A variety of sessions showcasing exciting advances in hematologic malignancies—including leukemia, lymphoma, and multiple myeloma—will be featured at the AACR Annual Meeting 2025. These sessions offer attendees the chance to explore the latest scientific developments and promising clinical strategies against blood cancers, showcasing their wide-ranging importance in oncology research and treatment.

“At the AACR Annual Meeting this year, there are a number of exciting sessions focused on hematologic malignancies that will describe cutting-edge bench-to-bedside research that is relevant for basic and clinical researchers in hematologic malignancies as well as those working in solid tumors,” said Kenneth C. Anderson, MD, FAACR, the AACR Hematologic Malignancies Working Group Steering Committee chair.

Hematologic cancers originating in blood cells or bone marrow present distinct advantages for scientific investigation compared to solid tumors. Due to the ease of obtaining tissue samples at virtually every disease stage, researchers can deeply analyze mechanisms of cancer development, treatment responses, and therapeutic resistance. Historically, blood cancers, especially leukemias, have provided the context for revolutionary breakthroughs like the initial successes of chemotherapy, precision targeted therapy, and CAR T-cell therapy.

Anderson, the co-editor-in-chief of the AACR journal Blood Cancer Discovery, and the Kraft Family Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and program director of the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center and LeBow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, will lead an Educational Session titled “Lessons Learned Between Solid Tumors and Hematologic Malignancies” to shed light on crucial overlaps and mutual learnings between these two research areas. This session aligns with emerging tumor-agnostic approaches in oncology, recognizing shared biological features between diverse cancers that can potentially be treated with similar strategies.

“In many cases, similar aberrant pathways are activated or suppressed in the tumor and microenvironment in hematologic malignancies and solid tumors,” Anderson noted. “Importantly, therapies developed and approved in blood cancers can benefit solid cancers, and vice versa.”

Minimal residual disease (MRD) status, a sensitive indicator of remission determined by whether cancer cells are detectable after treatment, is another topic that will receive significant attention.

According to Anderson, we need new, quicker ways to determine the effectiveness of treatments for patients—incorporating MRD analysis could help. “The traditional paradigm for new drug development using survival endpoints is now too long to be practical. Patients and caregivers cannot wait for novel therapies.” 

He pointed to progress in this area, specifically a collaborative effort between academia, cooperative groups, and industry that led the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to support MRD-negative complete response as an early clinical trial endpoint for accelerated approval of novel agents in multiple myeloma.

“This breakthrough will assure continued new drug development and earlier access for patients to lifesaving therapies, and this collaboration can serve as a model for similar efforts in solid tumors, too,” Anderson stated, alluding to broader implications for oncology research that could pave the way for more efficient trials that accelerate the pace of progress and ensure the best treatments are identified and provided to patients.

CAR T-cell therapy, which first revolutionized leukemia and lymphoma treatment, will continue to be a critical topic at the meeting, with sessions covering novel constructs and strategies to improve the effectiveness of CAR T cells in both blood and solid cancers.

“Characterizing mechanisms of sensitivity and resistance to these therapies will inform the development and optimal use of next-generation CAR T cells,” said Anderson. “Moreover, novel strategies for delivery of CAR T cells, including on-site production or creating CAR T cells within the body, show promise as far as improving access to these lifesaving therapies.”

Additional Educational Sessions—which require an Educational Program Pass—will explore early detection and MRD detection via liquid biopsy analyses, how lymph node biology influences inflammation and metastasis, and the role of epigenetics and RNA modification. Another intriguing topic included in the Advances in Hematologic Malignancies track is chromothripsis, a unique chromosomal event involving extensive rearrangements that result from simultaneous chromosomal breaks and random reassembly.

The variety of sessions dedicated to hematologic malignancies at AACR Annual Meeting 2025 promises valuable insights and significant opportunities for interdisciplinary learning and collaboration, no matter one’s specialty.

For the most up-to-date information on session dates, times, and locations, check the Annual Meeting App and Online Itinerary Planner.

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EDUCATIONAL SESSIONS

ED22: CAR T Cells in Hematological Malignancies: Innovations and Pitfalls

Saturday, April 26, 8-9:30 a.m. CT
Room S404, McCormick Place South (Level 4)

Session Chair: Marco Ruella, MD, University of Pennsylvania

This session will explore the latest developments in cellular immunotherapy, from fundamental biology to translational advancements that are shaping the future of treatment for hematologic malignancies. Talks will focus on viral-specific T cells, CAR T-cell therapies for pediatric blood cancers, and next-generation CAR T-cell engineering to address mechanisms of resistance.

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ED23: Lessons Learned Between Solid Tumors and Hematologic Malignancies

Saturday, April 26, 2:30-4 p.m. CT
Room S404, McCormick Place South (Level 4)

Session Chair: Kenneth Anderson, MD, FAACR, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

This session will focus on the most promising future strategies for diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of both solid and hematologic cancers, while emphasizing shared insights, challenges, and advances between the diseases. Talks will cover how melanoma offers opportunities to fast forward progress in blood cancers, how advances in CAR T-cell and T-cell engager therapies in blood cancers can inform their optimal clinical development in solid tumors, and how defining and therapeutically targeting common disease pathobiology could fast forward progress and ultimately improve patient outcomes in more types of cancer.

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ED36: Somatic Mosaicism as a Driver of Cancer and Inflammatory Diseases

Saturday, April 26, 2:30-4 p.m. CT
Room S101, McCormick Place South (Level 1)

Session Chair: Lucy Godley, MD, PhD, Northwestern University

This session will focus on the somatic mosaicism that drives cancer development and inflammatory diseases. Talks will cover when and how somatic mosaicism occurs, how it drives cancer and other diseases, and why it is difficult to identify clinically, as well as describe two important examples of somatic mosaicism in clonal hematopoiesis and a newly identified disorder named VEXAS syndrome.

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ADVANCES IN HEMATOLOGIC MALIGNANCIES SESSIONS

AHM04: Novel Approaches to Tracking Clonal Selection, Transformation, and Clinical Application of MRD: Lessons From Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) and Applications to Other Cancers

Sunday, April 27, 1-2:30 p.m. CT
Room E351, McCormick Lakeside Center (Level 3)

Session Chair: Paresh Vyas, MRCP, FRCP, University of Oxford

This session will focus on recent exciting scientific advances in identifying and quantitating stem/progenitor cell dynamics from the first steps of clonal selection in blood stem cells to transformation to AML. Talks will cover applying techniques to identify AML clonal trajectories to other cancers, the latest molecular and immunophenotypic approaches to quantitate MRD after treatment, and how the clinical application of these approaches is beginning to influence clinical management.

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AHM03: Dissecting and Engaging the Lymphoma Tumor Microenvironment

Monday, April 28, 12:30-2 p.m. CT
Room S401, McCormick Place South (Level 4)

Session Chair: Christian Steidl, MD, The University of British Columbia, featuring talk by Anand Jeyasekharan, MBBS, PhD (NextGen Star)

This session will focus on the complexity of the tumor microenvironment of lymphoma and the various cellular ecosystems within different anatomical niches. Talks will focus on state-of-the-art genetically engineered mouse model systems and their deployment for assessing CAR T-cell efficacy in conjunction with epigenetic therapy, the significance of maps of the tumor microenvironment in molecularly defined subtypes of lymphoma, an integrative characterization of cellular ecosystems in classic Hodgkin lymphoma as a framework for molecularly defined disease classifications, and bispecific antibodies for the treatment of B-cell lymphomas and translational approaches to optimize their use in clinical practice.

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AHM05: Epigenetics and RNA Modification in Hematologic Malignancies

Tuesday, April 29, 10:15-11:45 a.m. CT
Room S401, McCormick Place South (Level 4)

Session Chair: Chuan He, PhD, University of Chicago

This session will focus on the crucial roles of epigenetic modifications and RNA modifications in the initiation and progression in hematologic malignancies, in particular leukemia. Talks will focus on how DNA methylation influences hematopoietic stem cell function and malignancy, the impact of chromatin remodeling and transcriptional regulation in hematologic cancers, and the recent discovery on how chromatin-associated RNA methylation affects hematopoietic stem cell and progenitor cell self-renewal versus differentiation and leukemogenesis.

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AHM02: Myeloma as a Model for Early Interception

Tuesday, April 29, 12:30-2 p.m. CT
Room S401, McCormick Place South (Level 4)

Session Chair: Omar Nadeem, MD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

This session will focus on refining early interception strategies in multiple myeloma, which could serve as a model for approaches in other cancer types. Talks will cover the biology behind precursor myeloma progression, screening for precursor myeloma, and early intervention to delay progression.

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AHM01: Chromothripsis in Hematological Malignancies

Wednesday, April 30, 10:15-11:45 a.m. CT
Room E450 A, McCormick Lakeside Center (Level 4)

Session Chair: Faith Davies, MD, NYU Langone Health Perlmutter Cancer Center

This session will focus on chromothripsis, a phenomenon involving complex chromosomal rearrangements, and its role in blood cancers.

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MAJOR SYMPOSIUM

SY10: Technical and Clinical Advances in Circulating Tumor DNA Minimal Residual Disease Detection

Tuesday, April 29, 12:30-2 p.m. CT
Arie Crown Theater, McCormick Lakeside Center (Level 2)

Session Chair: Maximilian Diehn, MD, PhD, Stanford University

This session will focus on recent technical and clinical advances in the detection of circulating tumor DNA minimal residual disease (MRD). Talks will cover technical approaches for increasing the sensitivity of MRD detection as well as recent clinical trial results that highlight the potential utility of personalizing management of early-stage cancers based on MRD detection. Data from multiple tumor types, including colorectal and lung cancer, will be presented.

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TOWN HALL SESSION

TM05: Hematologic Malignancies Working Group Town Hall

Monday, April 28, 6:30-8:30 p.m. CT
Room S101, McCormick Place South (Level 1)

Session Chair: Kenneth Anderson, MD, FAACR, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

This session will feature three presentations from experts in the blood cancers community on the theme of “Critical Dependencies in Hematologic Malignancies?” followed by a panel discussion. The presentations will explore critical dependencies often observed in hematologic malignancies, such as oncogene addiction, antiapoptotic pathways, epigenetic alterations, metabolic vulnerabilities, and changes in DNA damage responses.