NCI Acting Director Douglas R. Lowy, MD, FAACR, chaired an Annual Meeting symposium that provided an update on clinical vaccine research efforts designed to prevent HPV, pancreatic cancer, and Lynch syndrome.

Beth McCormick, PhD, and two other investigators discussed the complex interplay between microorganisms and the tumor microenvironment and reviewed ongoing research using microbes to promote treatment response during an Annual Meeting symposium.

Craig M. Crews, PhD, was honored for his groundbreaking research that spearheaded new and revolutionary therapeutic approaches, including the development of novel proteasome inhibitors and proteolysis targeting chimera technology.

Neoantigens have emerged as prime targets for cancer immunotherapy in the past decade and researchers continue to explore approaches to improve antigen selection and immunogenicity for vaccine development. Ugur Sahin, MD, and Lélia Delamarre, PhD (left to right), discussed the latest advances at the Annual Meeting.

Klaus Pantel, MD, PhD, Catherine Alix-Panabières, PhD, and Victor E. Velculescu, MD, PhD (left to right), discussed the current state of the art, open questions, and potential clinical applications of liquid biopsy during the AACR Annual Meeting.

Philip E. Castle, PhD, MPH, Ernest T. Hawk, MD, MPH, and Nickolas Papadopoulos, PhD (left to right), discussed the challenges and benefits of detecting precancerous lesions in the era of minimally invasive tests like liquid biopsies on the final day of the Annual Meeting.

Growing evidence suggests a critical role for clonal hematopoiesis (CH) in driving complications associated with oncological care through systemic inflammation. Three investigators, including Ross L. Levine, MD, provided a state-of-the-art update on CH during one of the first-ever AACR Annual Meeting sessions dedicated to the topic.