2024 DF/HCC Prostate Cancer Program/SPORE Retreat (June 7, 2024)
The 2024 DF/HCC Prostate Cancer Program/SPORE Retreat was held on June 7, 2024, at the MIT Endicott House in Dedham, Massachusetts. The retreat served as a primary venue for basic, clinical, and population science researchers to collaborate on translational research aimed at reducing the burden of prostate cancer.
The retreat is part of a broader series of interactive sessions, including monthly SPORE Seminar Series that bring in external experts to advance prostate cancer treatment and prevention.
Event Highlights & Participants
The event brought together more than 85 program members from across all DF/HCC member institutions, including junior faculty, post-docs, and fellows, including the entire Balk lab.
Poster presentations were made by Doctors Fang Xie, Mannan Nouri, Larysa Poluben, and Betul Ersoy. In addition Dr. David Einstein presented a seminar.
Doctors Mannan Nouri, Juan Jimenez & Seifeldin Awad enjoying the seminar portion of the retreat.
Key Program Focus Areas
024 agenda sessions centered on the DF/HCC Prostate SPORE's core translational projects:
- Neoadjuvant Therapies: Leveraging tumor specimens to understand resistance to potent androgen receptor blockade and improve cure rates.
- Epigenetic Targeting: Developing clinical trials for co-targeting EZH2 and PARP in advanced castration-resistant prostate cancer.
- AI-Driven Biomarkers: Utilizing biologically-guided deep learning to predict and manage aggressive localized prostate cancer.
- Therapeutic Resistance: Exploring mechanisms of resistance to androgen deprivation therapy, taxanes, and emerging immunotherapies.
The event was hosted at the MIT Endicott House is a conference center located in Dedham, Massachusetts, about 10 miles south-west from downtown Boston. The center consists of the Endicott mansion, a Normandy French-style chateau, along with an art lecture facility known as the Brooks Center, and 25 acres of gardens, lawn, woods and ponds.
