Formerly known in the field as the “Robert Gallo” meeting, the Tampa General Hospital Cancer Institute International Meeting will focus on the critical links between microbes, genetics, and cancer, with discussions highlighting emerging research and therapeutic innovations.
AACI Update | March 2026
Headlines
Rathmell Named OSUCCC Director, Pollock Becomes Director Emeritus
W. Kimryn Rathmell, MD, PhD, CEO of the James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, has also been named director of The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center (OSUCCC) in place of former Director Raphael E. Pollock, MD, PhD, who stepped down from the position to become OSUCCC director emeritus. This transition has been planned since Dr. Rathmell became CEO of The James in May 2025.
Weiner to Step Down as Georgetown Director
After more than 18 years leading Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Louis M. Weiner, MD, has announced his decision to step down later this year. He will also step down as director of the MedStar Georgetown Cancer Institute and as chair of the Department of Oncology. Dr. Weiner served on AACI's annual meeting program committee in 2009 and 2015.
Register Today for the 18th Annual AACI CRI Meeting
Registration is open for the 18th Annual AACI Clinical Research Innovation (CRI) Meeting, June 23-25, at the Loews Chicago O'Hare Hotel in Rosemont, IL. A discounted early registration rate will be available through Monday, March 16. The programming for this year's CRI meeting will focus on the theme, Shaping the Future of Clinical Trial Innovation.
Patient Advocate to Keynote 2026 AACI CADEx Conference
Patient advocate Loriana Hernández-Aldama will present the opening keynote at 1:30 pm eastern time on Monday, March 9, during the 2026 AACI Catchment Area Data Excellence (CADEx) Conference in Atlanta. She will share her thoughts on the importance of working with patient advocates in community outreach and engagement work.
Join AACI and Medidata for a Webinar on March 17
As clinical trial complexity increases and site resources are stretched thinner than ever, the move toward automated, interoperable workflows is no longer a luxury; it is a strategic necessity. Join AACI, Tech Gold member Medidata, and AACI cancer center members for an informative, one-hour webinar titled "The Site-First Playbook: Best Practices for Successful EHR-to-EDC Adoption" at 2:00 pm eastern time on Tuesday, March 17.
PCLI Webinar: Improving Clinical Trial Accruals Through Data, Collaboration, and Targeted Interventions
AACI's Physician Clinical Leadership Initiative (PCLI) will host a webinar titled "Improving Clinical Trial Accruals Through Data, Collaboration, and Targeted Interventions" at 1:00 pm eastern time on Tuesday, March 24. The webinar will be moderated by Ajay K. Nooka, MD, MPH, Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University. Presenters are Theresa Wicklin Gillespie, PhD, MA, FAAN, Winship Cancer Institute, and Amy M. Overby, BSs, Fred & Pamela Buffett Cancer Center.
Register Today for Spring GR Forum, AACI/AACR Hill Day
AACI will bring together cancer center government relations leaders and advocates in Washington, DC for its 2026 Spring Government Relations (GR) Forum and the 2026 AACI/AACR Hill Day, two events focused on advancing federal policies that support cancer research, care, and patients.
News from the Centers
Xu Named Among Time Magazine Most Influential in Health
University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center
Zhen Xu, PhD, was selected to Time magazine’s TIME100 Health 2026. The magazine describes it as a list of "the people most influential in the world of health right now." Dr. Xu was recognized for developing histotripsy, which was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2023 to treat liver tumors.
Physicians Inducted Into Philadelphia Academy of Surgery
Fox Chase Cancer Center, Temple Health
Four Fox Chase Cancer Center physicians have been elected as Fellows of the Philadelphia Academy of Surgery (PAS), the oldest continuously meeting surgical society in the United States. They are: Lisa A. Bevilacqua, MD; Louis F. Chai, MD; Walker Lyons, MD; and Maureen V. Hill, MD.
Negrin Awarded ASTCT Lifetime Achievement Award
Stanford Cancer Institute
Robert Negrin, MD, was awarded the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy (ASTCT) Lifetime Achievement Award for his work in transforming our understanding of immune-mediated reactions, as well as for his exceptional leadership.
Fox Chase Earns National Recognition for Workplace Culture
Fox Chase Cancer Center, Temple Health
Fox Chase Cancer Center has been recognized with the Press Ganey Human Experience Guardian of Excellence Award in the category of Employee and Physician Experience. This national honor celebrates health care organizations that excel in creating supportive, engaging, and mission-driven workplace cultures.
$36 Million in Federal Funding to Support Research Capacity of New Building
The University of Kansas Cancer Center
The University of Kansas Cancer Center will receive $36 million in federal funding to support the research capacity of the center's new facility. U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS), chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science, secured the funding. It will allow for completion of all research floors in the new building, according to Roy Jensen, MD, vice chancellor and director of KU Cancer Center.
Ralph Lauren Center to Expand Access to Cancer Care and Support
The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center
The Ralph Lauren Corporate Foundation has awarded a grant to the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center to establish the UChicago Medicine Ralph Lauren Center to expand cancer care in the city’s vulnerable communities. The grant is part of a $25 million commitment to expand or establish five Ralph Lauren-named centers in communities across the United States.
$12.5 Million Gift Will Support Markey Mission, Priorities
UK Markey Cancer Center
The University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Foundation has announced a $12.5 million gift—a $12 million endowed fund and a $500,000 nonendowed fund—to support the priorities of the UK Markey Cancer Center and the UK College of Medicine.
$5 Million Grant Will Expand Access to Breast Cancer Diagnosis and Care in Kenya
Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center
The Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center has been awarded a $5 million grant from The Pfizer Foundation to expand access to timely breast cancer diagnosis, treatment and care in Kenya. The three-year grant will support the work of AMPATH – the Academic Model Providing Access to Healthcare partnership.
Researcher Participates in $2 Million Project Examining DNA Damage and Cancer Mutations
UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute
Gunnar Boysen, PhD, is among a coalition of researchers assessing if damage in DNA happens on the same side that cancer mutations occur. The National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences has funded the project for $2.2 million. The consortium includes the University of California at San Diego and the University of South Florida.
Yellowhair Appointed Assistant Director of Native American Partnerships
The University of Arizona Cancer Center
The University of Arizona Cancer Center announces the appointment of Monica Yellowhair, PhD, as assistant director of Native American Partnerships. Dr. Yellowhair has served with distinction as the center’s assistant director of Community Outreach and Engagement.
Subbiah Appointed Associate Director for Drug Development and Precision Oncology
Stanford Cancer Institute
Vivek Subbiah, MD, has been appointed as the Stanford Cancer Institute’s inaugural associate director for Drug Development and Precision Oncology. He will lead the Early Drug Development Program, focusing on Phase I clinical trials, biomarker-driven study design, targeted therapeutics, and rare cancers.
Molecular Imaging May Reduce Need for Melanoma Biopsies
Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah
Douglas Grossman, MD, PhD, co-leader of the Melanoma Center at Huntsman Cancer Institute, has helped develop a noninvasive technology that aims to improve melanoma screening. His team evaluated Skin Fluorescent Imaging, a system developed by Orlucent, Inc. that reads the molecular makeup of moles and lesions without removing possibly cancerous skin.
Giving Less Chemotherapy Can Still Cure Lymphoma Patients in Their Eighties
Wilmot Cancer Institute, UR Medicine
People ages 80 and older with a common type of lymphoma can take a half-dose of chemotherapy and be cured or significantly extend their survivorship with fewer toxic side effects, a new study shows. The work supports one of Wilmot Cancer Institute’s primary goals: to address all aspects of aging and cancer, and improve treatments for the large and growing population of people ages 65 and older.
How a Heart Medication Could Unlock a New Targeted Approach in Lymphoma
VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center
A team of researchers at VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center discovered an innovative way to use a drug already approved in treating irregular heartbeat to selectively target specific functions of enzymes in lymphoma, effectively killing cancer cells and reducing tumor growth with little to no toxicity. Recent findings set the groundwork for how this strategy could help transform the future of precision medicine in cancer.
Immunotherapy Before Surgery Helps Shrink Tumors in Patients With Desmoplastic Melanoma
UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center
New results from a clinical trial co-led by UCLA investigators demonstrate how treating desmoplastic melanoma with immunotherapy before surgery can dramatically shrink or even eliminate tumors, sparing patients from more aggressive surgeries and preserving their quality of life.
New Oral Vaccine Strategy Could Help Combat Colorectal Cancer
Stony Brook Cancer Center
A research team investigating the use of the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes against colorectal cancer has discovered a way to build a modified version of Listeria as an oral vaccine to prime the immune system directly within the gut, where anti-tumor cells are then generated.
As Taurine Fuels Leukemia, It May Also Impact Bone Health
Wilmot Cancer Institute, UR Medicine
In a basic science study last year, researchers discovered that taurine, available in energy drinks and as a supplement, feeds the growth of leukemia stem cells. A new study recently published by the same Wilmot Cancer Institute team expands that work and suggests that as taurine fuels leukemia, it becomes less available for other normal cells and may result in weaker bones in mice.
FDA Grants Breakthrough Therapy Designation to Treatment for Rare Blood Cancers
Siteman Cancer Center
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Breakthrough Therapy Designation to WU-CART-007, an allogeneic anti-CD7 CAR T-cell therapy pioneered at Siteman Cancer Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and WashU Medicine.
Two New Breakthroughs Advance Research on Neurological Disorders, Cancer
UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
Two breakthrough discoveries by UC San Francisco scientists could open new paths to preventing and treating conditions such as autism and Alzheimer’s, as well as developing new targeted cancer therapies.
Updated Guidelines Standardize How Tumor Response is Measured After Surgery
Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center and its Bloomberg~Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy have released updated consensus guidelines and an associated reproducibility study to standardize how pathologists assess tumor response to neoadjuvant therapy (administered before surgery) across a dozen solid tumor types. The work was funded in part by the National Institutes of Health and The Mark Foundation, and it was completed in collaboration with the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer and the International Neoadjuvant Melanoma Consortium.
Gene-Based Test May Help Personalize Treatment for Early-Stage Melanoma
Duke Cancer Institute
Results from a new clinical trial suggest that a gene-based assay could help physicians better assess the risk of cancer spread in patients with early-stage melanoma, potentially sparing some patients from unnecessary surgery.
Experimental Therapy Targets Cancer Bodyguards, Turning Foe to Friend to Eliminate Tumors
Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center
Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have developed an experimental immunotherapy that takes an unconventional approach to metastatic cancer: instead of going after cancer cells directly, it targets the cells that protect them. The study was conducted in aggressive preclinical models of metastatic ovarian and lung cancer. It points to a new strategy for treating advanced-stage solid tumors.
Scientists Identify Potential Treatment for Deadliest Brain Cancer
University of Virginia Cancer Center
UVA Comprehensive Cancer Center scientists have identified a molecule that blocks the gene responsible for glioblastoma. They previously discovered the oncogene responsible for glioblastoma. In follow-up work, researchers report the identification of a small molecule that blocked the gene’s activity in both cell samples and lab mice. In mice, the molecule proved effective without unwanted or harmful side effects.
Study Identifies Key Predictors of PFAS Levels in Career Firefighters
The University of Arizona Cancer Center
A new study has identified clear occupational factors and demographic indicators linked with elevated serum levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) among career firefighters. This research from the University of Arizona and Arizona State University, based on data from the Fire Fighter Cancer Cohort Study, provides vital insights into the factors that influence PFAS body burdens in this essential workforce.
Study: AI Can Help Identify More Patients for Cancer Clinical Trials
Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University
Researchers have demonstrated that pairing artificial intelligence (AI) with human expertise can improve how patients with cancer are identified for clinical trials, potentially allowing more patients to be offered promising investigational treatments.
Team Provides First Direct Evidence of CD28 Effects on CAR T-Cell Therapy
Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center
While chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has significantly improved survival rates for patients with multiple myeloma, 30-60 percent of people with this cancer will eventually relapse. A preclinical study led by Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center has generated critical information to support future clinical studies aimed at reducing the relapse rate and improving patient outcomes.
New Genetic Tools Offer More Accurate Breast Cancer Prediction for Women of African Ancestry
The University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center
Researchers at the University of Chicago Medicine have developed a set of polygenic risk score models that significantly improved the ability to predict breast cancer risk in women of African ancestry. Using genetic data from more than 36,000 women, the team created the most comprehensive breast cancer prediction tool for this historically underserved population.
Review Maps Path Forward for Cancer Vaccines
Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center
A new comprehensive review from researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai details how decades of cancer vaccine research are converging into a new era of more precise, personalized, and effective immunotherapies, particularly when combined with other cancer treatments. The review examines the evolution of therapeutic cancer vaccines, with a special focus on neoantigen-based vaccines.
Study Identifies Tool to Measure Heart Disease Risk in Testicular Cancer Survivors
Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center
A new study by researchers at Indiana University and Medical College of Wisconsin could improve heart health for testicular cancer survivors by helping clinicians predict which patients are at highest risk of cardiovascular disease, a leading cause of illness and death after cure.
How Bacteria May Promote Breast Cancer
Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center have discovered how certain pathogenic bacteria in gut and breast tissue can promote breast cancer development and progression by hijacking a key metabolic enzyme known as spermine oxidase.
Mineral Sunscreen Formulation Reduces White Cast
UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center
UCLA researchers have developed a mineral sunscreen formulation that significantly reduces the white, chalky cast that keeps many people from wearing sun protection daily. A newly engineered form of zinc oxide, shaped like microscopic four-armed structures called tetrapods, provides strong protection against harmful ultraviolet radiation while leaving less of the telltale white cast.
Neighborhood Factors Related to Financial Stress Are Linked to Worse Breast Cancer Outcomes
VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center
New research connects multiple residential factors generally associated with financial strain, such as high housing costs and crowded households, to worse overall outcomes among breast cancer survivors. Led by investigators at VCU Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center, the research could help inform innovative strategies to increase health care access and ease economic stress for a variety of patients in need.
New Treatment May Dramatically Improve Survival for Those With Deadly Brain Cancer
USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center
In a new study, Keck Medicine of USC researchers found that nearly half of patients treated with laser interstitial thermal therapy, followed by pembrolizumab were still alive at 18 months. In comparison, none of the patients who received a conventional treatment of surgery followed by pembrolizumab were alive at the 18-month mark.
Study Shows COVID-19 Disruptions Led to Worse Cancer Outcomes
UK Markey Cancer Center
People diagnosed with cancer during the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic had lower survival rates than those diagnosed in the years before, according to a UK Markey Cancer Center study. The research found that patients diagnosed with cancer in 2020 and 2021 were less likely to survive their first year after diagnosis compared to patients diagnosed between 2015 and 2019.
Why Biology Demands a Different Playbook for Kids With Cancer
Comprehensive Cancer Center St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
Pediatric cancers follow their own biological rules, and understanding this distinction is the foundation of effective research. For Charles W.M. Roberts, MD, PhD, St. Jude Comprehensive Cancer Center director, this difference underpins his approach to discovering the next generation of therapies for children.
Addressing Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer
UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center
Colorectal cancer is rising in adults under 50, and the trend is reshaping how we think about screening, stigma, and care. UCSF has launched a new Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Program designed to meet the distinct medical and life-stage needs of younger patients.
New Research Program on Obesity and Cancer Starts
The University of Kansas Cancer Center
The University of Kansas Cancer Center has launched a new research program focused on understanding the connection between obesity and cancer and on developing interventions to improve metabolic health. It is the first such research program at any National Cancer Institute-Designated Cancer Center in the United States.
Free Online Tool Launched to Assess Colorectal Cancer Risk
Fred Hutch Cancer Center
Fred Hutch Cancer Center researchers have developed a new tool that enables anyone to immediately assess their colorectal cancer risk online. Called MyGeneRisk, the free, web-based calculator allows users to input basic health information, including lifestyle habits and genetic data, to estimate their risk.
First Academic Medical Center in Nation to Manufacture Newly Approved Prostate Cancer Imaging Drug
Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah
Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah will soon become the first academic medical center in the nation to manufacture a new prostate cancer imaging drug. Called flotufolastat F 18 (POSLUMA) and developed by Blue Earth Diagnostics, the new drug builds on Huntsman’s leadership in molecular imaging and theranostics.
Blood Cancer Healing Center Realizes Vision of Comprehensive Care
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center
With the opening of research laboratories and the UC Osher Wellness Suite and Learning Kitchen, the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center’s Blood Cancer Healing Center has brought its full mission to life as a comprehensive blood cancer hub.
Patient With Melanoma Receives TIL Therapy
Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center
Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center has treated its first patient in a newly launched therapy program that magnifies a person’s natural defense system against tumors. Tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) therapy involves isolating white blood cells from a tumor after it is surgically removed, expanding the magnitude of those cells in a lab, then infusing them back into the patient to elicit a more powerful counterattack.
Understanding Cancer Vaccines: What Are They and How Do They Work?
Duke Cancer Institute
We all have damaged cells, and our body has robust, built-in systems to detect and destroy damaged or mutated cells before they grow into tumors. Cancer vaccines promote that response and encourage the immune system to go after and destroy cancer cells. As part of the "Conversations in Cancer" video series, experts talk about cancer vaccines, what they are, how they work, and what’s on the horizon.
Cancer Center Jobs
Chief of Hematology/Oncology (Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Institute)
LSU LCMC Health Cancer Center
Read moreChair, Department of Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation
City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center
Read moreTenure Track Faculty Position - Population Science Research
Case Comprehensive Cancer Center
Read moreChief - Division of Cancer Data and Artificial Intelligence
Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah
Read moreSenior Administrative Director, Clinical Research Services
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Miami
Read moreDirector - Myeloma Program
Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins University
Read moreAssistant Director - Clinical Operations Position
UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Read moreMeeting Announcements
Tampa General Hospital Cancer Institute International Meeting: Microbes, Genes and Cancer
March 2, 2026
2026 AACI Catchment Area Data Excellence (CADEx) Conference
March 9, 2026
The 3-day CADEx conference convenes experts in cancer center catchment area data and community engagement to share best practices. Attendees will explore policies and methodologies to advance cancer center catchment area analytics.
Registration is now open.
Support Opportunities
Hotel Information
2026 AACI/AACR Hill Day
May 14, 2026
Your participation in the 2026 AACI/AACR Hill Day is crucial to sharing our message with our legislators in Washington: that stable, predictable funds for the National Institutes of Health and National Cancer Institute are critical for advancing cancer research and care at our nation’s cancer centers. We encourage each cancer center to send at least one representative to Washington to advocate on your center’s behalf.
Registration for this free event opens Monday, February 16, 2026.
Rural Health and Cancer Conference
June 2, 2026
The Rural Health and Cancer Conference aims to improve rural cancer outcomes by convening a wide-array of experts from across the nation in rural cancer healthcare delivery and building cross-disciplinary collaborations amongst rural cancer health experts.
18th Annual AACI Clinical Research Innovation (CRI) Meeting
June 23, 2026
The 3-day CRI annual meeting includes panel discussions, breakout sessions, and presentations of abstracts and posters, which aim to establish best practices for cancer center clinical trials offices. Registration opens Monday, March 2, 2026.
Support Opportunities
2026 AACI Leadership Development Workshop
October 24, 2026
The 2026 Leadership Development Workshop will be held in conjunction with the 2026 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting. Registration opens Friday, May 1, 2026.
This event convenes emerging leaders for didactic and experiential leadership development sessions. An offshoot of Dr. Caryn Lerman’s AACI presidential initiative, the workshop aims to enhance the oncology leadership pipeline with top talent.
Support Opportunities
2026 Impact Summit
October 24, 2026
The 2026 Impact Summit will be held in conjunction with the 2026 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting. Registration opens Friday, May 1, 2026.
Co-hosted by AACI, the American Cancer Society, and the Cancer Center Network, the Impact Summit brings together cancer center leaders, researchers, and key stakeholders for a dynamic one-day event focused on strengthening the future of cancer center leadership and workforce development.
Support Opportunities
2026 New Cancer Center Directors Meeting
October 24, 2026
The 2026 New Cancer Center Directors Meeting will be held in conjunction with the 2026 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting. Registration opens Friday, May 1, 2026.
2026 AACI/CCAF Annual Meeting
October 25, 2026
The 3-day AACI/CCAF annual meeting offers AACI members the opportunity to network with cancer center colleagues, national cancer research and advocacy groups, industry, and government health agencies to develop solutions to common challenges. Registration opens Friday, May 1, 2026.
Support Opportunities