2026 Annual Conference Grant: American Society of Preventive Oncology

The mission of the American Society of Preventive Oncology (ASPO) is the exchange of scientific information to reduce the cancer burden and for the continued development of investigators involved in cancer prevention and control. The 50th ASPO Annual Meeting will be held April 12-14, 2026, at the Hilton Denver City Center. This application requests partial support for that meeting, which is a keystone of this multidisciplinary organization. ASPO’s annual meeting provides a high-quality program that fosters new opportunities for early career, mid-career, and senior investigators whose careers are focused on the primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention of cancer. The specific aims of the annual meeting and this conference grant are to: 1) provide multidisciplinary forums for the exchange of scientific information; 2) foster implementation and broaden dissemination of scientific discoveries; and 3) provide exceptional professional development to investigators at any career stage, especially early career investigators, to maximize their potential for success. For the 2026 meeting, we plan to continue with our successful and well-received meeting format, while adding special content to celebrate the 50th anniversary of ASPO’s contributions to cancer prevention and control. We will have two poster sessions, each with different presentations, to allow for increased participation and interaction of our attendees. The Best of ASPO sessions allow for 32 abstracts to be selected for 15-minute oral presentations. Our “Looking Back, Thinking Forward” sessions include a 15-minute presentation by a senior investigator on a topic of interest, followed by three short presentations selected from submitted abstracts, as well as time for questions/discussion. The meeting has four symposia, a keynote presentation, two award lectures, four to six Special Interest Group breakfast sessions, and a networking lunch. The committee has worked diligently to include community scientists throughout the programmed sessions. Pre-meeting workshops include multiple professional development sessions, a meeting of cancer center Associate Directors and Program Leaders for Cancer Prevention and Control, and a meeting for NCI training grant directors. ASPO continues its commitment to the development of early career scientists through an expanded New Investigator Workshop. Meeting planning takes satisfaction surveys from previous meetings into account. Abstracts will be solicited beginning in August 2025. Over 175 posters are anticipated to be presented. Multiple initiatives including this conference grant—which requests travel support for early-career and community scientists—enhance the ability for meeting attendees, program committee members, and invited speakers to represent multiple disciplines in cancer prevention and control research and the fields concerned with translating evidence into effective prevention and control programs. All meetings are held in non-smoking, ADA accessible conference facilities. Journal and online advertisements, email, and direct mail will publicize the meeting. Over 450 participants are expected to attend. By fostering communication among multidisciplinary professionals, ASPO meetings have been extraordinarily successful at reaching the society’s goals of supporting mentoring, encouraging dialogue, and promoting innovation. Project Number: 1R13CA314217-01 | Fiscal Year: 2026 | NIH Institute/Center: National Cancer Institute (NCI) | Principal Investigator: Michael Scheurer | Institution: AMERICAN SOCIETY OF PREVENTIVE ONCOLOGY, INC., INDIANAPOLIS, IN | Award Amount: $40,000 | Activity Code: R13 | Study Section: Special Emphasis Panel[ZRG1 SCIL-T (80)] View on NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11391548