The ECOG-ACRIN Cancer Research Group (ECOG-ACRIN) hosted its semi-annual meeting in Philadelphia from October 22-24, 2025. The meeting continued with the hybrid format established in recent years, facilitating broad participation across the membership. In-person attendance was high, with approximately 800 attendees participating in 55 sessions. Additionally, 325 virtual attendees joined the meeting online. The event served as a welcome reminder that, despite the ongoing government shutdown, the work of advancing cancer research continues. This meeting was notable for its emphasis on real-world data (RWD) and artificial intelligence (AI), mentorship, and the value of correlative science.

The Robert L. Comis, MD Translational Science Symposium, one of the meeting’s two plenary sessions, was a meeting highlight. Titled How do we know what we know? Approaches Using AI and Other Electronic Methods in Clinical Trials, the program addressed opportunities for new trial designs utilizing RWD and AI.

Pictured left to right are David Mankoff, Walter Witschey, Rebecca Hubbard, Jordan Berlin, Mary Lou Smith, Jon Steingrimsson, and Paul Catalano

Symposium speakers delivered a series of thought-provoking talks exploring alternative approaches to answering phase 2 and 3 therapeutic questions. Then, Scientific Planning Committee Co-Chair David A. Mankoff, MD, PhD (University of Pennsylvania) moderated a dynamic panel discussion in which the participants elucidated the strengths and pitfalls of RWD and AI approaches. View the program and speaker bios on ecog-acrin.org.

During the Real-World Data Session, Suzanne Cole, MD (The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center), provided updates on ECOG-ACRIN’s first study in this area, PrE1702. As mentioned in last month’s From the Co-Chairs column, this important study is collecting data on patients receiving standard therapies for EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer who are ineligible or unwilling to join a clinical trial. Researchers hope that PrE1702 will provide a better understanding of the impact of these therapies across a broad population and create a roadmap to guide future RWD collection strategies.

Joan Schiller receiving the Remarkable Mentor in Oncology Award from Group Co-Chair Peter O’Dwyer at the General Session

Mentorship was a prominent theme throughout the meeting, visible in formal programs such as the Young Investigator Symposium and in the individuals in attendance who had received the Edith Peterson Mitchell, MD Health Equity Travel Scholarships. But mentorship was also evident through organic interactions, such as during the Task Force on Career Advancement session, when Heather A. Wakelee, MD (Stanford University), introduced her mentor and friend, Joan H. Schiller, MD (University of Virginia), as the keynote speaker.

Group leaders honored Dr. Schiller at the General Session, the second plenary event. Dr. Schiller is the recipient of the 2025 Remarkable Mentor in Oncology Award for her commitment to developing the careers of many early- and mid-career investigators. After a long career as a thoracic oncologist, Dr. Schiller now serves in leadership roles at the Lung Cancer Research Foundation and Oncology Advocates United for Climate and Health International, where her mentorship continues. Link to our profile of Dr. Schiller.

Petros Grivas delivering the Young Investigator Award Recipient Lecture at the General Session

Also at the General Session, Petros Grivas, MD, PhD, FASCO (University of Washington/Fred Hutch Cancer Center), recipient of the 2025 Young Investigator Award, delivered the traditional awardee lecture. Dr. Grivas is an international key opinion thought leader who has made outstanding contributions to genitourinary cancer research, clinical practice, leadership, teaching and mentorship, and community outreach. His talk was titled Ithaca is the destination: the journey matters. Link to our profile of Dr. Grivas.

All of the events and awards mentioned above are part of the ECOG-ACRIN Mentoring Program. Founded by Robert L. Comis, MD, in the late 1990s, this program identifies, encourages, and recognizes cancer researchers early in their careers. At the General Session, ECOG-ACRIN leaders announced plans to update the program’s goals and the composition of its oversight committee. Chaired by Arlene A. Forastiere, MD, the Mentoring Program Committee has recently been formalized to include Group leaders who have historically monitored and promoted the professional development of early-career investigators and individuals across the organization. Moving forward, the committee will organize and oversee mentorship initiatives and work closely with the leaders of each of the Group’s scientific committees to ensure the effective engagement of early-career investigators and other healthcare professionals in developing and leading ECOG-ACRIN clinical trials. Stay tuned for more information as this program develops.

The General Session also highlighted a particularly exciting development in correlative science: a public-private partnership in which ECOG-ACRIN, together with Caris Life Sciences and the National Cancer Institute, created a multi-year research collaboration agreement to analyze tumor samples from the TAILORx trial in patients with early-stage breast cancer. The aim is to enable discoveries that lead to better predictions of recurrence risk and the drivers of racial disparity. Caris is pairing its highly sophisticated and comprehensive genomic, transcriptomic and proteomic profiling, advanced AI and machine learning algorithms with ECOG-ACRIN’s immense research capabilities. Joseph A. Sparano, MD (Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai) will present the first discoveries from this highly innovative initiative research at the 2025 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium next month, and we look forward to sharing them here in an upcoming issue.

Did you miss the meeting? Did you attend the meeting but miss a session? Do you need to review a presentation you heard? Session recordings are now available on the Attendee Hub Website (ECOG-ACRIN members only). View instructions for accessing the recordings in this month’s News in Brief.