An underlying hallmark of cancers is genomic instability and a greater propensity to accumulate DNA damage. Historical cancer therapy by radiotherapy and DNA-damaging chemotherapy is based on this principle but is accompanied by significant collateral damage to normal tissue and unwanted side effects. Targeted therapy based on inhibiting the DNA damage response (DDR) in cancers offers the potential for a greater therapeutic window by tailoring treatment to patients with tumors lacking specific DDR functions.

The DNA damage response (DDR) in cancer cells differs in at least four aspects compared to those of normal cells, namely the loss of one or more DDR pathway or capability leading to greater sensitivity to DNA damaging agents, increased levels of replication stress, increased potential for immune priming and the potential for a DDR dependency that could lead to sensitivity to a single DDR agent. An example of the latter is the synthetic lethality and clinical activity of PARP inhibitors in tumours with homologous recombination repair deficiencies such as BRCA mutant cancers.

This meeting will focus on the current approaches of targeting DDR to generate new cancer therapies from building on the clinical success of PARP inhibitors, identifying ways to exploit replication stress in cancers, enhance the potential for immunotherapy combinations as well as enhance the activity of targeted DNA damaging agents such as antibody drug conjugates (ADCs) and radioconjugates.

The meeting aims to bring together academics, translational biologists and clinicians who are working towards developing therapies based on targeting DDR in cancer and represents an excellent opportunity for networking and gaining broader insights into this exciting area of cancer biology and therapeutics through a number of panel discussions as well as presentations.

Key Sessions

• Current status of DDR therapeutics
• Building on the success of PARP inhibitors
• DDR therapeutic approaches based on DDR synthetic lethality
• Targeting replication stress in cancers
• Combining DDR inhibition with DNA damaging agents (chemotherapy/ADCs and potentiation of radiation/radio-conjugates)
• Combining DDR inhibitors with immunotherapy
• Enabling capabilities for DDR therapeutics
• The next generation of DDR new targets

Panel Discussions

• Challenges of therapeutic preclinical and clinical development
• Patient stratification and optimisation of drug safety /therapeutic index
• Career options in DDR drug discovery and development

Confirmed Keynote Speakers

Thanos Hazelonetis (University of Geneva)
Tim Yap (MD Anderson Cancer Center)
Steve Jackson (Cancer Research UK Cambridge Institute)

Confirmed Invited Speakers

George Au-Yeung (Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre)
Eric Brown (University of Pennsylvania)
Katie Chapman (Tessellate BIO)
Josep Forment (AstraZeneca)
Charlie Gourley (Cancer Research UK Scotland Centre)
Roger Greenberg (University of Pennsylvania)
Kevin Harrington (Institute of Cancer Research)
Alan Lau (AstraZeneca)
Chris Lord (Institute of Cancer Research)
Andre Nussenzweig (National Cancer Institute)
Gabriele Picco (Wellcome Sanger Institute)
Luke Piggott (Debiopharm International SA)
Yves Pommier (National Cancer Institute)
Simon Powell (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center)
Helen Robinson (Artios Pharma)
Violeta Serra (Vall d'Hebron Institute Oncology)
Ian Smith (Artios Pharma)
Steve West (Francis Crick Institute)
Michael White (IDEAYA Biosciences)

Target Audience

DDR researchers/clinicians in academia, biotech, pharma and heathcare.  

Educational Need

Following the success of PARP inhibitors for the treatment of a range of Homologous Recombination Repair (HRR) deficient cancer types, considerable effort has been made to identify new chemo/radio combination opportunities and novel targetable vulnerabilities in cancers harbouring DDR deficiencies and heightened replication stress. Several of these targets and their combinations are currently in clinical trials with the promise to expand the repertoire of drugs that can be utilised for cancer therapy. This meeting will provide a unique forum for discovery scientists from academia, biotech and pharma and medical oncologists and radiologists to present and discuss their latest discoveries and clinical trial data to the community. With meet and greet sessions and panel discussions with key opinion leaders, we anticipate that this meeting will provide an ideal educational opportunity for early career scientists and clinicians who are new to or wish to enter this space. A meeting of this kind is currently lacking and would provide an ideal platform for idea exchange, networking and the establishment of new collaborations.

Although the programme has not yet been released, we are able to confirm that the conference should begin no earlier than 14:00 with opening comments on Sunday 29 June 2025. The conference will conclude no later than 12:30 on Wednesday 02 July 2025.

We have 5x €1,000 registration grants, to help defray the meeting costs for early career researchers. If you are a student, postdoc or junior faculty (within 3 years of your position), you are eligible. To apply please email the conference manager, Emily Meen.

Your application should include your name, organisation, career level, an abstract for talk or poster consideration, and a short summary answering the below questions (no more than 50-100 words per question).
 
•    What cutting edge aspects of your work will you share at the meeting?
•    Why do you require financial support to attend?
•    How will attending #DDRCT25 benefit your science and career?
 
Deadline for applications is 16th January 2025 and successful applicants will be informed shortly after.