2018 Annual Report

Collaborations Advancing Cancer Science Worldwide

The AACR and the Korean Cancer Association (KCA) collaborated to host the AACR-KCA Joint Conference on Precision Medicine in Solid Tumors. Held in November, the conference was the first AACR-KCA joint program presented in Seoul, Korea.
With programs in 12 countries and members in 120 countries, the AACR collaborates on a global scale to promote scientific excellence and benefit all people by reducing cancer incidence, morbidity, and mortality. Through collaborations with 16 international organizations, the AACR provided scientific conferences, educational workshops, and financial support to the cancer research community on six continents in 2018.

Launching A New Transatlantic Partnership

In April 2018, the AACR and Cancer Research UK (CRUK) announced a new international alliance aimed toward accelerating the pace of progress against cancer. The announcement was made jointly by AACR President (2017-2018) Michael A. Caligiuri, MD, FAACR, and CRUK Chief Clinician Charles Swanton, MD, PhD, FRCP, during the opening ceremony at the AACR Annual Meeting 2018.

The alliance between the world’s largest professional organization dedicated to advancing cancer research and the world’s largest fundraising medical research charity will build transatlantic collaborations by establishing training and exchange programs, convening international meetings and workshops, and uniting the community to influence global research policy.

Joint Conferences and Workshops

The AACR collaborated with 12 international cancer research organizations in 2018 to develop the following joint conferences, educational workshops, and symposia:

  • Twentieth ECCO-AACR-EORTC-ESMO Methods in Clinical Cancer Research Workshop
    Zeist, The Netherlands, June 2018
  • Sixth JCA-AACR Special Joint Conference on the Latest Advances in Lung Cancer Research: From Basic Science to Therapeutics
    Kyoto, Japan, July 2018
  • ACORD: Australia & Asia Pacific Clinical Oncology Research Development Workshop
    Sydney, Australia, September 2018
  • Second AACR International Conference on Translational Cancer Medicine: Cancer Discoveries for Clinical Application
    Held in cooperation with LACOG
    São Paulo, Brazil, September 2018
  • Fourth CRI-CIMT-EATI-AACR International Cancer Immunotherapy Conference: Translating Science into Survival
    New York, New York, September 2018
  • EACR-AACR-ISCR Conference: The Cutting Edge of Contemporary Cancer Research
    Jerusalem, Israel, October 2018
  • AACR-KCA Joint Conference on Precision Medicine in Solid Tumors
    Seoul, Korea, November 2018
  • EORTC-NCI-AACR Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics Symposium
    Dublin, Ireland, November 2018
  • Innovation and Biomarkers in Cancer Drug Development: A Joint Meeting Presented by EORTC, NCI, EMA, and AACR
    Brussels, Belgium, November 2018

Other International Collaborations

The AACR worked with additional organizations while developing joint sessions for the following international conferences:

  • A.C. Camargo Next Frontiers to Cure Cancer Conference
    São Paolo, Brazil, May 2018
    The AACR partnered with LACOG to offer a session on “Science behind the Trial,” in which Brazilian investigators presented the results of three clinical trials and AACR scientists discussed the biological underpinnings of each study.
  • CSCO 21st Annual Meeting
    Xiamen, China, September 2018
    The AACR and CSCO offered a symposium titled “Update and New Paradigm in Cancer Immunology Research.”
  • UICC World Cancer Congress
    Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, October 2018
    The AACR worked with the UICC to organize a session on “Breast Cancer Genomic Risk Assessment in Global Health: Implementation in Low-Resource Settings.”
  • ESMO Asia Congress 2018
    Singapore, November 2018
    The AACR collaborated with the conference organizers to develop two joint symposia: “PD1/PDL1: From Discovery to Clinical Use” and “ALK Gene Fusions: From Discovery to Clinical Use.”


Poster Prizes and Travel Awards

In 2018, the AACR offered an expanded slate of opportunities to international investigators to travel to Chicago, Illinois, and participate in the AACR Annual Meeting—the touchstone event for the global cancer research community—while also offering opportunities for AACR members to present their work abroad:

  • Working with the program committees for the Frontiers in Cancer Science Conference (Singapore, November 2017; organized by the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore) and the Fourth Conference on New Horizons in Cancer Research (Shanghai, China, November 2017), the AACR awarded prizes to the presenters of two highly-rated posters from each meeting. The prizes provided travel support to the presenters, enabling them to attend the AACR Annual Meeting.
International AACR Collaborators in 2018
A.C. Camargo Cancer Center
Association for Cancer Immunotherapy (CIMT)
Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI)
Chinese Society for Clinical Oncology (CSCO)
Cancer Research UK (CRUK)
European Academy of Tumor Immunotherapy (EATI)
European Association for Cancer Research (EACR)
European Cancer Organisation (ECCO)
European Medicines Agency (EMA)
European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC)
European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO)
Israel Society for Cancer Research (ISCR)
Japanese Cancer Association (JCA)
Korean Cancer Association (KCA)
Latin American Cooperative Oncology Group (LACOG)
Medical Oncology Group of Australia (MOGA)
  • Launched in 2016, the AACR African Cancer Researcher Travel Awards provided financial assistance to meritorious early-career investigators engaged in cancer research in Africa, enabling them to attend and present their research at the AACR Annual Meeting. Award recipients who attended the Annual Meeting 2018 received additional networking opportunities at the University of Chicago provided by the AACR. Hosted by AACR International Affairs Committee member Olufunmilayo I. Olopade, MD, FAACR, the recipients toured the university hospital and the Olopade Laboratory, participated in a professional development panel with university faculty, and attended the E. E. Just Lecture—which honors Ernest Everett Just, one of the first African Americans to earn a PhD from the university. The recipients were also recognized at the AACR Scholar-in-Training Award Reception by Peter A. Jones, PhD, DSc, FAACR, chair of the AACR International Affairs Regional Advisory Subcommittee on Africa (third from left).
  • As part of a new partnership with the AACR to promote international scientific exchange, the Chinese Society for Clinical Oncology (CSCO) launched the CSCO Young Investigator Travel Awards in 2018. Administered by the AACR, the program selected 12 AACR members who presented meritorious abstracts at the AACR Annual Meeting 2018 and provided them with travel support to attend and present their work at the CSCO 21st Annual Meeting (Xiamen, China, September 2018).

Enhancing the AACR’s Relationship with Israel

While in Jerusalem in October to attend the conference on “The Cutting Edge of Contemporary Cancer Research”—a joint venture between the AACR, the European Association for Cancer Research (EACR), and the Israel Society for Cancer Research (ISCR)—AACR CEO Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (hc) (center), met with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin (right) and First Lady Nechama Rivlin at their residence. During her remarks, Dr. Foti highlighted the progress that has been made against cancer and the importance of international collaborations to advancing that progress. The meeting was coordinated by Miri Ziv (left), Director General of the Israel Cancer Association; in her remarks, Dr. Foti acknowledged Ms. Ziv for her contributions to international cancer research and advocacy.

World Cancer Research Day

The AACR joined ten other cofounding partner organizations to mark World Cancer Research Day on September 24. The goal of World Cancer Research Day was to raise awareness of the extraordinary impact of cancer science and to acknowledge the contributions made by cancer researchers to reduce the global burden of cancer.