With 2022 now upon us, we thought we we would take a look back on our second year of virtual conferences. Imaging Cancer: Gaining insights from cells to organisms came to our screens in June and delighted participants with discussion on cancer imaging and the importance it holds in our ability to understand and treat cancer. Following a short break through the summer, we returned with our ever popular conference Goodbye Flat Biology: Next Generation Cancer Models which came back for its fifth edition with talks centered on cell architecture, mechanobiology, and the immune microenvironment. AI in Cancer Diagnostics: from research to clinical practice debuted later the same month for discussion focusing on the future of cancer diagnostics and enhancing clinical decision-making.
Imaging Cancer: Gaining insights from cells to organisms
Imaging Cancer was organised in collaboration with the European Society of Oncologic Imaging and took place from 29-30 June. Across the two days, the conference saw 87 participants attend from 22 countries globally.
Participants who responded to the post-conference feedback survey were impressed by the quality of the talks offered at Imaging Cancer, as well as the range of topics discussed within the field of Imaging with both clinical and cellular imaging receiving attention. When asked what there conference highlight was, one delegate responded that they “enjoyed the panel discussion at the end of the conference the most as it brought more ‘food for thought’ after the talks.” The networking sessions in Gather also received praise, with one participant highlighting how it “allowed [them] to connect to different research groups”
Great first day at #eacrImagingCancer. Amazing talks and discussions. More tomorrow! https://t.co/f8erAIYOiC
— Bravo-Cordero Lab (@BravoCorderoLab) June 29, 2021
Goodbye Flat Biology: Next Generation Cancer Models
Goodbye Flat Biology returned for what proved to be one of our most popular events of the year, with 213 participants in attendance over 05 and 06 October, representing 36 countries.
99% of those who responded to the feedback survey said that they would recommend EACR virtual events to colleagues following this incredibly successful event. Standout moments from the conference included the ‘Meet the Expert’ session with Valerie Weaver, which was described as “inspirational” and “encouraging”, with Val using her session at the end of Day 1 to share her personal and professional opinions and give advice. Another participant remarked at how well this virtual edition of Goodbye Flat Biology mirrored its in-person counterparts, saying that “the platform [was] very dynamic… mimicking the face-to-face conferences”.
Very much enjoyed the two day #eacrGoodbyeFlatBiology @EACRnews conference! Nice talks and Q&As, an engaging poster session, and a very heartfelt message from Dr. Valerie Weaver to trainees and ECRs at the Meet the Experts Talk to wrap it all up.
— Hiroyoshi Y. Tanaka (@HYTanaka) October 7, 2021
AI in Cancer Diagnostics: from research to clinical practice
In a first for EACR conferences, AI in Cancer Diagnostics put the emerging field of Artificial Intelligence centre stage for discussion on its potential to transform cancer diagnoses and clinical decision making, from 26-27 October.
The conference was praised for the high quality of its scientific sessions with 94% of participants who provided feedback rating this as either ‘very good’ or ‘excellent’. The uniqueness of the topic also received positive feedback, as it allowed high quality networking between researchers in what could be considered to be a relatively niche area within cancer research. The post discussion in Gather was described as “the closest you could come a physical poster hall”. A standout highlight for many attendees was the Discussion Forum at the end of Day 2 on the topic of ‘Ethics in diagnostic AI’.
@EACRnews #eacrAIDiagnostics Very much enjoying AI in Cancer Diagnostics conference!! Great talks and interactions! pic.twitter.com/yd0eIz7lPd
— Rita Sarkis (@RitaSarkis16) October 26, 2021
A look ahead to 2022
As always, our calendar of conferences is packed full of a wide array of exciting topics. we have a double-header of virtual conferences to welcome us in to the New Year with Seed and Soil from 25-26 January, and The Structural Microenvironment from 22-23 February. Later on in the year, we see the return of in-person events with Liquid Biopsies due to be held in Bergamo, Italy in May. Our Annual Congress will then return the following month in Seville, Spain. To find out more, please visit the EACR Conferences page of our website.
