Time to Get Ready for Spring Group Meeting

You might notice some new features.

Research support committees, such as the patient advocate and recruitment and retention committees, meet during Wednesday or Saturday sessions so that we minimize the chances for overlap with research committee meetings. Our research support committees have become so popular – and our meeting slots used to overlap so badly – that we were getting a steady increase in complaints of meeting conflicts. We hope this new approach makes the meeting more convenient for you.

And our scientific poster session is back! After a long hiatus, we’ll showcase 12-15 poster presentations from our committees. Four will be presented by recent winners of Hope Foundation for Cancer Research awards. Six will be nominated by committee chairs, and the rest will be selected from a round of general applicants. Please submit your poster application on the Hope website no later than March 1. We’re particularly encouraging diverse voices and young investigators. For information on poster format, and for copies of our new logo, log into SWOG.org and visit the publications and presentations section here.

Some more enticement to join us on the West Coast:

• At both plenary sessions, we’ll announce winners of new awards from The Hope Foundation for Cancer Research. The Special Recognition Awards celebrate outstanding service from members and staff, and in San Francisco, we will give out our first awards for mentorship and humanitarian work. In Chicago this fall, we’ll give out our first for innovation and patient advocacy. Nominating someone is fast and easy – you check or fill out six boxes! The impact, we hope, is lasting and meaningful. We have a variety of facets of excellence in our team.

• Also expect great speakers at our plenaries. Dr. Lee Ellis has lined up a trio of translational medicine experts, which includes Dr. Philip Mack with a presentation on translational medicine in the SWOG lung committee, Dr. Ed Liu on the biology and role of tumor mutational burden in immunotherapy, and Dr. Katy Rezvani on off-the-shelf engineered natural killer cells. At the general plenary, Dr. Larry Schwartz will talk about the integration of cutting-edge imaging technologies into SWOG and other NCTN trials, while Dr. Joe Unger will give us an overview of his ground-breaking, and attention-getting, research into health disparities and where he’ll take his portfolio next. We have another exciting invitation out for a keynote speaker. Stay tuned.

• We will also host a special NCORP symposium with a timely and brilliant line-up on the subject of geriatric oncology. The challenges, and opportunities, of treating older adults on cancer trials will be discussed by experts from City of Hope, Duke University, Mayo Clinic, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, University of Chicago, University of Rochester, ASCO, the FDA, the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute on Aging, and more. I want to thank Hope for sponsoring this state-of-the-science event.

This new year, and this new decade, offer a lot of optimism and momentum. I look forward to seeing you in San Francisco.