AACR: Sessions Detail Advances in Liquid Biopsies, Machine Learning and Technology Transfer
Presenters spoke of methods for enhancing sensitivity of liquid biopsies including
proximal sampling, analysis of additional markers and cell-free DNA biology as well as analysis of patient-specific NGS panels. These sessions also touched on the limitations and challenges of other approaches, particularly sampling error. During early stages, detecting low levels of ctDNA becomes very difficult, but combining strategies improve the rate of detection.
Other sessions also touched on the need for data and how AI and machine learning can provide the gateway into further exploration. Speaker Eliezer Van Allen, MD, Medical Oncology of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, opened the session discussing the challenge of distinguishing primary versus metastatic stages at a genomic level in the context of prostate cancer. He spoke about how machine learning and clinical computational oncology could help us understand not only which genes or pathways lead to metastasis, but also how and why those genes and pathways interact with genes we have yet to explore. He explained how the multi-disciplined approach and convergence of genomics and machine learning could help provide more clean data. He also touched on the Metastatic Prostate Cancer project, a patient-driven project to making more data available publicly, including responses to therapies and clinical phenotypic data.
The session presented by Anna Wu, PhD, Molecular Imaging & Therapy—Beckman Research Institute, covered the use ImmunoPET for visualization of T cell responses in immunotherapy. Her session covered the use of engineered antibodies tagged
The NCI held a panel with Emory University and Georgia State University about technology transfer and the opportunities that federal and university offices of technology transfer have with relation to public-private partnerships and how they provide the resources to drive research forward.
The 533 exhibiting companies presented everything from cell technologies to new instruments that vastly improve workflows. Amgen presented a demo of its Bispecific T cell Engager (BiTE) technology as a method to overcome malignant cell’s evasion of the immune system. Our April 15th issue of Instrument Business Outlook will further detail more exciting technologies presented at AACR this year. Click here for a free trial and stay tuned!
Next year, AACR will be held in sunny San Diego at the San Diego Convention Center from April 24 to April 29.