Tumor Microenvironment: Identifying Drivers of Progression and Resistance (M3)
May 17-20, 2026  | Whistler Conference Centre, Whistler, BC, Canada
Lisa M. Coussens, Sandra S. McAllister and Laura L. Kiessling
Scholarship Deadline: Jan. 15, 2026 | Abstract Deadline: Apr. 24, 2026 | Early Registration Deadline: Mar. 19, 2026
* Session Chair † Invited but not yet accepted | Program current as of August 23, 2025 4 AM | For the most up-to-date details, visit https://www.keystonesymposia.org
Sunday, May 17, 2026
4:00–8:00 PM Registration Grand Foyer
6:00–8:00 PM Welcome Mixer Grand Foyer
Monday, May 18, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast Sea to Sky A
8:00–9:00 AM Welcome and Keynote Address (Joint) Sea to Sky B/C
  Ophira Ginsburg, Medecins Sans Frontieres
Sex and Gender Impact on Human Health and Disease
 
9:00–11:15 AM Aging in Human Health and Disease (Joint) Sea to Sky B/C
  Speaker to be Announced
 
  Donna L Farber, Columbia University Medical Center
Immune Aging Across the LifeSpan
 
  Peter D. Adams, Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
The Epigenetic Landscape of Aging
 
  Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
 
9:30–9:50 AM Coffee Break Grand Foyer
11:15–1:00 PM Poster Setup Sea to Sky A
11:15–5:00 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing Sea to Sky A
2:30–4:30 PM Workshop: Data Jamboree/Workshop leveraging the NCI Human Tumor Atlas Data (HTAN) to study the TME Sea to Sky C
  Erik A. Sahai, Francis Crick Institute
 
  Elana Fertig, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Novel Analytical Approaches for Data Forecasting and Data Integration with HTAN
 
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Grand Foyer
5:00–7:00 PM Cross-Talk in the TME Driving Cancer Progression and Therapeutic Resistance Sea to Sky C
  Sheila A. Stewart, Washington University School of Medicine
Senescent Fibroblasts that Drive Immune Suppression and Cancer Progression
 
  Teresa Zimmers, Oregon Health and Science University Knight Cancer Institute
Impact of Cachexia on Cancer Progression and Response to Therapy
 
  Daniela F Quail, McGill University
Impact of Obesity on Tumor-Associated Chronic Inflammation
 
  Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
 
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner Sea to Sky A
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 1 Sea to Sky A
Tuesday, May 19, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast Sea to Sky A
8:00–11:00 AM Pathways Controlling Inflammation and Tissue Homeostasis (Joint) Sea to Sky B/C
  Andrea Ablasser, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne
cGAS STING Pathway in Inflammation
 
  Melissa Davis, Morehouse School of Medicine
Impact of Genetics, Biology, and Social Determinants on Cancer Risk
 
  Jenny P.Y. Ting, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Impact of Innate Immune Receptors in Cancer
 
  Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
 
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break Grand Foyer
11:00–1:00 PM Poster Setup Sea to Sky A
11:00–5:00 PM On Own for Lunch
1:00–10:00 PM Poster Viewing Sea to Sky A
1:45–2:45 PM Career Roundtable (Joint) Sea to Sky B
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Grand Foyer
5:00–7:00 PM Inflammatory Responses in the TME Sea to Sky C
  Sandra S. McAllister, Brigham & Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School
Impact of the Aging TME Cellular and Molecular Landscape on Response to Therapy
 
  Lisa M. Coussens, Oregon Health & Science University
Innate-Adaptive Crosstalk Mechanisms as Leverage Points for Therapy
 
  Erik A. Sahai, Francis Crick Institute
Why Liver Metastases are so Hard to Treat with Immunotherapy
 
  Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
 
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner Sea to Sky A
7:30–10:00 PM Poster Session 2 Sea to Sky A
Wednesday, May 20, 2026
7:00–8:00 AM Breakfast Sea to Sky A
8:00–11:00 AM Therapeutic Targeting in Chronic Disease Sea to Sky C
  Gabriel A. Rabinovich, Instituto de Biologia y Medicina Experimental
The Power of Glycocheckpoints: Translating Glycan-Encoded Information into Novel Therapies in Cancer and Autoimmune Inflammation
 
  Laura L. Kiessling, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Critical Role of Glycosylation in Regulating Tissue Homeostasis and Disease Progression
 
  Thomas A Wynn, Pfizer
Resolution of Chronic Inflammation
 
  Michael Klichinsky, Carisma Therapeutics
Engineering Myeloid Cells for Cancer, Autoimmunity, and Fibrosis
 
  Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
 
9:00–9:20 AM Coffee Break Grand Foyer
11:00–5:00 PM On Own for Lunch
2:30–4:30 PM Symposia Spotlight: Late-breaking research presentations selected from abstract submissions Sea to Sky C
  Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
 
4:30–5:00 PM Coffee Available Grand Foyer
5:00–6:45 PM Unraveling the TME Sea to Sky C
  Jeremy Goecks, Moffitt Cancer Center
Using Machine Learning to Quantify the Tumor Microenvironment and Predict Response to Therapy
 
  Speaker to be Announced
 
  Elana Fertig, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Forecasting Cancer Signatures
 
  Short Talk(s) Chosen from Abstracts
 
6:45–7:00 PM Meeting Wrap-Up: Outcomes and Future Directions (Organizers) Sea to Sky C
7:00–8:00 PM Social Hour with Dinner Sea to Sky A
8:00–11:00 PM Cash Bar
8:00–11:00 PM Entertainment
Thursday, May 21, 2026
12:00–11:59 PM Departure