The European Association for Cancer Research has scheduled a virtual conference for January 19–20, 2027, to examine why certain individuals and tissues remain cancer-free despite high-risk conditions. The event, titled Mechanisms of Cancer Avoidance: From Cells to Communities, brings together researchers from cancer biology, immunology, epidemiology, and prevention to study natural resistance to the disease.
Exploring Natural Resistance in Exceptional Populations
Prevention remains one of the greatest unmet needs in oncology, according to program details released by the European Association for Cancer Research. While most studies focus on causes and treatments, this upcoming meeting pivots to an underexplored question: why certain people exposed to established genetic and environmental risk factors never develop cancer. The scientific program highlights exceptional groups, including centenarians living to 100 without a single malignancy, people who smoke for decades without ever getting lung cancer, and twins discordant for cancer.
Co-chaired by Jyoti Nangalia of the Wellcome Sanger Institute in the UK and Paul Bastard of the University of Paris INSERM in France, the conference also features contributions from Chi Van Dang of the Ludwig Institute Johns Hopkins in the USA and Kamila Naxerova of Harvard Medical School in the USA. These researchers aim to uncover how specific cells within at-risk tissues protect against cancer.
Core Scientific Themes and Immune Surveillance
The virtual agenda covers a broad range of biological systems and profiling technologies. Scheduled sessions address cancer resistance mechanisms in both normal and tumor tissue, immune surveillance, and autoantibody biology as a modulator of tumour biology. Experts will also evaluate cohort science, systems biology approaches, and novel biomarker discovery aimed at shaping future prevention strategies.
Targeted participants include both early-career and senior investigators working in academic and industrial settings across tumor immunology, cancer epidemiology, and ageing and immunology. Organizers intend the meeting to bridge basic science with translational and clinical perspectives, incorporating patient’s perspective into discussions about lifelong resistance.
Research Insight
Studying centenarians and smoking non-developers could unlock entirely new frameworks for cancer prevention by revealing how the human body acts as a natural shield against cancer.
Frequently Asked Questions About the 2027 Event
When is the Mechanisms of Cancer Avoidance conference taking place?
The virtual conference runs from January 19 to January 20, 2027.
Who is organizing the event?
The European Association for Cancer Research is organizing the meeting, with scientific program co-chairs Jyoti Nangalia and Paul Bastard.
What populations are central to the conference focus?
Researchers will study exceptional groups such as centenarians without malignancies, smoking non-developers, and twins discordant for cancer.
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