Roundup: HICCC at AACR 2026
Researchers from the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center (HICCC) will present their latest work at the 2026 Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), taking place April 17–22, 2026, in San Diego, California. As one of the major annual meetings in cancer research, AACR brings together scientists, clinicians, and trainees from around the world to spotlight new discoveries across basic, translational, clinical, and population science.
At this year’s meeting, HICCC members are featured in over 40 sessions, including plenary sessions, major symposia, minisymposia, and poster presentations. Their presentations highlight the range of research underway at Columbia, from precision oncology, biomarker-driven trials, and novel therapeutic combinations to pancreatic and brain tumor biology, metastasis, and the social and structural factors that shape cancer outcomes.. Below are a few selected highlights from this year’s meeting.
Please note: this roundup includes Columbia researchers and trainees only. Please visit the external links for the full listing of authors.
Plenary sessions and major symposia
Clinical Trials Plenary Session: New Frontiers in Precision Oncology
April 19, 2026, 2:00 PM - 2:15 PM PDT
Columbia author: Ryan H. Moy, MD
Abstract embargoed until April 17.
Major Symposium: Synthetic Biology Approaches to Cancer and Immune Cell Therapy
April 19, 2026, 1:55 PM - 2:15 PM PDT
"Optimizing the antigen sensitivity and functional persistence of CAR T cells"
Presenter: Michel Sadelain, MD, PhD
Major Symposium: RAS Inhibitors, Mechanisms of Resistance, and Drug Combinations
April 20, 2026, 12:55 PM - 1:10 PM PDT
Presenter: Alvaro Curiel Garcia (Olive lab)
This research, led by the Olive lab, identified the transcription BMAL2 as a driver of pancreatic cancer malignancy linked to hypoxic (low-oxygen) metabolism, a key feature of these tumors. In this study, they found that BMAL2 helps pancreatic cancer cells adapt to hypoxia by modulating their metabolism, growth, and ability to shift into a more invasive state. BMAL2 also acts downstream of KRAS signaling, the key genetic driver in most pancreatic cancers, linking KRAS signaling to the hypoxia stress-response programs that let these tumors survive and progress. Authors found that when BMAL2 was blocked, pancreatic cancer cell growth was inhibited delaying tumor formation in animal models, opening a new window for BMAL2 as a potential new therapeutic target to explore in pancreatic cancer treatment.
Minisymposia
Aiming for Cure: Perioperative Clinical Trials
April 18, 2026, 2:05 PM - 2:15 PM PDT
Columbia authors: Aleksandar Obradovic, Catherine S. Spina, Chelsea L. Rahiman, Kaitlyn R. Campbell, Caroline Laplaca, Peyton C. Johnston, Amanda Kim, Katherine Gomez, Kriti Bagri Manjrekar, Mark N. Stein, Charles G. Drake, Karie Runcie
Abstract embargoed until April 17.
Targeted Therapy: Data Driven Approaches and Novel Drugs
April 21, 2026, 2:50 PM - 3:05 PM PDT
Presenter: Patrick Kerwin (Califano lab)
Columbia researchers studied IDH-mutant gliomas, a type of brain tumor made up of several coexisting cancer cell states, which makes them difficult to treat with a single drug. Using single-cell sequencing, regulatory network analysis, and large-scale drug screening, researchers identified specific mechanism-based weaknesses in these different tumor cell states, demonstrating how in ex vivo samples, one drug might first push resistant cells into a more treatment-sensitive state using the mTOR inhibitor temsirolimus, before a second drug such as romidepsin, irinotecan, or IDH1 inhibitors then targets them more effectively. The study provides a framework for designing combination and sequential treatment strategies that target tumor plasticity and overcome intratumoral heterogeneity in IDH-mutant glioma.
Adoptive T Cell Therapy
April 20, 2026, 2:30 PM - 2:35 PM PDT
Co-chair: Ryan H. Moy, MD
Late breaking posters
Tumor Biology
April 21, 2026, 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM PDT
Columbia author: Hiroshi Nakagawa, MD
Abstract embargoed until April 17.
Population Sciences
April 21, 2026, 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM PDT
Columbia authors: Nitish Aswani, Jiheum Park, Francesca Lim, Matthew Prest, Jennifer Ferris, Liyuan Gong, Jeong Yun Yang, Stella Kang, MD, Chin Hur, MD
Abstract embargoed until April 17.
Advances and educational sessions
Dose Optimization in Early-Phase Oncology Trials: Implementing the Vision of FDA’s Project Optimus
April 18, 2026, 8:31 AM - 8:46 AM PDT
"Ensuring tolerability by incorporating patient reported outcomes in dose finding clinical trials"
Presenter: Shing M. Lee, PhD
Metastatic Organotropism: Clues from Primary Tumors and Metastatic Niches
April 18, 2026, 10:55 AM - 11:15 AM PDT
“How circulating tumor cells find their way to distant sites”
Presenter: Cory Abate-Shen, PhD
Cory Abate-Shen, PhD will present work elucidating mechanisms underlying dissemination and metastasis - the leading cause of cancer death - in prostate cancer. Using circulating tumor cells (CTCs) obtained from genetically engineered mouse models (GEMMs), and organoids derived from these CTCs, her team shows that these cells exhibit significant molecular and phenotypic heterogeneity with distinct metabolic states linked to clinical outcomes. Using computational analyses, they identified TMPO as a key driver of this heterogeneity, showing that TMPO is upregulated in advanced human prostate tumors, metastases, and CTCs, and is associated with adverse clinical outcomes. These findings suggest TMPO promotes dissemination by enabling tumor cells to survive metabolic stress, revealing a novel mechanistic link between CTC heterogeneity, stress adaptation, and metastatic potential.
Innovations in Translating Social and Structural Determinants of Health Across Population, Community, and Basic Cancer Research
April 18, 2026, 2:35 PM - 2:50 PM PDT
“Motivating social and structural drivers in cancer research: Frameworks, concepts, and why”
Presenter: Adana A. M. Llanos, PhD
Adana A.M. Llanos, PhD, MPH, will chair this educational session, which highlights emerging approaches to integrating social and structural determinants of health into cancer research across disciplines. In her talk, she will introduce the conceptual frameworks motivating the inclusion of structural and social drivers, including macro-level factors such as policy environments, economic systems, and community context, and why they should be considered in cancer research. She will highlight how these frameworks can be applied across population science, community-engaged research, and basic science to better understand how upstream factors shape cancer risk and outcomes.
Epigenetics in Hematologic Malignancies
April 19, 2026, 1:55 PM - 2:15 PM PDT
"Epigenetic priming as a strategy for enhancing T cell-directed therapies"
Presenter: Jennifer E. Amengual, MD
Jennifer E. Amengual, MD, will discuss how epigenetic therapies may be used to prime tumors and enhance the effectiveness of T cell–directed treatments. Her talk will highlight strategies including HDAC inhibition to augment immune checkpoint blockade in Hodgkin lymphoma, EZH2 inhibition to improve CAR T-cell therapy in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and dual HDAC/EZH2 targeting to strengthen responses to bispecific antibodies.
Immune-Driven Cancer Prevention—From Vaccines to Lifestyle Interventions: A CIMM-CPWG Town Hall and Networking Meeting
April 20, 2026, 6:40 PM - 6:47 PM PDT
Presenter: Nicholas Arpaia, PhD
Nicholas Arpaia, PhD will highlight emerging research on engineered probiotic bacteria as potential cancer-preventive vaccines. This novel approach explores how microbes can be harnessed to prime the immune system to recognize cancer-associated signals at very early, pre-disease stages.
Cancer Predisposition Syndromes
April 21, 2026, 1:00 PM - 1:20 PM PDT
Presenter: Fay Kastrinos, MD
Awards
AACR Scholar-in-Training Awardees
Aleksandar Obradovic, MD, PhD: "Comprehensive Profiling of Primary and Metastatic Prostate Tumors Reveals Distinct Tumor and Fibroblast Cell States Associated with Androgen-Resistance."
Raul Navaridas Fernandez de Bobadilla, PhD (Rustgi Lab): "In vivo CRISPR screening of chromatin regulators reveals p53-dependent drivers of lung metastasis in esophageal cancer."
Luca Zanella, PhD (Califano Lab): "Single-cell elucidation of molecularly distinct states and therapeutic vulnerabilities in IDH-mutant glioma."
Gizem Efe, PhD (Rustgi Lab): "Mutant p53 neomorphic activities drive organspecific metastatic programs through distinct transcriptional networks."
Yi Zeng, MD, PhD (Wang Lab): "Vagal sensory neuronal inflammatory memory promotes gastric tumorigenesis through ILC2- mediated epigenetic signaling and the CGRP/Ramp1 axis."
Isaias Leon-Cepeda, MPH (Genkinger Lab): "Central and peripheral adiposity and breast cancer risk in postmenopausal women: A pooled analysis of 11 cohort studies."