The Cancer Research Institute’s Patient Immunotherapy Summit is Now Available On Demand

NEW YORK — The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) is excited to announce the premiere of the seventh annual CRI Patient Immunotherapy Summit on December 6, 2023.

This exclusive online program offers free access to the latest information in cancer immunotherapy and details about clinical trials for cancer patients and caregivers. Watch the summit now at https://www.cancerresearch.org/patient-summit-23-24.

Award-winning TV host, journalist, executive producer, author, and philanthropist Tamron Hall returns as this year’s moderator. This year’s patient summit promises engaging sessions on the latest developments and advances in cancer immunotherapy across various cancer types.

Dr. Jedd Wolchok, Meyer Director of the Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center at Weill Cornell Medicine, New York City, will deliver a keynote address, providing a detailed introduction to the field of immunotherapy, how it works, and how patients can get additional information regarding clinical trials.

Dr. Wolchok emphasized, “This annual event is evidence of the relentless efforts by CRI to bring cancer immunotherapy to the broadest possible patient population. I am thrilled to connect with patients and caregivers nationwide during this event.”

The summit features focused talks on four different cancer types by the following luminaries:

Pancreatic Cancer Brief

Dr. Elizabeth M. Jaffee

Deputy Director, The Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins

Associate Director, CRI Scientific Advisory Council

Ovarian Cancer Brief

Dr. Kunle Odunsi

Director of the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center

Associate Director, CRI Scientific Advisory Council

Breast Cancer Brief

Dr. Sarah Sammons

Associate Director of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Program at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Lung Cancer Brief

Thomas Urban Marron, MD, PhD

Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

CRI Clinical Innovator

Since 1953 CRI has pioneered the field and championed groundbreaking discoveries in cancer immunotherapies. CRI-funded scientists have been pushing the boundaries of science and unraveling the mysteries of the immune system for 70 years and are now ushering in the next wave of curative immunotherapies.

Immunotherapy is widely accepted as standard care for various cancers. Administered independently or in combination with surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, immunotherapy is changing the lives of millions of cancer patients. This groundbreaking approach mobilizes the body’s immune system to target and eliminate cancer cells. The evidence of this is in the 28 cancers that are now treatable with immunotherapy and the 4M people worldwide that are eligible for the treatment.

Viewers will also hear tales of triumph and stories of survival from two cancer patients whose lives were transformed by the power of immunotherapy.

Jeff Atkinson, a melanoma survivor, attests, “Without a shadow of doubt, immunotherapy saved my life. I would not be here today, were it not for those drugs and interventions.”

Barry Nelson, a lung cancer survivor, says, “Immediately when I got my first infusion, I felt different. I felt something the very first day.”

Their powerful testimonials embody the life-changing impact of immunotherapy, infusing the summit with inspiration and the indomitable spirit of human perseverance.

“The CRI Patient Immunotherapy Summit demonstrates CRI’s commitment to advance immunotherapy to end all cancers. Providing on-demand access to expert talks and empowering sessions to support patients and caregivers to bridge the information gap in immunotherapy is essential to a broader understanding of this curative approach and creating a world immune to cancer,” said Jill O’Donnell-Tormey, PhD, CRI’s CEO and Director of Scientific Affairs.

To view CRI’s Patient Immunotherapy Summit, visit https://www.cancerresearch.org/patient-summit-23-24. For more details on CRI’s ongoing efforts to advance cancer immunotherapy research and save lives, visit cancerresearch.org.

CRI’s seventh annual Patient Immunotherapy Summit is made possible thanks to the generous support of our sponsors, supporters, and partners.

Sponsors (in funding priority): Merck & Co., AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals, Inc, Eli Lilly and Company, Genmab, Regeneron, and Foundation Medicine.

The Patient Immunotherapy Summit is supported by contributions from Pfizer, Inc.

CRI also thanks our host institutions for lending their knowledge and expertise.

Host Institutions:Dana-Farber Cancer Institute along withJohn Hopkins Medical School, The University of Chicago, the Icahn School of Medicine at Mt. Sinai, and Weill Cornell Medicine/NY-Presbyterian Hospital.