Schedule highlights from the Program Chair: Sunday, April 16
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Welcome to the second full day of cancer research sessions and programming. Today’s schedule provides in-depth science, and we will also recognize many talented and dedicated cancer researchers, physician-scientists, advocates, and journalists for their work.
We have an outstanding lineup for today’s Opening Ceremony, which begins at 8 a.m. ET in W Hall A2-3. We will hear from AACR CEO Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (hc), AACR President Lisa M. Coussens, PhD, FAACR, and National Cancer Institute Director Monica M. Bertagnolli, MD. We will also honor awardees and recognize the 25th Anniversary of the AACR Scientist↔Survivor Program®, a tremendously successful program that other organizations have cloned because of its value in the field of cancer research.
The Opening Ceremony is followed by the Opening Plenary Session, Advancing the Frontiers of Cancer Science and Medicine, at 9:30 a.m. ET in the same room. The plenary will explore the meeting theme by looking at how research in diverse fields of study is transforming cancer research.
The Pezcoller Foundation-AACR International Award for Extraordinary Achievement in Cancer Research is our first award lecture at the Annual Meeting. Award recipient Tak W. Mak, PhD, FAACR, will present his award lecture at 12 p.m. ET in Room W414.
Carl H. June, MD, FAACR, recipient of the AACR Award for Lifetime Achievement in Cancer Research, will present his lecture at 4:30 p.m. ET in Valencia D. Among his many accomplishments, June is being honored for revolutionary contributions to developing the first gene-edited, cell-based therapy for cancer that involves the genetic re-engineering of a patient’s own T cells to combat their disease.
The popular New Drugs on the Horizon sessions are an excellent opportunity to learn about the next wave of innovative cancer drugs progressing in the clinic. The sessions feature first disclosures of innovative agents, both small molecules and biologics, that have recently entered or imminently will enter into phase I clinical trials. The three-part series kicks off Sunday with Part 1 at 1 p.m. ET and Part 2 at 3 p.m. ET, and concludes Monday with Part 3 at 10:15 a.m. ET. All three sessions will be held in Tangerine Ballroom 2 (WF2).
We encourage everyone to take in the entire Opening Ceremony and Plenary Session. This is cancer research at its cutting edge.
Sunday afternoon is packed with even more cutting-edge science. Look out for findings that will make headlines at today’s two clinical trials plenary sessions. Each trial presentation will have a paired presentation with a discussant. Harnessing the Immune System in the Clinic will be co-chaired by AACR Clinical Trials Committee Co-chairs Shivaani Kummar, MD, and Timothy A. Yap, MD, PhD, from 12:45 to 3:15 p.m. ET in the Chapin Theater. Hope for Rare Cancers: Novel Targeted and Immunotherapy Agents will be co-chaired by Hedy Lee Kindler, MD, and Brian A. Van Tine, MD, PhD, from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. ET in W Hall A2-3.
This afternoon’s President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot Reignited session features NCI Director Bertagnolli, White House Cancer Moonshot Coordinator Danielle Carnival, PhD, and award-winning patient advocate Phyllis Pettit Nassi. The session begins at 1 p.m. ET in Room W230.
Make space in your already-packed schedule to visit the exhibit hall, which opens at 1 p.m. ET in Halls B-E1, and check out the first round of poster sessions of the meeting.
Don’t miss the wrap-up session of the day: AACR President Lisa M. Coussens, PhD, FAACR, will deliver her Presidential Address, Identifying Immune Vulnerabilities in Solid Tumors: Leukocyte Communication Networks Regulate Neoplastic Progression and Response to Therapy, at 5:30 p.m. ET in the Chapin Theater.
One of the benefits of AACR membership is the opportunity to meet colleagues in your field, and one way to do that is to attend a town hall meeting. These AACR Working Group meetings and networking receptions take place each evening at hotels near the convention center. The AACR Pediatric Cancer Working Group, AACR Radiation Science and Medicine Working Group, and AACR Tumor Microenvironment Working Group will meet from 6 to 8 p.m. ET tonight at the Hyatt Regency.
All Annual Meeting registrants are invited to attend the Annual Reception from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m. ET tonight in the Regency Ballroom at the Hyatt Regency. Join your colleagues after a day of learning for a bit of fun with light refreshments, music, and dancing.
This is a small sample of the compelling science, research, and advocacy that the Annual Meeting has to offer — and it’s only Sunday! Be sure to check AACR Annual Meeting News each day for more meeting highlights, program previews, session recaps, and all the news from the AACR Annual Meeting 2023 in Orlando.
