A Message from the President
Dear Colleagues,
By this time, you are probably already aware that we will hold our society’s 35th Annual Meeting & Pre-Conference Programs (SITC 2020) as a fully virtual event. We’ve made several recent announcements involving SITC 2020, including:
Our preference was to find a way to safely convene in person. However, the coronavirus pandemic is still active, the course of the pandemic over the next several months is difficult to predict, and the safety of our members, their families, and our patients is our highest priority. Therefore, the decision to go virtual became necessary. We understand that a virtual event removes the prospect of the invaluable, sometimes spontaneous in-person conversations that can lead to important insights, collaborations, and for some members, important career opportunities. But we hope and are working very hard to make the 2020 Virtual Annual Scientific Meeting a truly unique, highly productive and beneficial experience for all of this year’s attendees. And perhaps by going virtual we can expand the opportunity to connect to a much broader group of our members around the world.
To provide researchers with more time to prepare their SITC 2020 abstracts for our reimagined virtual meeting, we will extend the submission deadline for regular and Young Investigator Award abstracts, late-breaking abstract applications and presentation applications for the Immunotherapy Resistances and Failure program until Aug. 25, 2020, at 5 p.m. PDT. This extension provides nearly a month of additional time for colleagues to prepare their work for viewing in the virtual poster hall and potentially as a recorded presentation. Click here to view the updated abstract timeline and related important dates for SITC 2020.
As this is SITC’s 35th Anniversary Annual Meeting, one of the many highlights will be three keynote opening addresses from highly accomplished scientists in our field. I have the privilege to introduce several of the SITC 2020 faculty, including the following keynote presenters:
Richard V. Smalley, MD Memorial Award and Lectureship:
- Gordon Freeman, PhD (Dana-Farber Cancer Institute) – “The PD-L1/PD-1 Pathway: Discovery and New Insights”
- Lieping Chen, MD, PhD (Yale School of Medicine) – “Why Were We Interested in Immunity Within the Tumor Microenvironment in the 1990s?”
- Arlene Sharpe, MD, PhD (Harvard Medical School) – “Discovery of New IO Targets and Mechanisms Leveraging CRISPR”
Keynote Address:
- Elizabeth M. Jaffee, MD (Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University) – “Turning Immunologically Quiescent Tumors into Immune Responsive Cancers”
35th Anniversary Keynote Address:
- Helen E. Heslop, MD (Baylor College of Medicine) – “T cell Therapy of Cancer”
These presentations and many more, including late-breaking research, reflect the very high scientific quality of the SITC 2020 meeting. You can access the meeting without cost if you are an SITC member, so if you have not yet done so, join the SITC family or renew your membership for 2020 and beyond by completing the SITC 2020 online registration.
Planning for SITC 2020 consumed much of our leadership’s recent discussions, but we continue to focus on the long-term future of the society. In mid-July, I was honored to welcome a collection of respected SITC member leaders, representing a variety of professional backgrounds and interests, to the annual SITC strategic planning retreat. The meeting was hosted on the Zoom platform to ensure the safety of all participants. This esteemed group engaged in productive discussions that outlined future society outputs for key scientific issues; considered SITC’s approach to future live and virtual educational programs in our new global environment; and addressed ways to increase our society’s commitment to racial and ethnic diversity. As always, I was impressed by the thoughtfulness of our leaders in addressing opportunities and potential problems for our Society.
An important area of SITC strategic focus is policy and advocacy, and these efforts are particularly important now to ensure continued progress of the immunotherapy community through the global pandemic. SITC-drafted text was incorporated into the Fiscal Year 2021 U.S. House of Representatives Agriculture Subcommittee Bill regarding annual financial appropriations for the U.S Food and Drug Administration. Thanks to the efforts of our SITC Policy Committees, 2020 marks the third consecutive year SITC was able to place congressional language which communicates SITC member priorities to the FDA. We invite you to learn more about SITC's policy and advocacy efforts here, and view the FY21 FDA appropriations language focused on combination immunotherapies here.
This year has been a particularly difficult year for everyone with new and unexpected challenges. I would like to thank the entire SITC family–my colleagues on the Board of Directors, Executive Committee, SITC committees and task forces, staff and many others–for your continued dedication and unflinching support of our society. It is this collective effort that will ensure our Society and our field of a bright future.
Sincerely,
Mario Sznol, MD
SITC President
Registration Open for SITC's 35th Anniversary Annual Meeting & Pre-Conference Programs Reimagined as Virtual Meeting
SITC Members to Attend SITC 2020 for Free
The SITC 35th Anniversary Annual Meeting & Pre-Conference Programs (SITC 2020) will be reimagined as a fully virtual experience this year to ensure the health and safety of attendees and their patients. We are excited to reimagine SITC 2020 as an online opportunity to virtually connect the global SITC family, interacting through a unique experience that remains focused on the science and application of cancer immunotherapy and tumor immunology to improve cancer patient outcomes.
In celebration of the society’s 35th anniversary, all SITC members will be able to register for FREE access to the entire Annual Meeting & Pre-Conference Programs. Become a SITC member today or renew your membership to take advantage of this exclusive member benefit. Stay tuned for more registration details in the coming days and weeks. SITC is excited to extend this free registration offer to all SITC members.
SITC 2020 Abstract and Presentation Application Deadline Extended
SITC has extended the SITC 2020 submission deadline for regular abstracts, Young Investigator Award abstracts and late-breaking abstract applications for the 35th Anniversary Annual Meeting as well as presentation applications for the Immunotherapy Resistance and Failure Pre-Conference Program. The deadline to submit research is 5 p.m. PDT on Aug. 25, 2020. For more information, please visit the SITC 2020 website.
Support SITC 2020
Make your mark by exhibiting at SITC's 35th Anniversary Annual Meeting. This event brings together international leaders from academia, regulatory and government agencies, as well as industry representatives for unmatched education, scientific exchange and networking with the scientists driving the field. Click here to learn more about exhibiting options at SITC 2020.
Sponsor or advertise and get your message in front of an estimated 5,000 attendees. To learn more about these exciting opportunities contact development@sitcancer.org.
35th Anniversary Annual Meeting
Nov. 11-14 • Keynote Speakers
The Annual Meeting consists of cutting-edge research presentations by experts in the field, both oral and poster abstract presentations, and ample opportunity for structured and informal discussions, including important 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 2020 Pre-Conference Programs
Immunotherapy Resistance and Failure
Nov. 9 • Presentation Applications Due Aug. 25
While many patients with cancer are experiencing significant long-term benefits from immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), the vast majority exhibit either primary or secondary (acquired) resistance to these therapies. The underlying mechanisms for the wide range of responses are not well understood. Before ICI resistant/relapsed patients can be properly managed, however, these underlying causes need to be elucidated, which will enable rational design of therapeutic options based on these mechanisms of resistance. Testing of therapies in this ICI-resistant population also presents unique questions, including defining resistance and proper clinical trial design strategies. Click here to continue learning about the Immunotherapy Resistance and Failure program and click here to submit your research.
Primer on Tumor Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy™
Nov. 10
The understanding of cancer immunobiology has increased dramatically in recent years, leading to the successful development of novel immune-based treatment options to improve cancer patient outcomes. 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. New this year, the Primer on Tumor Immunology and Cancer Immunotherapy™ will also touch on emerging therapies and technologies to ensure attendees at all levels stay updated in our expanding field, while also laying a comprehensive foundational base for all SITC 2020 attendees.
Workshop on Engineering Immune Cells for Cancer Therapy
Nov. 9
CAR T treatments have led to improved outcomes for patients with hematologic malignancies. However, the same level of success has not been achieved in most solid tumors, and other immune cell types beyond T cells are also being explored preclinically and clinically. This workshop will therefore highlight the multitude of cellular therapy approaches being applied for the treatment of cancer, including many T cell strategies, alternative immune cells, practical considerations and novel technologies.
Grant Writing Workshop: Get your reviewers "hooked" on your specific aims page
Nov. 10
This evening program will outline funding opportunities and how to navigate them, address critical points of government and private sector grant submissions, and give attendees the tools to identify points that determine the success or failure of a grant proposal, helping them to optimize the process of grant re-submission.
Submit Comments on FACT-JACIE Hematopoietic Cellular Therapy Standards
The Foundation for the Accreditation of Cellular Therapy (FACT) and the Joint Accreditation Committee ISCT-Europe and EBMT (JACIE) have provided an open comment period for their draft eighth edition of the FACT-JACIE International Standards for Hematopoietic Cellular Therapy Product Collection, Processing, and Administration. The FACT-JACIE international standards detail best practices for collection, processing, storage, and administration of hematopoietic cellular therapy products, and are used in cellular therapy accreditation programs across the globe. All stakeholders are invited to provide comment on these draft standards by August 30. Please click here for more details on the draft standards and how to provide comment.