Forging Partnerships

AACR Oncology Industry Partnering Event connects researchers and industry representatives to help accelerate innovation and drug development.

Academic researchers make fundamental discoveries that can be developed into novel therapies by the pharmaceutical industry. The American Association for Cancer Research® (AACR) wants to bring those two groups together so lifesaving drugs can reach patients more quickly.

The second annual AACR Oncology Industry Partnering Event will foster these connections as representatives from academia, industry and the investment community come together ahead of the AACR Annual Meeting 2025 in Chicago.

The two-day event is modeled on a similar conference that allows companies to showcase their latest breakthrough drugs and court investors, with major deals often inked during the gathering. William Hait, MD, PhD, an AACR past president and the retired global head of Johnson & Johnson External Innovation, regularly attended the conference. “Why not create a meeting like that meeting purely for oncology?” he said.

“The idea was to create a meeting for all of the players that are involved from inception to delivery of a drug,” said Michael A. Caligiuri, MD, an AACR past president and the immediate past president at City of Hope National Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Over years of planning, the AACR developed an opportunity for oncology researchers to learn directly from investment, pharmaceutical, and biotech companies how to commercialize their findings. “We wanted to connect our scientists to the industry leaders so we could support the translation of their scientific discoveries into actual treatments and therapies,” said Christiana Bardon, MD, MBA, an AACR Foundation trustee and a partner with MPM BioImpact, a biotechnology investment firm and a program sponsor. Dr. Bardon cochairs the AACR Oncology Industry Partnering Event alongside Dr. Caligiuri and Dr. Hait.

The inaugural AACR Oncology Industry Partnering Event took place April 4 and 5, 2024, before the AACR Annual Meeting 2024 in San Diego. The sold-out conference attracted more than 430 people, along with 70 more joining virtually. Participants heard from 12 of the leading global pharmaceutical companies. “It gave attendees an understanding of how the pharmaceutical companies and biotech companies develop drugs, what they’re looking for, and how they partner,” Dr. Hait said. The program also included networking opportunities, business development panels, and a scientific discussion on antibody-drug conjugates.

“I think we hit upon something that people were really craving,” Dr. Bardon said, noting both researchers and industry representatives responded positively. 

Dr. Hait said he believes this niche, oncology-only conference falls right in “the perfect sweet spot for AACR,” as it bridges basic research and patient-focused treatments. Additionally, having the event on the eve of the AACR Annual Meeting appeals to many academic entrepreneurs who do not need to make a separate trip or wade through non-oncology content, according to Dr. Hait.

“We’re the honest broker,” Dr. Caligiuri said of the AACR. “Our role is to create a world free of cancer, and one of the ways you do that is you bring people together with meetings. … Our only skin in the game is to expedite
drug development.”

The 2025 event, scheduled for April 24 and 25 at the McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago, will follow a similar format as the 2024 edition, but organizers hope to have even more companies take the stage and to double the number of attendees. Registration is currently open and can be done at aacr.org/meeting/aacr-oncology-industry-partnering-event/registration or when registering for the Annual Meeting at aacr.org/meeting/aacr-annual-meeting-2025/registration.

Looking to the future, the AACR hopes the event will continue to grow. “Over time, we are hoping that this will be the key business development and scientific partnership meeting in the field of oncology,” Dr. Bardon said.