Primer10 Program Purpose

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October 1, 2010
Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill
Washington, D.C.

Program Purpose

Significant progress is being made in the development of successful immunotherapy for cancer, with the first positive randomized cancer vaccine studies recently reported. The knowledge gained from investigations of tumor immunotherapy has provided enormous insights into mechanisms of action of potentially therapeutic agents as well as numerous mechanisms of acquired resistance to immunotherapy. Investigators in the field come from many different specialty areas but require a common understanding of immunologic principles that are best provided in the setting of an integrated course, such as the immunology primer, which is provided yearly at the iSBTc meeting.

Each year this primer course has successfully provided a series of lectures that addresses the most important domains of tumor immunology and immunotherapy. Faculty for this course have been prominent investigators in the areas of interest, which vary from year to year, but always cover the core principles of cancer immunology and immunotherapy. The faculty has been able to successfully move from the most basic principles to the most advanced and cutting-edge research ideas over their one hour lectures each year. A large percentage iSBTc members and others attend the immunology primer either once or repetitively to meet their educational needs in these areas, which help them get more out of the subsequent general meeting. The audience includes students, post doctoral fellows, and technicians in academia and biotechnology corporations as well as physicians and scientists at a more senior level who wish to familiarize themselves with fields in which they are not presently working.

The iSBTc is uniquely positioned to meet the needs outlined above, because it meets yearly with a fresh new group of program organizers for the annual meeting and the immunology primer. These individuals have knowledge of and access to the best immunologic minds in the country and have enjoyed a remarkable degree of success in securing those individuals to speak in the immunology primer. The primer also provides a unique complement to the rest of the iSBTc meeting, which is often attended by all the participants in the primer as well as many of the faculty.

Intended Audience
The target audience for this program is basic and clinical investigators from academic, regulatory, and biopharmaceutical venues. The audience includes clinicians, researchers, students, post-doctoral fellows, and allied health professionals.

Program Goals

• Attendees will learn the current status and the most recent advances in biologic therapies including cancer vaccines, vaccine adjuvants, host-tumor interactions, inflammation and cancer, and the role of the innate and adaptive immune systems in tumor immunology and therapy.
• Provide the framework of basic immunology to facilitate the understanding of more sophisticated principles of tumor immunology and immunotherapy as well as the role of inflammation in cancer development.
• Address the most important areas of tumor and host mechanisms for inhibiting the generation of an effective immune response
• Provide a common terminology and knowledge base for participants in investigations from many different areas.
• Provide the opportunity for dialogue and professional interactions that may lead to collaborations and/or employment opportunities for participants in the course.

Expected Learner Outcomes
Upon completion of this meeting, participants will be able to:

• Discuss immunology as it applies to cancer etiology, biology, therapy and inflammation
• Review the basis of cellular immunology and host-tumor-immune system interactions
• Summarize new approaches to therapy using monoclonal antibodies
• Assess cytokine biology and its role in cancer therapy
• Discuss host and tumor mechanisms that interfere with the production of an effective anti-tumor immune response
• Understand the rationale and methods for immune monitoring of clinical trials of biologic / immunologic therapies

The Primer on Tumor Immunology and Biological Therapy is a non-accredited continuing medical education event. No credits are offered for physician participation in this educational program.