Cancer Patients and Caregivers Join Immunotherapy Experts in Five U.S. Cities to Discuss Latest Cancer Treatment Breakthroughs and Immunotherapy Clinical Trials

The Cancer Research Institute (CRI), the world’s leading nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to advancing scientific efforts to develop new and effective immunotherapies for all forms of cancer, announced today that its 2017 Immunotherapy Patient Summit Series will travel to five U.S. cities to provide free educational programming designed for cancer patients and caregivers who are seeking to learn more about cancer immunotherapy and clinical trials.

Building on the success of its inaugural Immunotherapy Patient Summit hosted in New York City last September, CRI has expanded the 2017 program to include the following cities:

• San Francisco, July 8, 2017
• Chicago, August 5, 2017
• New York City, September 23, 2017
• Houston, October 21, 2017
• Tampa, December 9, 2017

The half-day events will bring together patients, caregivers, and expert scientists and clinicians to discuss the latest cancer research and treatment focused exclusively on immunotherapy. Each event will offer foundational education and information on immunotherapy treatment and research, patient perspectives on immunotherapy clinical trials, and cancer-specific breakout sessions. Patients can also meet with clinical trial navigators who can help connect them to immunotherapy trials for which they might be eligible. Across all the events, patients will have an opportunity to interact with scientists and clinicians who are leading the way in this important field, hear from patients who have benefited from immunotherapy, and interact with others from their community. 

To reach as broad an audience as possible, a live streaming option during the New York City event will also be available to individuals throughout the U.S. and abroad.

The summit series kicks-off immediately following Cancer Immunotherapy Month™, a global awareness campaign in June CRI created five years ago to call public attention to exciting breakthroughs in cancer immunotherapy and the need for more research to make this promising treatment approach an effective option for all cancer patients. By extending educational efforts beyond June, CRI will be able to reach more patients in need of critical information to help inform healthcare decisions. 

“CRI has dedicated more than six decades to advancing the science of immunotherapy with the ultimate goal of harnessing our immune system’s potential to cure all cancers, and we have reached a critical point where patients are playing an even greater role in the success of these efforts,” said Jill O’Donnell-Tormey, PhD, CEO and director of scientific affairs at the Cancer Research Institute. “We are proud to expand our patient focus and, alongside our scientist and donor communities, facilitate patient knowledge of immunotherapy and clinical trials that will help lead to breakthroughs in cancer care.”

Patients, caregivers, or advocates interested in participating in the free educational summit may visit cancerresearch.org/summit.

The Cancer Research Institute Immunotherapy Patient Summit Series is made possible through generous support from the following sponsors: (Gold) Bristol-Myers Squibb, (Silver) Merck, (Bronze) GlaxoSmithKline, (Contributing) AstraZeneca, Genentech, and Regeneron.

About the Cancer Research Institute
The Cancer Research Institute (CRI), established in 1953, is the world’s leading nonprofit organization dedicated exclusively to transforming cancer patient care by advancing scientific efforts to develop new and effective immune system-based strategies to prevent, diagnose, treat, and eventually cure all cancers. Guided by a world-renowned Scientific Advisory Council that includes three Nobel laureates and 26 members of the National Academy of Sciences, CRI has invested $344 million in support of research conducted by immunologists and tumor immunologists at the world’s leading medical centers and universities, and has contributed to many of the key scientific advances that demonstrate the potential for immunotherapy to change the face of cancer treatment. To learn more, go to cancerresearch.org.