Session Abstract – PMWC 2018 Silicon Valley
Session Synopsis: Cancer vaccines – a growing area in immunotherapy – boost the body’s natural immune system to fight cancer. Not only have these approaches shown to destroy cancer cells and thus stop a tumor from growing and spreading, there also is the promise to prevent cancer from coming back through the immune memory function. This session will dive into the safety and feasibility of creating tailored cancer vaccines that are personalized to an individual’s tumor.
Speaker Profile
M.D., Ph.D., Co-founder and CEO, BioNTech AG
Biography
Ugur key focus is translating scientific ideas into innovations that help individual patients, an interest that was originally prompted by his experiences as a trained physician. Ugur has received prestigious awards from the German Hemato-Oncology Association, the German Association for Immunology, the German Ministry of Education and Research, and the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Ugur is a co-founder of Ganymed Pharmaceuticals, a co-founder and chair of the translational research institute TRON, and a co-founder of the CI3- Rhein-Main Cluster for Individualized Immune Intervention.
Speaker Profile
M.D., Ph.D., President & CEO, Gritstone Oncology
Biography
Andrew Allen is a Co-Founder of Gritstone Oncology, a next-generation immuno-oncology company focusing on identifying and deploying mutation-derived tumor-specific neoantigens (TSNA) for the treatment of cancer. Such neoantigens are largely unique to each patient. TSNA are critical cancer targets for the immune system, and for vaccines they offer the prospect of minimal pre-existing immune tolerance and low likelihood of cross-reactivity with normal tissues. Dr. Allen has worked in cancer biotechnology companies since 2002, primarily in R&D roles, and also worked at McKinsey & Company advising life science companies on strategic issues. Allen trained in Medicine at Oxford University and obtained a Ph.D. in Immunology at Imperial College, London. He currently serves on the board of directors of Epizyme (NASDAQ: EPZM), Cell Design Labs (San Francisco, CA) and Revitope (San Francisco, CA).
Speaker Profile
Ph.D., Professor, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology and Head of Cancer Vaccines Group, Human Longevity
Biography
Dr. Schoenberger is a Professor in the Laboratory of Cellular Immunology at the La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology, Adjunct Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Oncology at the UCSD Moores Cancer Center, and Co-Director of the San Diego Center for Personalized Cancer Immunotherapy. He received his Ph.D. in Microbiology and Molecular Genetics from UCLA in 1993 and completed postdoctoral training in Immunohematology and Tumor Immunology at the University of Leiden in The Netherlands. Dr. Schoenberger was appointed to LIAI’s faculty in 1998 as an Assistant Professor, was promoted to Associate Professor in 2002, gained Tenure in 2005, and became a Professor in 2007. He is a recipient of Scholar Awards from both The American Cancer Society and The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. In 2015 he joined Human Longevity Inc as Head of their Cancer Vaccines program.
