Tumor Metabolism: New Frontiers in Diet, Microbiome and Beyond (E1)
June 8-11, 2026  | INEC Killarney Convention Centre, Killarney, KY, Ireland
Karen H. Vousden, Cynthia L. Sears and Eileen P. White
Scholarship Deadline: Feb. 5, 2026 | Abstract Deadline: May. 19, 2026 | Early Registration Deadline: Apr. 10, 2026
* Session Chair † Invited but not yet accepted | Program current as of February 25, 2026 2 AM | For the most up-to-date details, visit https://www.keystonesymposia.org
Monday, June 8, 2026
4:00–8:00 PM Registration
6:00–8:00 PM Welcome Mixer
Tuesday, June 9, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast
7:30–8:00 AM Poster Setup
7:45–5:00 PM Poster Viewing
8:00–8:10 AM Welcome Remarks
8:10–9:00 AM Keynote Address
  Heather Christofk, University of California, Los Angeles
Metabolic Transitions in Cancer
 
9:00–11:15 AM Systemic Metabolism and Cancer
  Craig B. Thompson, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Talk Title to be Announced
 
  Matthew G Vander Heiden, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Interplay Between Tumor and Systemic Metabolism
 
  Christopher J Halbrook, University of California, Irvine
Exploiting Metabolic Vulnerabilities of Chemoresistant Pancreatic Cancer
 
  H.Furkan Alkan, UT Southwestern Medical Center
Short Talk: Metabolic Regulation of Melanoma Immunogenicity and Metastasis
 
9:30–9:50 AM Coffee Break
11:15–12:15 PM Lunch
12:00–2:30 PM Poster Session 1
2:30–4:30 PM Symposia Spotlight 1
  Julianna Blagih †, University of Montreal
Fat Length and Timing Matter - Exploiting Saturated Fatty Acids as Cancer Therapy
 
  Eveline Barbieri, Baylor College of Medicine
Metabolic Competition for Cyst(e)ine Promotes T cell Dysfunction and MYCN-driven Neuroblastoma Tumor Progression
 
  Meggie Danielson, University of California Irvine
Cytosolic Bacterial Pathogens Activate Innate Immune Pathways in Tumors For Cancer Therapy
 
  Alison L Jaccard, University of Pennsylvania
Nutrient-Sensitive Histone Propionylation Regulates T cell Fate and Function
 
  Evan C Lien †, Van Andel Institute
A Low-Fat Diet Improves Cancer Immunotherapy Responses
 
  Laura V. Pinheiro †, University of Pennsylvania
Cancer Cell Insulin Receptor Impairs Anti-Tumor Immunity and Promotes Tumor Growth
 
  Viraj Sanghvi †, Columbia University Irving Medical Center
Lipid Desaturation as a Metabolic Checkpoint for T Cell Immunity in Liver Cancer
 
  Vineeth Vengayil †, University of Pennsylvania
Choline Metabolism Controls Tumor Growth and Myeloid Cell Function in Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma
 
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available
5:00–7:00 PM Microbiota, Metabolism and Cancer
  Cynthia L. Sears, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Microbiota and Colon Cancer
 
  Saman Maleki, Western University
Cancer, Immunology and the Microbiome
 
  Bertrand Routy, Centre hospitalier de l’Université de Montréal
Gut Microbiome and the Efficacy of Cancer Immunotherapy
 
  Asael Roichman †, Bar Ilan University
Short Talk: Dietary Phytochemical-Microbiome Interactions as Determinants of Anticancer Therapy Response
 
  Luisa Siegert, Technical University of Munich
Refined Diets Trigger Tumor Formation via H2S-producing Desulfovibrio in ATF6-driven Colorectal Cancer
 
7:00–8:00 PM On Own for Dinner
Wednesday, June 10, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast
8:00–11:00 AM Metabolic Disease, Aging and Cancer
  Ayelet Erez, Weizmann Institute of Science
Urea Cycle Disorders and Cancer
 
  Peter James Mullen, University of Southern California
Whole Body Metabolism and Cancer Progression
 
  Ralph J DeBerardinis, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Metabolic Disease and Cancer
 
  Karen H. Vousden, Francis Crick Institute
Metabolic Control of Cancer Progression
 
  David McFadden †, UT Southwestern Medical Center
Short Talk: Loss of Heterozygosity Exposes Germline Mutations in Complex I that Drive Warburg Metabolism In Oncocytic Carcinoma of the Thyroid
 
  Seongmi Russell, Washington University in St. Louis
Short Talk: Early-Life Microbial Exposure Reprograms Gut Epithelial Stem Cell Fate to Prime Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Susceptibility
 
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break
11:00–1:00 PM Poster Setup
11:00–5:00 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing
3:00–4:30 PM Career Roundtable
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available
5:00–7:00 PM Antioxidants and Cancer
  Scott J. Dixon, Stanford University
Iron, ROS and Cell Death
 
  Richard L. Possemato, New York University School of Medicine
Iron Metabolism and Cancer
 
  Navdeep S Chandel, Northwestern University
Mitochondrial Metabolism, ROS and Cancer
 
  Christine Chio, Columbia University
Short Talk: Iron-regulated MSRA Methionine Redox Signaling Controls Systemic Metabolism in Cancer and Nutrient Stress
 
  Roshni A de Souza †, Columbia Unviersity
Short Talk: Hypoxia-driven Nucleotide Imbalance Promotes Differentiation in the Colon and Colorectal Cancer
 
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 2
Thursday, June 11, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast
8:00–11:00 AM Cachexia, Obesity and Cancer
  Eileen P. White, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey
Autophagy, Cachexia and Cancer
 
  Lydia Lynch, Princeton University
Metabolism, Fat and Cancer
 
  Marcus D. Goncalves, NYU Langone
Tumor-Body Interactions and Weight Loss
 
  Rachel J. Perry, Yale University
Obesity, Exercise and Cancer
 
  Ana Luiza Labbate Bonaldo †, Sao Paulo State University - UNESP
Short Talk: Integrated Liver and Muscle Transcriptomics Identify Obesity-Dependent Modulators of Ovarian Cancer Cachexia
 
  Alexandra S Ware †, University of Chicago
Short Talk: BNIP3-Dependent Muscle Atrophy in Cancer Cachexia Promotes PDAC Progression
 
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break
11:00–5:00 PM On Own for Lunch
2:30–4:30 PM Symposia Spotlight 2
  Michalis Agathocleous, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Vitamin C is a Tumor Suppressor Metabolite in Blood Cancers
 
  Cian D'Arcy †, RCSI
Global proteomic assessment of a novel HDAC6 inhibitor and PROTAC in Multiple Myeloma Identify Metabolic Adaptations
 
  Keeley G Hewton †, University of British Columbia
Depletion of Specific Essential Amino Acids Increases Sensitivity to LAT1 Abrogation in Pancreatic Cance
 
  Kevin G Hicks †, University of Utah
Folate Cycle Metabolites Allosterically Regulate Pyruvate Kinase M2 To Modulate Carbohydrate Metabolism
 
  Ladan Mashouri †, University of Texas at Austin
Engineering a Novel Serine-Degrading Enzyme for Targeted Cancer Therapy
 
  Michael Noji †, University of Pennsylvania
Pancreas-specific BCKDK Deficiency Accelerates Pancreatic Neoplasia
 
  Cuauhtemoc B Ramirez, University of California, Irvine
Understanding and Targeting Essential Amino Acid Metabolism for Treating TSC Kidney Tumors
 
  Leah Ziolkowski, The University of Chicago
ATF4 Is Required for KRas-Driven Pancreatic Tumorigenesis to Suppress Early-Stage p53 Induction via Effects on 1C Metabolism That Are Rescued by a High Serine Diet
 
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available
5:00–6:45 PM Cancer, Diet and Therapy
  Thales Papagiannakopoulos, NYU School of Medicine
Control of Nutrients for Cancer Therapy
 
  Mariia Yuneva, Calico Life Sciences and Francis Crick Institute
Metabolic Regulation of Aging and Metastasis
 
  Oliver Maddocks, University of Glasgow, Faeth Therapeutics
Precision Nutrition for Cancer Therapy
 
  Yanxiang (Jessie) Guo †, Rutgers Cancer Institute
Short Talk: Ketogenic Diet Uncovers Genotype-Specific Metabolic and Immune Vulnerabilities in KRAS-Driven Lung Cancer
 
6:45–7:00 PM Meeting Wrap-Up: Outcomes and Future Directions (Organizers)
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner
8:00–11:00 PM Entertainment
8:00–11:00 PM Cash Bar
Friday, June 12, 2026
12:00–11:59 PM Departure