Published: Friday, May 24, 2024
Since its inception in 1964, ASCO has become the largest clinical oncology conference, attracting attendees from around the globe.
This year, more than 7000 abstracts have been submitted. It’s a record. Over 5000 of them were chosen to be presented.
Thomas LeBlanc MD, this year’s chair, said he had been attending the Annual Meeting since his training more than 10 years ago.
LeBlanc described the event as “incredibly empowering and inspiring,” with many opportunities to meet old and new colleagues, to learn about how oncology has evolved and where it is headed, and to hear clinical pearls that will help you take back your clinic.
The theme for this year, chosen by ASCO president Lynn Schuchter MD, is: “The Art and Science of Cancer Care – From Comfort to Cure.”
LeBlanc is a specialist in blood cancer at Duke University. He said that the theme was woven into the abstracts and educational sessions. He said that the majority of sessions will include at least one presentation on how to support people, not just “when we cure but also when they can’t cure” them.
Topics include patient comfort, survivorship, and well-being. The plenary session for the first year will feature a palliative abstract that examines whether palliative medicine can be delivered through telemedicine. The session will be held on Sunday, June 2.
The abstracts of the plenary sessions could change practice in other areas, such as immunotherapy combinations for resectable melanomas, perioperative chemotherapy and neoadjuvant radiation for esophageal carcinoma, or osimertinib following definitive chemoradiotherapy to treat non-small cell lung tumors that are unresectable.
This year, ASCO has experimented with a slightly new format for research presentations. Speakers are now asked to start with the context and background of their research, then repeat the results at the end. This change was made because engagement and retention are better when the results of the study are presented in advance, rather than at the end.
ASCO Voices, a popular session at the conference, has been elevated to occupy a central place: Friday May 31. Speakers will share their experiences as patients, researchers or providers in this session.
ASCO Voices is a relatively new addition to the meeting, which has grown and improved. LeBlanc says that the talks are “very powerful stories” which remind clinicians of “the importance what they do every day”, LeBlanc.
Attendees who missed the Friday talks will still be able to hear them as they wait for the session to start.
LeBlanc has highlighted two educational sessions that may be of interest to oncologists in general: a joint ASCO/American Association for Cancer Research presentation entitled “Drugging The ‘Undruggable Target’: Successes and Challenges and the Road Ahead”, on Sunday morning, and “Common Sense Oncology”: Equity, Value and Outcomes that Matter, on Monday morning.
He said that as a blood cancer expert, he was particularly interested in Friday’s topline results of the ASC4FIRST study, which tested a newer inhibitor of kinase, called asciminib.
Medscape Medical News, as in previous years, will provide coverage through a team of dedicated reporters, editors and videographers. Visit our booth (26030) in the exhibit hall to learn more about the tools that we provide to support your practice.
M. Alexander Otto, a physician’s assistant, holds a Master of Science in Medical Science and a Journalism degree from Newhouse. He was a medical journalist with several major news organizations before joining Medscape Medical News. Alex is a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT. Email: aotto@mdedge.com .