NFCR Global Summit and Award Ceremonies

For Cancer Research & Entrepreneurship

Friday, October 18, 2024

Co-Hosted by

Thank you to all of our participants and attendees! This year’s event has concluded. Save the Date for our 2025 NFCR Global Summit: Friday, October, 24, 2025.

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Schedule Overview

8:45 AM: Part I: New Frontiers for Cancer Research (Sessions: New Approaches to Cancer Treatments, Early Detection & Cancer Prevention)

12:30 PM: Part II: Luncheon & AIM-HI Women’s Initiatives Award Ceremony

1:30 PM: Part III: Investors’ Perspectives for Early-Stage Companies

4:00 – 6:00 PM: Intermission

6:00 PM: Part IV: Reception, Dinner & Szent-Györgyi Prize Award Ceremony

Honorees

Margaret Foti, PhD, MD (hc)

American Association for Cancer Research

2024 Beacon Award for Women Leaders in Oncology Winner

Dennis J. Slamon, M.D., Ph. D.

UCLA Health

2024 Szent-Györgyi Prize for Progress in Cancer Research Winner

Keynote Speakers

Drew Pardoll, MD., Ph.D.

Director, Bloomberg- Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Siddhartha Mukherjee, M.D.

2011 Pulitzer Prize Winner, Associate Professor of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Columbia University

Testimonials

“I was very impressed by everything I heard. I found the presented research to be of really high quality and very innovative. This is very refreshing, and, in my opinion, sets AIM-HI and NFCR apart in a very good way.” -Isidore Rigoutsos, Ph.D., Director, Center for Computational Medicine, Thomas Jefferson University
“Let me state right at the beginning that if I don’t attend another great conference for the next few years, I will not mind it because of what I was just given the opportunity to attend. Thank you very much for giving me such a prominent slot in the morning panel among some incredible women in the field. It was a humbling experience to be in the company of so many outstanding and accomplished. Congratulations on organizing a totally mind-blowing NFCR Global Summit and collecting a constellation of shining stars under one roof for several days! Besides the talks and panel discussions, the opportunity to network and exchange ideas with others was deeply appreciated. I also loved the way you mixed hard science, heartbreaking oncology stories, and glamorous dinners.” -Azra Raza, M.D., Chan Soon-Shiong Professor of Medicine, Columbia University in New York
“Absolutely wonderful, inspirational meeting…thanks so much to everyone involved and to NFCR for making it possible for us to get together. I am grateful to be included!”

- Monica Bertagnolli, M.D.
“The Women’s Leadership Forum was spectacular and the chemistry between all of the people on the podium and the energy was wonderful. It was inspirational to all and especially young women who were there and might have been watching.”

-Dr. Raju Kucherlapati

FULL EVENT DETAILS

Part I: New Frontiers for Cancer Research

8:45 AM – 9:00 AM:

Welcome Remarks:

Dr. Sujuan Ba CEO of NFCR and Co-Founder of AIM-HI Accelerator Fund

Dr. Web Cavenee Chair of the Scientific Advisor Board of NFCR and UCSD Distinguished Professor

9:00 AM – 9:30 AM:

9:30 AM – 10:30 AM:

Keynote Presentation:

Drew Pardoll, MD., Ph.D. Director, Bloomberg- Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Session I: New Approaches to Cancer Treatments

Moderator: Lisa Coussens, Ph.D., Oregon Health & Science University

Panelists:

Aditya Bardia, M.D., University of California, Los Angeles

Jonathan Chernoff, M.D., Ph.D., Fox Chase Cancer Center

Paul Mischel, M.D., Stanford University

Scott Lippman, M.D., University of California, San Diego

10:30 AM – 11:00 AM:

Coffee Break

11:00 AM – 12:00 PM:

Session II: Early Detection & Cancer Prevention

Moderator: Carlos Doti, M.D., AstraZeneca VP, Head of Oncology, US Medical Affairs

Panelists:

Ajay Goel, Ph.D., Beckman Research Institute of City of Hope

Samir Hanash, M.D., Ph.D., MD Anderson Cancer Center

Steven Lipkin, M.D., Ph.D., Weill Cornell Medicine

Sapna Syngal, M.D., MPH, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

12:00 PM – 12:30 PM:

Break and Lunch

Part II: Luncheon Award Ceremony

12:30 PM – 12:55 PM:

AIM-HI Beacon Award Ceremony Honoring Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (hc)

Introduction of the 2024 Beacon Award Recipient by Sujuan Ba, Co-Chair of 2024 Beacon Award Selection Committee

Presenting the Beacon Award Medallion to the Recipient by the Award Selection Committee Members

2024 AIM-HI Beacon Award Winner Presentation

Margaret Foti, Ph.D., M.D. (hc), CEO, American Association for Cancer Research

12:55 PM – 1:20 PM:

AIM-HI Women’s Venture Competition Award Ceremony

2024 AIM-HI Women’s Venture Competition Winners Award Presentations

First Prize with Distinction
Nabanita Nawar, Ph.D.
Co-Founder & CEO, HDAX Therapeutics

Second Prize
Paraskevi Giannakakou, Ph.D.
Co-Founder & CSO, ARMA Bio

1:20 PM – 1:30 PM:

Coffee Break

Part III: Innovative Oncology Company Showcase and Investors’ Perspective

1:30 PM – 3:00 PM:

Welcome Remarks by Matt Tremblay, Ph.D., Chairman of the Board of AIM-HI Accelerator Fund and CEO of Blackbird Laboratories and Blackbird BioVentures

Session I: Innovative Oncology Companies Showcase:

Jenny Lesser Herbach, MBA, CEO Adventris

Ronald Herbst, Ph.D., CMO Biolojic Design

Vipin Suri, Ph.D., CMO Clasp Therapeutics

Lily Zou, Ph.D., MBA, CEO Degron Therapeutics

Samir Khleif, M.D., CEO Georgiamune

3:00 PM– 3:10 PM:

Coffee Break

3:10 PM – 4:10 PM:

Session II: Investor’s Perspectives for Early-Stage Oncology Companies

Moderator: Matt Tremblay

Panelists:
Dave Greenwald, Ph.D. Vice President Business Development of Deerfield and CEO, Aviko Radiopharmaceuticals

Beverly Lu, Ph.D. Investor, Yosemite

Marie-Claire Peakman, Ph.D. Pfizer Ventures

Fei Shen, Ph.D. Managing Director, BI Venture Fund

4:10 PM – 6:00 PM:

Intermission Break

Part IV: Dinner Award Ceremony

Honoring Dennis J. Slamon, M.D., Ph.D. (Black-tie Optional)

6:00 PM – 7:00 PM:

7:00 PM – 7:30 PM:

7:30 PM – 8:55 PM:

Cocktail Reception

Emcee: Kristen Berset-Harris, Host of Great Day Washington, WUSA9

Opening Remarks by Sujuan Ba, Ph.D., CEO of NFCR, Co-Founder of AIM-HI & Founder of AFCR, Co-Chair of 2024 Szent-Györgyi Prize Selection Committee

Introduction of Keynote Speaker by Azra Raza, M.D., Chan Soon-Shiong Professor of Medicine, Columbia University in New York

Keynote Speaker – Siddhartha Mukherjee, M.D., 2011 Pulitzer Prize Winner, Associate Professor of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, Columbia University

Introduction of 2023 Szent-Györgyi Prize Winner: Isaac Witz, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus at Tel Aviv University

Presentation of the 2024 Szent-Györgyi Prize Winner Dennis J. Slamon, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Medicine, Director of Clinical and Translational Research, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA

Panel Discussion Live from Press Club:
Panelists: Dennis Slamon, Margaret Foti, Siddhartha Mukherjee, Funmi Olopade, Mohit Manrao, and Shereen and Isabella Pavlides (cancer research advocates)