AFAR: 2008 Aging and Cancer Conference

An American Federation for Aging Research Conference

October 6 and 7, 2008
Union League Club
38 East 37th Street
New York City

A potentially powerful approach to understanding the role of aging in the genesis of neoplasia is comparative gerontology. The rates at which cancers occur are tightly coupled to the rates of intrinsic biological aging. New insights concerning one of these processes will therefore inform us about the nature of the other process.

This two-day conference will explore fundamental aspects of aging and cancer processes and their interactions. Speakers will examine: genetic and epigenetic changes, environmental influences, and host factors such as oxidative stress and cell death. The evolutionary, cellular and molecular relationships among aging, tumor suppressor mechanisms and the development of cancer as well as the interactions of normal aging cells, stem cells and differences in the manifestation of cancer in young and old will also be discussed. Speakers will report on topics such as telomere biology; nuclear processes such as DNA damage, repair, replication, recombination and transcription; and relevant aspects of mitochondrial structure and function. The goal will be to elucidate genetic and epigenetic alterations that lead to aging and cancer phenotypes.

Recent applications in translational research will also be emphasized. Scientists from industry will discuss product development advances in diagnostic and therapeutic areas, such as the use of magnetic resonance probes, radiopharmaceuticals, and optical probes, new chemotherapeutic agents, and methods to reduce cancer treatment side effects. Novel approaches to therapy will also be highlighted, particularly how they might apply to interventions in the geriatric population.

12:00 - 3:00 pm
National Cancer Institute-National Institute on Aging: Aging and Cancer Research Program Grants - Five-Year Results Report
Moderated by Richard Hodes, MD, Director, National Institute on Aging

8:30 - 8:45 am
Welcome and Introduction
George M. Martin, MD, University of Washington School of Medicine, and Scientific Director, American Federation for Aging Research

8:45 - 9:15 am
Opening Keynote: The Challenges and Opportunities of an Aging Society
John W. Rowe, MD, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University

9:15 am - 12:30 pm
SESSION I - Aging and Cancer: The View from the Bench
Moderator: Terrie Fox Wetle, PhD, Brown University and President, American Federation for Aging Research

Cancer and Aging/Overview of Current Research
Judith Campisi, PhD, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

Evolution of Cancer and Aging
Steven Austad, PhD, University of Texas Health Science Center, Barshop Center for Longevity & Aging Studies

Lecture on Mitochondrial Damage; title to be determined
Lawrence A. Loeb, MD, PhD, University of Washington

Regulation of Stem Cell Functionality in Aging Tissues
Thomas Rando, MD, PhD, Stanford University

Senescence in Cancer and Aging
Norman Sharpless, MD, University of North Carolina School of Medicine

Acknowledgement of Winners of AFAR-GE Healthcare Junior Investigator Award for Excellence in Cancer-Aging Research

1:45 - 2:30 pm
Keynote Presentation
The Relationship Between Telomeres and Aging
Jack Griffith, PhD, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

2:30 - 3:00 pm
The Bridge/Translation Applications
This discussion will explore how learning more about the basic mechanisms that underlie the process of aging might inform our ability to develop approaches to diagnosis and therapy for cancer on one hand, and how learning more about the basic mechanisms of neoplasia might better inform our development of approaches to understanding and ameliorating the functional decline associated with aging, on the other.

Cancer and Aging: What Can We Learn from Flipping the Coin?
Harvey Jay Cohen, MD, Duke University Medical Center

3:00 - 4:30 pm
Session II – A Discussion with Industry - Roundtable
Increased communication between investigators actively engaged in research at the aging/cancer interface, with their counterparts in industry, should be helpful to both groups. AFAR hopes that the industry panel will use the morning’s research presentations as a springboard to serious discussion of the contributions industry could make to aging/cancer research and, equally important, the ways in which the research community could interact more productively with industry.

Call for Submissions: AFAR-GE Healthcare Junior Investigator Award for Excellence in Cancer-Aging Research

This award will recognize the most innovative research related to the interface between cancer and the biology of aging. Only applications that deal with how basic mechanisms in the biology of aging "set the stage" for the emergence of cancer or how such mechanisms can serve to enhance early diagnosis and treatment will be considered. Eligible applicants include those that are no more than 5-years post-doctoral by October 6, 2008. Four prizes of $1,500 will be awarded plus reimbursement for travel expenses (up to $500). More information can be found here.

There are a limited number of travel and hotel stipends for medical and PhD students, post-doctoral fellows and junior faculty who wish to attend the conference. To apply, please submit a CV to: American Federation for Aging Research, 55 West 39th Street, 16th floor, New York, NY 10018, c/o Veronica Smith or via email at info@afar.org.

There is no charge for this event but space is limited and registration is required. Please register early!

AFAR is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to support biomedical research on aging. It is devoted to creating the knowledge that all of us need to live healthy, productive, and independent lives. Since 1981, AFAR has awarded approximately $100 million to more than 2,400 talented scientists as part of its broad-based series of grant programs. Its work has led to significant advances in our understanding of aging processes, age-related diseases, and healthy aging practices. AFAR communicates news of these innovations through its organizational web site www.afar.org and educational web sites Infoaging (www.infoaging.org) and Health Compass (www.healthcompass.org).