5th Annual Robert Steel Symposium in Developmental Oncology

The MSK Tow Center for Developmental Oncology proudly presents the Robert Steel Symposium in Developmental Oncology. Now in its fifth year, this symposium convenes leading scientists from across the country to examine the latest discoveries in the molecular mechanisms underlying cancers in children and young adults, as well as the development of innovative approaches for their treatment and control. This two-day, in-person symposium offers a unique forum to explore the genetic and epigenetic regulation of developmental processes, the molecular characterization of pediatric and young adult cancers, and emerging therapeutic strategies.

Despite significant advances, many fundamental questions remain unanswered in childhood and young adult oncology, including:

• How do normal developmental and genetic processes protect against cancer in children and young adults?

• What drives cancer development in the absence of inherited cancer-predisposing mutations or known environmental exposures, and how do genetic susceptibility and environmental factors contribute?

• Which developmental processes become dysregulated, leading to mutation and malignant transformation in otherwise healthy tissues?

• How do alterations in developmental pathways — particularly those involving transcription factors and epigenetic signaling — initiate and sustain cancer?

• How can effective therapeutics be designed to block, activate, or modulate protein interactions that regulate transcription factors and other key developmental regulators?

• How can novel targets for immunotherapy be identified in developmental tumors that harbor relatively few mutations?

This symposium provides an intimate and dynamic setting for sharing new insights that address these critical questions. The program also fosters meaningful dialogue between established investigators and early-career researchers, encouraging interdisciplinary perspectives and the generation of new research directions relevant to the biology of cancers arising in children and young adults.

Networking Reception

Participants are invited to a complimentary networking reception on Monday evening at Upstairs at The Kimberly Hotel (145 East 50th Street), a rooftop venue offering sweeping views of New York City. Please confirm your attendance during registration.

Target Audience

This symposium is intended for scientists, physicians, advanced practice providers, nurses, and other healthcare professionals interested in advances in the biology and treatment of childhood cancers. Complimentary registration is available for students, trainees, and participants residing and practicing in low- and lower-middle-income countries. Please see registration details below for more information.

1. Explain biologic and developmental causes of childhood cancers
2. Review recently developed therapies for patients with childhood and young-onset cancers
3. Discuss new biologic questions in order to accelerate the development of definitive therapies for patients

Please note that this program will be held in person only; a virtual streaming option is not available.

Registration Fees

• Physicians (MDs, PhDs, DOs): $225

• Other Healthcare Physicians: $40*

• Industry Professionals**: $400

• Students, Trainees, and Registrants in Low-and Lower-Middle-Income Countries: Complimentary (view our policy on Registration Discounts)

• MSK Employees: Complimentary

Discounted registration is available for specific groups. If eligible, you will receive further instructions and a promotion code to use during registration. View our policy on Registration Discounts for more information.

For details on our cancellation terms, please review our Cancellation Policy.

*Certain registration rates are non-refundable. Please review the cancellation policy above for additional information.
**An industry professional is defined as any individual, irrespective of their provider type (such as MDs, PhDs, APPs, RNs, etc.) that is employed by an ineligible company. Please review our Registration Policy for Industry Professionals for more information.

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

AMA Credit Designation Statement

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center designates this live activity for a maximum of 11.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

ABP MOC Recognition Statement

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the learner to earn up to 11.00 MOC points in the American Board of Pediatrics’ (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. It is the CME activity provider’s responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABP MOC credit.

We look forward to welcoming you to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). If you will be traveling to New York City from out of town, we encourage you to arrange your accommodations as early as possible.

Hotel Accommodations: To assist with your planning, MSK has arranged preferred rates and amenities at select hotels in Manhattan. Click here to view participating hotels and additional details.

Travel and Parking:  For information on traveling to MSK, including directions and parking options, click here. Please note that parking validation is not available for conference attendees.

If you require any specific accommodations to attend this event in person, please contact [email protected] at least one week in advance.

Symposium Director

Alex Kentsis, MD, PhD
Member, Molecular Pharmacology Program; 
Director, Tow Center for Developmental Oncology
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Symposium Co-Directors 

Andrew Kung, MD, PhD
Chair, Department of Pediatrics
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Lisa G. Roth, MD
Division Director, Pediatric Hematology Oncology
NYU Langone Health

Symposium Faculty

Kathrin Bernt, MD
Attending Physician, Division of Pediatric Oncology 
Member, Abramson Cancer Center
Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA, USA

Jamie Blundell, PhD
Ursula Zoellner Professor of Cancer Research
Early Cancer Institute
University of Cambridge
Cambridge, UK

Wallace Bourgeois, MD
Instructor of Pediatrics
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Boston, MA, USA

Vanja Cabric, MD
Instructor, Department of Pediatrics
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA

Kelly Goldsmith, MD
Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Co-Leader, Discovery & Developmental Therapeutics Program
Winship Cancer Center, Emory University
Atlanta, GA, USA

Alejandro Gutierrez, MD
Member, Department of Oncology
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Memphis, TN, USA

Rosandra Kaplan, MD
Senior Investigator, Pediatric Oncology Branch 
Head, Tumor Microenvironment Section
National Cancer Institute
Bethesda, MD, USA

Isabella Kong, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Department of Pediatrics
Weill Cornell Medicine
New York, NY, USA

Alja Kozulic Pirher, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Mount Sinai
New York, NY, USA

Nathaniel Mabe, PharmD, PhD
Assistant Professor, Medicinal Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology
Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN, USA

Andrew Marderstein, PhD
Research Fellow, Clinical Genetics Service
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA

Sophia Meixuan Zhang, BS
Research Technician
Department of Pediatrics
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA

Oriana Miltiadous, MD
Assistant Attending
Department of Pediatrics
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Markus Müschen, MD, PhD
Arthur H. and Isabel Bunker Professor of Hematology
Director, Center of Molecular and Cellular Oncology
Chief, Division of Basic Science
Yale Cancer Center
New Haven, CT, USA

Helen Mueller, PhD
Research Associate, Molecular Pharmacology Program
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA

Sanford Simon, PhD
Professor
Rockefeller University
New York, NY, USA

Uri Tabori, MD
Section Head, Neuro-Oncology
Division of Haematology/Oncology
The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids)
Toronto, Ontario, Canada 

Wesley Tansey, PhD
Assistant Attending, Computational Oncology
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA 

Christopher Vakoc, MD, PhD
Alan and Edith Seligson Professor of Cancer Research
Cancer Center Deputy Director of Research
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA

Elvin Wagenblast, PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Oncological Sciences
Department of Pediatrics
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
New York, NY, USA

Corey Weistuch, PhD
Assistant Attending Physicist
Department of Medical Physics
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA

Holly Whitfield, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Wellcome Sanger Institute
Cambridge, UK

Juan Yan, PhD
Senior Research Scientist, HOPP
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA

Yanhong Yang, PhD
Senior Scientist, SKI Neurosurgery
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
New York, NY, USA

Jinghui Zhang, PhD
Chair, Department of Computational Biology
Endowed Chair of Bioinformatics
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Memphis, TN, USA

Symposium Peer Reviewer 

Oriana Miltiadous, MD
Assistant Attending, Department of Pediatrics
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Symposium Planning and Support

Gabriella Casalena, PhD
Scientific Research Manager

Colleen Maher
Senior Program Manager 

Mitigation of Relevant Financial Relationships

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center adheres to the ACCME’s Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited Continuing Education. Any individuals in a position to control the content of a CE activity, including faculty, planners, reviewers, or others are required to disclose all financial relationships with ineligible companies (commercial interests). All relevant financial relationships have been mitigated prior to the commencement of the activity.