December 20, 2012

 

SITC Announces 2013 Educational Programs

The field of cancer immunology and immunotherapy has seen a tremendous increase in excitement and momentum, brought about by the latest approvals of immunotherapy-based treatments in various cancer types. In response to this heightened enthusiasm, the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC) is offering several new educational programs for the year 2013 in addition to the SITC Annual Meeting & Associated Programs. Please mark your calendars for the following events:

Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Trials: Concepts and Challenges

April 4-5, 2013 ~ National Institutes of Health Campus (Masur Auditorium), Bethesda, MD
Organizers: Thomas Davis, MD; Samir Khleif, MD; Howard Streicher, MD; David Stroncek, MD

The Cancer Immunotherapy Clinical Trials: Concepts and Challenges program will outline the central conceptual and practical questions posed by the results of recent trials and examine several of these questions in greater detail including the approach to pre-clinical selection and development of efficient early clinical trials. The program, aimed at physicians and scientists in academia, industry and regulatory agencies, will also address the complicated but essential task of patient selection and developing combination therapies to improve long term disease control and survival.

 Cancer Immunotherapy 2013: Overcoming Barriers to Adaptive Immunity

SITC Guest Society Symposium at the 2013 AAI Annual Meeting
May 4, 2013 ~ Hawaii Convention Center, Honolulu, Hawaii
Organizers: Thomas F. Gajewski, MD, PhD and Francesco Marincola, MD

SITC has been invited to host a guest society symposium titled Cancer Immunotherapy 2013: Overcoming Barriers to Adaptive Immunity, as part of the American Association of Immunologists Annual Meeting, May 3-7, 2013 in Honolulu, Hawaii. This program, aimed at faculty/principal investigators, students, postdoctoral fellows, corporate scientists, government scientists and other immunologists from around the world will cover strategies that now exist to modify the innate and adaptive immune systems to enhance the development of therapeutically effective T cell responses. Preclinical and clinical studies addressing the obstacles to efficacy with the goal of establishing responses that can mediate tumor eradication will also be presented.

Faculty
• Julie R. Brahmer, MD - John Hopkins
• Thomas F. Gajewski, MD, PhD - University of Chicago
• Philip D. Greenberg, MD - University of Washington
• Nicholas P. Restifo, MD - National Cancer Institute
• Robert D. Schreiber, PhD - Washington University School of Medicine

This year SITC will host two of its popular Advances in Cancer Immunotherapy (ACI) educational programs designed for clinicians, researchers, students, post-doctoral fellows, allied health professionals, patient advocates, and industry partners who want to learn more about the use of immunotherapy as another treatment option in the fight against cancer. These programs will feature discussions and lectures by leaders in the field to provide a framework of basic to advanced immunology principles and an understanding of how these concepts translate into the clinic and fit together to create positive patient outcomes. ACI Program Directors are F. Stephen Hodi, MD and Howard Kaufman, MD, FACS.

Advances in Cancer Immunotherapy: From Bench to Bedside and Back

Leading into the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting
May 31, 2013 ~ Hilton Chicago, Chicago, IL
Organizers: Thomas F. Gajewski, MD, PhD and Justin Kline, MD

Topics
• Basic Immunology
• Adoptive T Cell Transfer
• Checkpoint Blockade
• The Immune System Role For Traditional Cancer Therapies
• The Tumor Microenvironment
• Therapeutic Cancer Vaccines

To hear attendee feedback from the program leading into the 2012 ASCO Annual Meeting, visit SITC on YouTube.

Advances in Cancer Immunotherapy: From Bench to Bedside and Back

Regional Pilot Program in partnership with MD Anderson Cancer Center, NCI Designated Cancer Center
June 14, 2013 ~ MD Anderson Cancer Center Campus, Houston, TX
Organizers: Patrick Hwu, MD; Elizabeth Mittendorf, MD, PhD; Padmanee Sharma, MD, PhD

Topics
• Basic Immunology
• Innate Immunity
• Tumor Microenvironment
• Therapeutic Cancer Vaccines
• Adoptive T Cell Transfer
• Checkpoint Blockade
• Combination Therapies
• Current Immunotherapies and Immunemonitoring

Abstract submission, registration and housing for SITC 2013 will open on May 1st on the SITC 2013 meeting microsite. On this date, the SITC 2013 Preliminary Program will also be available for viewing. An email alert announcing this information is live on the SITC 2013 meeting microsite will also be sent out on this date, so please be sure to watch for it. Hope to see you at SITC 2013!

SITC 28th Annual Meeting

November 8-10, 2013 ~ Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor, MD
Organizers: Paolo Antonio Ascierto, MD; David H. Munn, MD; A. Karolina Palucka, MD, PhD; Paul M. Sondel, MD, PhD

The SITC 28th Annual Meeting will provide a multidisciplinary educational and interactive environment focused on improving the outcome for current and future patients with cancer by incorporating strategies based on basic and applied cancer immunotherapy. The meeting consists of cutting-edge research presentations, both oral and poster, with ample opportunity for structured and informal discussions and networking opportunities. In addition, the meeting includes updates on major national and international initiatives coming from academia, government and industry, as well as important society projects.

SITC Workshop on Personalized Cancer Immunotherapy

November 7, 2013 ~ Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor, MD
Organizers: Willem Overwijk, PhD; Hans-Georg Rammensee, PhD; Nicholas P. Restifo, MD; Ena Wang, MD

The SITC Workshop on Personalized Cancer Immunotherapy will provide up to date information on the latest in patient-specific genomic and molecular analysis, and the application of this information in personalized immunotherapy of cancer. A wide range of technologies and applications will be discussed. The Workshop also provides unparalleled opportunities for interaction with international leaders in the field of personalized immunotherapy to learn about these technologies and current applications as well as critical unaddressed questions and future directions. Most importantly, participants will have the opportunity to build connections and collaborations to spark new discoveries, interventions and applications.

SITC Primer on Tumor Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy™

November 7, 2013 ~ Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor, MD
Organizers: Charles G. Drake, MD, PhD and Padmanee Sharma, MD, PhD

The SITC Primer on Tumor Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy™ is designed to provide a foundation for understanding core immunology principles as they relate to basic and clinical research in immunotherapy of cancer. Prominent investigators will summarize central themes in a series of lectures and through interactive question and answer discussions. The audience for this annual, one-day educational program includes students, postdoctoral fellows, and technicians from academia and industry as well as physicians and scientists at more senior levels who wish to solidify their understanding of tumor immunology and immunotherapy.

For more information about SITC's 2013 educational programs, please visit the Meetings section of the SITC website.