Cancer Immunotherapy: Basic Mechanisms Informing Clinical Applications & Combinations (C3)
March 15-18, 2026
| Fairmont Le Château Frontenac, Québec, QC, Canada
Jennifer Guerriero, Thomas Marron, Ira Mellman and Solange Peters
Scholarship Deadline: Nov. 12, 2025 | Abstract Deadline: Feb. 20, 2026 | Early Registration Deadline: Jan. 14, 2026
| 4:00–8:00 PM |
Registration |
Vercheres |
| 6:00–8:00 PM |
Welcome Mixer |
Vercheres |
| 7:30–8:30 AM |
Breakfast |
Frontenac / Petit Frontenac |
| 8:00–8:30 AM |
Poster Setup |
Grand Ballroom |
| 8:15–5:00 PM |
Poster Viewing |
Grand Ballroom |
| 8:30–8:40 AM |
Welcome Remarks |
Grand Ballroom |
| 8:40–9:30 AM |
Keynote Address |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Elizabeth M. Jaffee, Johns Hopkins University
Cancer Immunotherapy - Where do we Stand Now? |
|
| 9:30–11:45 AM |
The Failures, Successes and Future of Cancer Immunotherapy |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Solange Peters, CHUV
Postmortem of Failed Immunotherapy Approaches |
|
| |
James P. Allison, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
Immune Checkpoint Blockade in Cancer Immunotherapy: Mechanistic Insights Provide New Therapeutic Opportunities |
|
| |
Ira Mellman, Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy
The Future of Cancer Immunotherapy |
|
| |
Melissa Reeves †, Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah
Short Talk: Tumor-produced CX3CL1 Shapes the Local Immune Microenvironment and Impedes Efficacy of Immunotherapy |
|
| 10:00–10:20 AM |
Coffee Break |
Vercheres |
| 11:45–12:45 PM |
Lunch |
Frontenac / Petit Frontenac |
| 12:30–2:30 PM |
Poster Session 1 |
Grand Ballroom |
| 2:30–4:30 PM |
Panel Discussion 1: Accelerating Development and Overcoming Regulatory Challenges of Drug Approvals |
Grand Ballroom |
| 4:30–5:00 PM |
Coffee Available |
Vercheres |
| 5:00–7:00 PM |
Probing Omics and Big Data to Identify Novel Therapeutic Targets and Biomarkers |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Arielle Elkrief, Université de Montréal
The Gut Microbiome as a Therapeutic Target in Immuno-oncology |
|
| |
Padmanee Sharma, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
From the Clinic to the Lab: Investigating Mechanisms of Response and Resistance to Immune Checkpoint Therapy |
|
| |
Özlem Türeci, BioNTech
Vaccines |
|
| |
Yan Qu †, Genentech
Short Talk: Tracking Immune and Non-Immune Infiltrate Dynamics to Improve Tumor Model Selection and Translational Relevance |
|
| |
Fadi Sheban †, ETH Zurich
Short Talk: ZEB2 is a Master Switch Controlling the Tumor-associated Macrophage Program |
|
| 7:00–8:00 PM |
On Own for Dinner |
|
| 7:30–8:30 AM |
Breakfast |
Frontenac / Petit Frontenac |
| 8:00–8:30 AM |
Poster Setup |
Grand Ballroom |
| 8:15–5:00 PM |
Poster Viewing |
Grand Ballroom |
| 8:30–11:30 AM |
Advances and Challenges of Combination Immunotherapy of Cancer |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Sandra Demaria, Weill Cornell Medical College
Challenges and Opportunities to Improve Responses to Radiation and Immunotherapy Combinations |
|
| |
Thomas Marron, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Neoadjuvant Combination Immunotherapy Approaches: Improving Outcomes and Propelling the Science |
|
| |
Kai W. Wucherpfennig †, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Talk Title to be Announced |
|
| |
Alexandra Snyder, Generate Biomedicines, Inc.
Talk Title to be Announced |
|
| |
Andrea Imle †, BioNTech SE
Short Talk: DuoBody-EpCAMx4-1BB: From Monotherapy to Combination with PD-(L)1 Blocking Agents to Enhance Immune Effector Functions and Antitumor Efficacy |
|
| |
William S Nutt †, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center
Short Talk: Competition for Dendritic Cells Limits Engineered TCR-T cell Activation in Tumor-draining Lymph Nodes and Impairs Synergy with PD-L1 Blockade |
|
| 9:30–9:50 AM |
Coffee Break |
Vercheres |
| 9:50–9:55 AM |
Award Recipient Acknowledgement |
Grand Ballroom |
| 11:30–12:30 PM |
Lunch |
Frontenac / Petit Frontenac |
| 12:30–2:30 PM |
Poster Session 2 |
Grand Ballroom |
| 1:30–2:30 PM |
Career Roundtable |
Grand Ballroom |
| 2:45–4:30 PM |
Panel Discussion 2: “Lessons Learned” from Combination Therapy: What can be Learned from the Failures to Improve Future Successes in Combination Treatment |
Grand Ballroom |
| 4:30–5:00 PM |
Coffee Available |
Vercheres |
| 5:00–7:00 PM |
Novel Approaches for Targeting Myeloid and Stromal Cells in the Tumor Microenvironment |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Shannon J Turley, Amgen Inc.
Talk Title to be Announced |
|
| |
Karin E. de Visser, Netherlands Cancer Institute
Crosstalk between Eosinophils and Adaptive Immune Cells: A New Avenue for Immune Checkpoint Blockade |
|
| |
Jennifer Guerriero, Brigham and Women's Hospital
Harnessing Macrophages for Anti-Cancer Therapy |
|
| |
Jesse Boumelha †, Ichan School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Short Talk: Local Type 2 Stromal-myeloid Signaling Axis Drives Progression and Immunotherapy Resistance of Colorectal Cancer Metastasis |
|
| |
Akshay Krishnamurty †, Genentech, Inc.
Short Talk: Reprogramming Tumor-associated Stroma via Lymphotoxin-beta Receptor Signaling Promotes Tertiary Lymphoid Structure Formation and Enhances Anti-tumor Immunity |
|
| 7:00–8:00 PM |
On Own for Dinner |
|
Wednesday, March 18, 2026
| 7:30–8:30 AM |
Breakfast |
Frontenac / Petit Frontenac |
| 8:30–11:30 AM |
Novel Insights into Tumor Recognition by Lymphocytes |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Tullia C. Bruno, University of Pittsburgh
Harnessing B Cells Inside and Outside of Tertiary Lymphoid Structures for Improved Anti-tumor Immunity |
|
| |
Miriam Merad, Mount Sinai School of Medicine
Novel Insights into the Organization of TLS |
|
| |
E. John Wherry, University of Pennsylvania
Novel T Cell Checkpoints |
|
| |
Carl H June, University of Pennsylvania
Cellular Therapies |
|
| |
Emily B Derrick †, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre
Short Talk: Enhancing Responses to Immune Checkpoint Blockade Therapy by Improving T Cell Infiltration through CXCL9 Signalling |
|
| |
Sean T Hyslop †, Baylor College of Medicine
Short Talk: CD7 Regulates Persistence of Terminally Exhausted CD8 T Cells |
|
| 9:30–9:50 AM |
Coffee Break |
Vercheres |
| 11:30–12:30 PM |
Lunch |
Frontenac / Petit Frontenac |
| 12:45–2:00 PM |
Panel: Perspectives: Personalized Medicine & Patient-Centered Strategies |
Grand Ballroom |
| 2:30–4:30 PM |
Workshop: Novel Platforms to Understand Mechanisms of Action and Resistance |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Allison N Casey †, University of Pittsburgh
B Cell Activity is Modulated by Tumor Microenvironmental Cues |
|
| |
Jonas Ibn-Salem †, TRON
K4neo: Rapid Tumor-Specificity Assessment of Novel T-cell Antigen Candidates via Efficient K-mer Indexing of Healthy Tissue Transcriptomes |
|
| |
Merve Kahraman †, Genome Institute of Singapore
Spatial Profiling Reveals Molecular Determinants of CD8+ Dynamics during Chemo-Immunotherapy in MSS Colon Cancer |
|
| 4:30–5:00 PM |
Coffee Available |
Vercheres |
| 5:00–6:45 PM |
Cancer Immunotherapy: Overcoming Resistance |
Grand Ballroom |
| |
Hélène Salmon, Institut Curie
Factors of TME Resistance |
|
| |
Thomas Powles, Barts Cancer Institute
How to Optimally Combine Chemotherapies and Targeted Therapies with Immunotherapy |
|
| |
Andy Minn, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Talk Title to be Announced |
|
| |
Adam Getzler †, DFCI
Short Talk: Immunotherapy Resistant Triple Negative Breast Cancer Utilizes Interferon Gamma Signaling to Evade NK Responses during Metastasis |
|
| 6:45–7:00 PM |
Meeting Wrap-Up: Outcomes and Future Directions (Organizers) |
Grand Ballroom |
| 7:00–8:00 PM |
On Own for Dinner |
|
