Join us this November for the Cancer Research UK Lung Cancer Centre of Excellence Conference. We’re bringing together an exceptional line-up of leading scientists and clinicians highlighting the most recent advances in lung cancer.

Themes include:

Lung Cancer Origins
SCLC Biology
Lung Cancer Immunotherapy
Optimising Radiotherapy
Lung Cancer & the Nervous System

Designed to foster meaningful discussion, expect thought-provoking talks, vibrant poster sessions and a buzzing atmosphere designed to spark collaboration and new ideas.

4th – 6th November 2026

The Midland Hotel
16 Peter St, Manchester M60 2DS

Conference Fees

Student £200

Postdoctoral Scientist, Bioinformatician,
Junior Scientists/Research Staff £300

Senior Scientist, PI, Group Leaders £350

Industry £750

Abstract Deadline:

5th September

Registration Deadline:

10th October

Register via this link

Conference Programme

Wednesday 4th November

11:30	Registration & lunch
13:00	Welcome by Caroline Dive and Charles Swanton
13:15 – 14:15	Keynote: Charles Rudin \| Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Insights and Opportunities in Small Cell Lung Cancer
14:15 – 16:15	Session 1: Lung Cancer Molecular Prevention and Interception
14:15	Sarah Blagden \| University of Oxford Learning from LungVax
14:40	William Hill \| CRUK Manchester Institute, University of Manchester Understanding Tumour Promotion by Air Pollutants
15:05	Abstract Speaker
15:20	James Reading \| UCL Cancer Institute Targeting Preinvasive T Cell Dysregulation for Lung Cancer Interception
15:45	Tej Pandya \| University College London Can we prevent lung cancer?
16:15	Break
16:30 – 18:30	Session 2: Optimising Radiotherapy
16:30	Corinne Faivre-Finn \| Christie NHS Foundation Trust/University of Manchester Beyond Conventional Trial Design: Novel Methodologies to optimise Radiotherapy
16:55	Philippe Lambin \| Maastricht University News from Maastricht in NSCLC: Results of a Randomized Phase II Immunocytokine Trials and the Emergence of Foundation Models
17:20	Abstract Speaker
17:35	Crispin Hiley \| University College London Hospitals Title TBC
18:00	Matthias Guckenberger \| University Hospital Zurich and University of Zurich Title TBC
18:30 – 19:30	Early Career Researchers Session: Meet the speakers

Thursday 5th November

08:30 – 09:00	Arrival Refreshments
09:00 – 10:30	Session 3: Lung Cancer Origins
09:00	Humam Kadara \| MD Anderson Decoding the origins of lung cancer: what the cell is going on?
09:25	Tuomas Tammela \| Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Epithelial injury programs in tumorigenesis and malignant plasticity.
09:50	Abstract Speaker
10:05	Herbert Schiller \| Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich From Transitional States to Tissue Landscapes in Health and Disease
10:30	Break
10:45	Sponsor Talk: Ultima Genomics
11:00 – 12:00	Flash Talks
12:00 – 13:00	Lunch
13:00 – 15:00	Session 4: Lung Cancer Immunology
13:00	Luis Paz-Ares \| National Oncology Research Center/Universidad Complutense de Madrid Enhancing Immunology Therapy in SCLC
13:25	Christine Lovly \| City of Hope Cancer Centre TBC
13:50	Abstract Speaker
14:05	Daniel Murphy \| Cancer Research UK Beatson Institute Investigating tumour:immune dynamics in autochthonous mouse models of lung cancer
14:30	Santiago Zelenay \| CRUK Manchester Institute, University of Manchester A COX-2-associated inflammatory signature predicts recurrence after lung cancer surgery
15:00	Break
15:30 – 18:00	Screening for Early Disease & Detection
15:30	Phil Crosbie \| University of Manchester Lung cancer screening in the UK – an update
15:55	Robert Rintoul \| University of Cambridge Second Primary Lung Cancer – the SPORT study
16:20	Patient Talks
16:45	Abstract Speaker
17:00	Daniel Muñoz-Espín \| University of Cambridge Ageing drives an immunosuppressive, senescent microenvironment promoting lung carcinogenesis.
17:25	Sam Janes \| University College London Hospitals The first steps to Squamous Cell Carcinoma
18:00 – 19:30	Poster Session
20:00	Conference Dinner

Friday 6th November

08:30	Tea & Coffee
09:00 – 10:00	Keynote: Mihaela van der Schaar \| University of Cambridge Title TBC
10:00 – 12:00	Session 6: Lung Cancer Biological Heterogeneity
10:00	Leanne Li \| The Francis Crick Institute Lung cancer and the nervous system
10:25	Thales Papagiannakopoulos \| NYU Langone Health Metabolic Mechanisms of Lung Cancer Progression
10:50	Abstract Speaker
11:05	Ramaswamy Govindan \| Washington University School of Medicine Proteogenomics of Lung Cancer: Bench to Bedside
11:30	Julien Sage \| Stanford University Intra-tumoral heterogeneity in small-cell lung cancer development and response to therapy
12:00 – 13:00	Lunch
13:00 – 15:00	Session 7: Small Cell Lung Cancer Biology
13:00	Trudy Oliver \| Duke School of Medicine Basal Origin and Lineage Trajectories of Small Cell Lung Cancer
13:25	Matthew G. Oser \| Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard Medical School Lineage States as Therapeutic Vulnerabilities and Drivers of Therapeutic Resistance in Lung Cancer
13:50	Abstract Speaker
14:05	Silvia von Karstedt \| University of Cologne Mechanisms of tumour cell plasticity during small cell lung cancer evolution
14:30	Kathryn Simpson \| CRUK Manchester Institute, University of Manchester Liver Metastasis in Small Cell Lung Cancer – one cell at a time
15:00	Closing Remarks and Awards
15:20	Conference End