Agenda

Friday, January 30, 2026

CME/CNE-accredited patient & caregiver program

7:00 am - 4:20 pm EST

In person or virtually
Rubenstein Auditorium | Smilow Center for Translational Research
3400 Civic Center Boulevard, Philadelphia, PA 19104

Register Now

7:00 am

IN-PERSON: Check In, Breakfast, Visit Exhibits and Experts

7:30 am

VIRTUAL: Log in to Virtual Conference

7:40 am

Educational Meeting Begins – Welcome Address and Introduction

Nduka M. Amankulor, MD  |  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery
Steven Brem, MD  |  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery
Daniel Yoshor, MD  |  Neurosurgery
Robert H. Vonderheide, MD, DPhil   |  Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania

SCIENTIFIC SESSION I: ADVANCES IN MOLECULAR PROFILING AND NEUROIMAGING

MODERATOR:  Steven Brem, MD  |  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery

8:00 am

KEYNOTE ADDRESS: From Methylation to Management: Precision Decisions for Brain Metastases and Meningioma

Gelareh Zadeh, MD, PhD | Neurosurgery| Mayo Clinic

8:30 am

Dynamic Diagnostics in Gliomas: The Role of Molecular Profiling and AI/ML

MacLean Nasrallah, MD, PhD  |  Pathology & Laboratory Medicine

8:40 am

Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) in Glioblastoma: What’s Actionable in the Clinic?

Jennifer J.D. Morrissette, PhD  |  Pathology & Laboratory Medicine

8:50 am

From Pixels to Prognosis: RANO 2.0 and Advances in Neuro(oncologic)imaging for Clinical Decision Making

Suyash Mohan, MD, PDCC  |  Activity Co-Director  |  Radiology

9:05 am

Amino Acid PET in Neuro Oncology: Advantages and Challenges

Ali Nabavizadeh, MD  |  Radiology

9:15 am

Q & A Panel Discussion

MODERATOR: Steven Brem, MD  |  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery

PANEL: 

Suyash Mohan, MD, PDCC  |  Activity Co-Director  |  Radiology
Jennifer J.D. Morrissette, PhD  |  Pathology & Laboratory Medicine
Ali Nabavizadeh, MD  |  Radiology
MacLean Nasrallah, MD, PhD  |  Pathology & Laboratory Medicine 
Gelareh Zadeh, MD, PhD | Neurosurgery | Mayo Clinic

9:35 am

Stories of Patient Survivors: Navigating the Health Care System, Finding Information, Clinical Trials, Innovation, and Hope

Kaileen M. Bevenour, PA-C  |  Neuro-Oncology
Elizabeth Heisler, PA-C  |  Neuro-Oncology
Arbena Merolli Trettin, MSW  |  Neurosurgery
Meghan O'Neill, CRNP  |  Medical Oncology

10:05 am

Special Town Hall Meeting with Drs. Steven Brem, Nduka Amankulor and Arati Desai for Patients, Caregivers, & Family Members

Nduka M. Amankulor, MD  |  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery
Steven Brem, MD  |  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery
Arati Desai, MD | Activity Co-Director | Neuro-Oncology

10:25 am

Break / Visit Exhibits / Chat with Experts

SCIENTIFIC SESSION II: IMMUNOTHERAPY IN NEURO-ONCOLOGY

MODERATOR: Nduka M. Amankulor, MD | Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery

10:40 am

Recent and Ongoing Immunotherapy Clinical Trials for GBM

Stephen J. Bagley, MD, MSCE | Activity Co-Director  |  Hematology Oncology

10:55 am

History and Current State of the Penn CAR-T Cell Program for GBM

Zev Binder, MD, PhD   |  Neurosurgery

11:10 am

Biomarkers in Immuno-Oncology: Road to Personalized Immunotherapy

Christina Jackson, MD   |  Neurosurgery

11:25 am

From Data to Decisions: Genomics-Guided Surgery and Immunotherapy for Gliomas

Nduka M. Amankulor, MD    | Activity Director | Neurosurgery

11:40 am

Q & A Panel Discussion

MODERATOR: Nduka M. Amankulor, MD  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery

PANEL: 

Linda J. Bagley, MD | Radiology
Stephen J. Bagley, MD, MSCE  |  Activity Co-Director  |  Hematology Oncology
Zev Binder, MD, PhD   |  Neurosurgery
Eric B. Hintz, MD  | Lancaster General Health
Christina Jackson, MD   |  Neurosurgery

12:00 pm Lunch / Visit Exhibits / Chat with Experts

SCIENTIFIC SESSION III: PROGRESS IN THE TREATMENT OF MALIGNANT GLIOMAS

Moderator: Suyash Mohan, MD, PDCC  |  Activity Co-Director  |  Radiology

1:00 pm

KEYNOTE ADDRESS: INDIGO Lessons: Who and When to Treat with Vorasidenib

Timothy F.  Cloughesy, MD | Neuro-Oncology | UCLA

1:30 pm

Epigenetic Mechanisms in Glioma: Translating DMG Biology to Novel Treatments

1:45 pm

Medical (and Symptom) Management of Patients with Brain Tumors: A Practical Toolkit

Amy A. Pruitt, MD  |  Neurology

2:00 pm

Q & A Panel Discussion

MODERATOR: Juan Pablo Ospina Botero, MD   | Neuro-Oncology

PANEL: 
Timothy F.  Cloughesy, MD   | Neuro-Oncology | UCLA
Richard E. Phillips, MD, PhD | Neuro-Oncology 
Amy A. Pruitt, MD  |  Neurology

2:15 pm Break / Visit Exhibits / Chat with Experts

SCIENTIFIC SESSION IV: ADVANCES IN PRECISION NEURO-ONCOLOGY

MODERATOR: Goldie A. Kurtz, MD  |  Activity Co-Director | Radiation Oncology

2:35 pm

Updates in Liquid Biopsy for Brain Tumors

Stephen J. Bagley, MD, MSCE |  Activity-Co-Director  |  Hematology Oncology

2:50 pm

Protons, Photons, and FLASH: Advances in Radiation Therapy That Matter for Patients

Emily Lebow, MD  |  Radiation Oncology

3:05 pm

Updates in the Targeted and Immunological Treatment of Brain Metastases

Tara C. Mitchell, MD  |  Hematology Oncology

3:20 pm

Translating Technology to Clinical Trials & Survivorship

Steven Brem, MD  |  Activity Director | Neurosurgery

3:35 pm

Intraoperative Molecular Imaging of Brain Tumors: Seeing the Unseen

John Y.K. Lee, MD, MSCE  |  Neurosurgery

3:50 pm

Q & A Panel Discussion

MODERATOR: Goldie A. Kurtz, MD  |  Activity Co-Director | Radiation Oncology

PANEL: 

Stephen J. Bagley, MD, MSCE |  Activity-Co-Director  |  Hematology Oncology
Steven Brem, MD |  Activity Director  |  Neurosurgery 
Emily Lebow, MD  |  Radiation Oncology
John Y.K. Lee, MD, MSCE  |  Neurosurgery
Tara C. Mitchell, MD  |  Medical Oncology

4:10 pm

Concluding Remarks

4:20 pm Conference Adjourns