François Picard is pleased to welcome Xiaoming Li, Professor of Medical Oncology at the University College London and a specialist in lung cancer. “Lung cancer is not one cancer. There are many different types of lung cancer,” explains Li. For decades, lung cancer has been closely associated with smoking, late diagnosis and poor survival prospects. Yet there is a broader revolution in cancer brewing: Medicine advances in molecular oncology, minimally invasive surgery and immunotherapy are fundamentally transforming both the understanding and treatment of the disease, including among patients who have never smoked.

Expressing cautious optimism about the reported success of Pope Leo's operation to remove cancer found in his lung, Li emphasised the importance of early detection while acknowledging that the final pathology results would be essential to determining the long-term prognosis and any further treatment. UCL's oncologist challenges conventional assumptions about lung cancer, pointing to its growing recognition among non-smokers, the emergence of precision treatments tailored to the molecular characteristics of individual tumours, and the potential of experimental mRNA vaccines. “We are seeing people who are living long term despite stage four cancer,” Li observed, highlighting advances that are reshaping expectations even for patients with advanced disease. As researchers investigate the genetic and environmental factors behind lung cancer and explore vaccines that could potentially prevent recurrence, Li's central message is one of scientifically grounded optimism: earlier detection and increasingly personalised treatment are opening possibilities that were scarcely imaginable just a generation ago.

François Picard is pleased to welcome Alban Guyomarc'h, Researcher in Space Geopolitics at Paris's École Normale Supérieure School of Higher Learning. As a new era of space rivalry unfolds, the International Space Station remains one of the last bastions of cooperation between geopolitical adversaries. For Guyomarc'h, the latest ISS mission is more than a remarkable technological achievement. "It's one of the rare collaboration spaces we still have today in a very conflictual era".

He describes the ISS as a historic bridge between East and West. Guyomarc'h examines the emotional experience of returning from orbit, the geopolitical implications of the ISS's planned retirement, and the intensifying competition to establish a permanent presence on the Moon. From nuclear-powered lunar infrastructure to the growing strategic importance of space, his analysis reveals a central paradox: as humanity acquires unprecedented capabilities to explore beyond Earth, the political foundations of cooperation in space appear increasingly fragile.

François Picard is pleased to welcome Petros Konstantinidis, Journalist for TA NEA, Greece's leading daily newspaper, as a financial and investigative reporter. It has all the makings of a reality TV show or a telenovela, or both! “This is diplomacy under Trump turning into lifestyle diplomacy”, explains Konstantinidis.

With this striking observation, he captures the transformation of US-Greek relations under Donald Trump. Against a backdrop of controversy surrounding US ambassador Kimberly Guilfoyle, Trump Jr's ex-fiancee, Konstantinidis exposes the tensions between diplomatic spectacle, allegations of political interference and increasingly transactional geopolitical alliances. From American energy investments and multibillion-dollar arms purchases to Greece's ambitions as a regional energy hub, Konstantinidis reveals how economic vulnerability and strategic calculation are reshaping Athens' foreign policy, raising fundamental questions about sovereignty, diplomacy, realpolitik and the price of privileged access to Washington.