meetings? How can we deliver customised knowledge and expertise to our members? How can we better support our early career members during the pandemic? What are the next generation of learning tools? The best way to predict the future is togenerate it − by innovation’

use the digital environment to deliver customised knowledge and expertise to our members? How can we better support our early career members during the pandemic? What are the next generation of learning tools? How can we benefit the committees? The best way to predict the future is to generate it − by innovation.

What will the pandemic’s legacy be?

No question, the pandemic will dominate our life in the near future, and it needs no fantasy to predict that we will have to live with some restrictions. On the other hand, the development of effective and safe vaccinations against COVID-19 is a miracle and one of the greatest success stories of recent decades.

As an optimist, I expect activities to return mostly to normal at the end of my presidency. However, on a more general scale, we have collectively lost our naïve belief in a bright and stable future. We have to face it, our world has become more fragile. With respect to ESE: let’s be prepared for the next stress tests, and anticipate future challenges, which we then must overcome through innovation.

What are your words of advice for early career endocrinologists?

Find the right mentor, and love what you are doing – every day!

And for all the members of ESE?

Looking forward to meeting you in person, sooner rather than later. Let’s have a cup of coffee together!