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Virtual AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting Attracts Record Registrations
The coronavirus pandemic has challenged the cancer research community in countless ways, and the 2020 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting was no exception. Held virtually for the first time during two days in October, the event drew nearly 900 cancer center colleagues for presentations on topics ranging from cancer screening guidelines and managing change in clinical trials to pediatric oncology and end-of-life care.
In line with AACI's goal to reduce cancer disparities, one meeting session examined ways that cancer centers are reducing the burden of cancer on people of color—particularly Black communities—in their waiting rooms, laboratories, and office suites, and through outreach and community engagement.
Similarly, a session on rural oncology illustrated that cancer disparities cut across ethnic and geographic lines. Moderated by Steven D. Leach, MD, director of the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Norris Cotton Cancer Center and chair of the 2020 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting Program Committee, the session explored efforts to better ensure quality cancer care in rural communities, including enrolling patients in clinical trials, opening access to online resources, and expanding the use of telehealth.
Capping the theme of cancer care equity, AACI’s new president Karen E. Knudsen, MBA, PhD, enterprise director of Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson Health, announced her 2020-22 presidential initiative, focused on understanding and mitigating cancer disparities. The first phase of this initiative will involve assessing AACI members’ efforts to understand and reduce cancer disparities as an initial step towards collective action.
In other meeting sessions, directors from four basic science centers highlighted work at their institutions, including exploring RNA as a drug target in cancer; the use of basic models and technology development; new therapeutic approaches in pancreatic cancer; and how a basic science center can contribute to precision medicine beyond checkpoint inhibitors and CAR T technology.
National Cancer Institute (NCI) Director Norman E. Sharpless, MD, announced the launch of NCI’s public relations campaign marking the 50th anniversary of the National Cancer Act. As part of his NCI director’s report—a regular feature of the annual meeting—Dr. Sharpless emphasized the coronavirus pandemic’s devastating impact on cancer patients’ screening and treatment. Considering only breast cancer and colorectal cancer, an NCI model predicts 10,000 excess deaths in the U.S. over the next 10 years due to delays in diagnosis and treatment related to COVID-19 fears. In addition, data suggest a more than 50 percent decline in new diagnoses of cancer since March.
Henry Ciolino, PhD, director of NCI’s Office of Cancer Centers, led a discussion about the NCI’s goals for the national cancer research enterprise; standards for developing new and better approaches to preventing, diagnosing, and treating cancer; and the optimal distribution of limited federal cancer research funds at AACI cancer centers. He participated in a lengthy question and answer session, providing clarity on issues such as safety net hospital reporting, overlapping catchment areas, and the impact on final score of the individual components of a cancer center’s NCI Cancer Center Support Grant application.
In an overview of AACI’s service to members in 2020, Executive Director Jennifer W. Pegher acknowledged annual meeting support from Advarra, AstraZeneca, Caris Life Sciences, Complion, Deep 6 AI, Essex, Florence, Huron Consulting Group, nCoup, Novartis, Pfizer, the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer, Varian Medical Systems, and Veeva Systems. The meeting included vendor presentations from Advarra, Caris Life Sciences, and Complion. She also recognized outgoing president, Roy A. Jensen, MD, and thanked him for his commitment to the cancer centers, particularly in spearheading his presidential initiative, the AACI Public Policy Resource Library.
William G. Kaelin, Jr., MD, received AACI's 2020 Distinguished Scientist Award. Dr. Kaelin, a researcher and professor of medicine at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard University Medical School, and Nobel Laureate, was recognized for his long-term research on how cells sense and adapt to changing oxygen levels. Following the award presentation, Dr. Kaelin delivered an inspiring review of his career, focusing in part on the vital importance of mentors, the need for more protected time for physician scientists, and the negative impact on cancer research of "claims inflation" in published studies.
Nike, Inc. co-founder Phil Knight and his wife, Penny, received the 2020 AACI Champion for Cures Award. The Knights have demonstrated their commitment to the cancer community for over a decade, beginning with a $100 million gift in 2008 that was used to recruit the best and brightest researchers to the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU). Beyond their significant financial support, the Knights have also helped build a network of people who are emotionally—and financially—invested in the success of Knight Cancer Institute.
"Cancer is not like polio that will be cured with a single vaccine. It will be cured drip by drip, over a long period of time," Mr. Knight said in video remarks. “But I sincerely believe that [Knight Cancer Institute Director] Brian Druker and his team at OHSU will be one of those drips, and Penny and I cannot have a bigger legacy than that."
Meeting recordings and highlights are available on Attendee Hub. The 2021 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting is slated to take place October 17-19 at the InterContinental on the Plaza in Kansas City, MO.