The International Falk Symposium 162 in Dresden is a good example for the promises of history. Sixty years after the misery of the Second World War and the destruction of Dresden and 20 years after a long and threatening Cold War, scientists from more than 50 nations across the world met in a wonderfully reconstructed city to discuss a series of key lectures on the pathophysiology and clinical management of liver cirrhosis. Liver cirrhosis is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. It is the fifth most common cause of death between the age of 25 and 45 years. To date, it is...