Fall 2025 SWOG Group Meeting

Disclaimer for Recording Open Group Meeting Sessions

By participating in the open sessions, you acknowledge and agree to the following: (1) The meetings will be recorded for documentation and reference purposes, (2) Participants may be recorded during the meeting, including their audio and video, (3) The recordings will be made available online for SWOG members to view after the meeting, (4) Additionally, the recordings may be used and posted online as part of enduring training materials, (5) If you do not wish to be recorded, please inform the meeting organizer (meetings@swog.org) before the session begins or disconnect from the meeting.

Your participation implies consent to these terms.

• Meeting Agenda Book
  • The agenda book will be provided in PDF form only. Printed agenda books will NOT be provided in Chicago.
  • A printed agenda pocket card/tri-fold brochure WILL be provided in Chicago.
  • A mobile app with meeting details will also be available for download to your phone or tablet in early April. App content will also be accessible via a standard web browser (no app installation needed).
• Continuing Medical Education credits will not be offered at the fall 2025 SWOG group meeting. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and we are working to minimize the impact of this change. We remain steadfast in our commitment to presenting the highest quality meeting content possible, including maintaining support and funding for valuable professional learning and networking. In addition, we will continue to broadcast numerous sessions virtually, as we understand the inherent value of sharing the work and achievements of SWOG members and their collaborators as widely as possible. Please direct any questions to info@thehopefoundation.org
• Exhibitor and Sponsorship Information: Exhibits will be held September 18-19 from 8:00 am - 5:00 pm. If you are interested in exhibiting or sponsorship opportunities, please view our prospectus here.
• Pharmaceutical Partners: We look forward to your participation at the SWOG 2025 Spring Group Meeting! SWOG has updated the registration policy to ensure we can maintain meetings of the highest caliber.  Pharma partners attending in person and not specifically invited to present as part of the group meeting agenda will be required to pay a per-person registration fee of $250.
  
  Please visit The Hope Foundation’s Group Meeting Registration Payment Page to make any necessary payments.  Payment can be made via credit card or check.  Questions can be directed to info@thehopefoundation.org.

Posting the meeting to social media? Please use the hashtag #swogonc.
 

Group Meeting and Travel Logistics

Airfare

Individuals are responsible for making their own flight arrangements to and from the Group Meeting.

Hotel Reservations

You can reserve your hotel room at the Hyatt Regency online or by calling 312-565-1234. When calling, ask for the SWOG room block. The Group room rate is $299 plus tax. The cut-off date for making reservations is August 15, 2025. Any reservations after that time will be based on rate and space availability. To cancel or change your Hyatt reservation, call 312-565-1234.

 

REAL ID

Beginning May 7, 2025, every air traveler 18 years of age and older will need a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license, state-issued enhanced driver’s license, or another acceptable form of ID to fly within the United States. If you are not sure if your ID complies with REAL ID, check with your state department of motor vehicles or visit this website

Need Special Accommodations?

If you need special arrangements or accommodations to fully participate in all Group Meeting functions, please contact the meetings manager at 210-614-8808, ext. 1009 after you register online.

​Group Meeting Funding/Travel Support

SWOG and The Hope Foundation provide funding to support travel for member CRAs and nurses and Modality and Discipline Investigators to attend the group’s semi-annual meetings. Committee funds are also available through The Hope Foundation to help support committee efforts at the group meetings that are not funded via the NCORP or NCTN grants.

For specific details and links to apply, please visit the Funding and Travel Support page: Group Meeting Funding/Travel Support | SWOG

Group Meeting Event Information

Plenary Session

The theme of this fall's plenary session is "13 Years of SWOG Plenaries: The more things change, ... the more things change!" It will take place Friday, September 19, 2:00 - 4:00 pm CT. 

Chair’s Welcome and Update
Charles D. Blanke, MD
SWOG Group Chair
Knight Cancer Institute, Oregon Health & Science University

 

Translational Medicine: Introduction
Lee M. Ellis, MD
SWOG Vice-Chair for Translational Medicine
Florida Atlantic University

• Breaking Barriers in SCLC: A Hope Foundation–Supported Clinical Trial to Reverse Immunotherapy Resistance in SCLC
  Sonam Puri, MD
  Moffitt Cancer Center 

• From Bench to Bedside to Breakthrough: AI-Accelerated Advances in Oncology and SWOG
  Sandip Patel, MD
  University of California – San Diego

General Plenary: 13 Years of SWOG Plenaries: The More Things Change, ... the More Things Change!
Charles D. Blanke, MD
SWOG Group Chair
Knight Cancer Institute, Oregon Health & Science University

• Advances in Clinical Cancer Research 2012-2025: Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer as a Model
  David Gandara, MD
  University of California – Davis

• Changes in Oncology TM Research
  James Rae, PhD
  SWOG Executive Officer for Translational Medicine
  University of Michigan

• The NCI and the NCTN: A Long and Winding Road
  Richard L. Schilsky, MD
  University of Chicago &
  Past Chair, Cancer and Leukemia Group B

NCORP Research Base Clinical Trials Workshop

Join us for the Annual SWOG NCORP Research Base Clinical Trials Workshop on Thursday, September 18 from 8:00 to 11:00 am CT.  SWOG members, clinical research professionals and investigators at NCTN and NCORP institutions are encouraged to attend the informative presentations and breakout session discussions. The presentation session for approximately the first hour will be hybrid for remote and in-person attendance, but breakout sessions will be held for in-person participation only.

The workshop provides information on conducting clinical trials in the following four SWOG Committees:

• Cancer Care Delivery
• Palliative Care
• Prevention, Screening, and Surveillance
• Symptom Management and Survivorship

Agenda     Session Handouts

This is an opportunity for information sharing between attendees and the SWOG NCORP Research Base staff, and other subject matter experts. Workshop presentations and topics differ from year to year.

(Society of Clinical Research Associates (SOCRA) continuing education credit is available.)

Hands-On Geriatric Assessment Workshop: Practical Tools for Age-Inclusive Cancer Research

This interactive workshop will introduce participants to the principles and application of the geriatric assessment (GA) and demonstrate how it can be included in the workflow of cancer clinical trials. Using a case-based format, attendees will gain hands-on experience with validated tools to assess key geriatric domains relevant to oncology research, including functional status, nutrition, social support, cognition, and chemotherapy toxicity risk. By the end of the session, participants will understand which tools are most appropriate for use in clinical trials and how geriatric assessment can help ensure that studies are more inclusive of older adults.

Take Action Symposium: Making the Case: Bridging the Gap in Clinical Research for Rural Communities

Combined Nursing Research Subcommittee & Advanced Practice Provider Task Force

The Nursing Research Subcommittee and Advanced Practice Provider Task Force meetings will be held jointly on Friday, September 19, 11:30 - 1:30 pm CT.  The meeting is open to Nurse Scientists and APPs interested in advancing collaborative research within the clinical trials network as principal and co-investigators and to Nurses interested in serving as Coordinators for studies involving unique or unfamiliar assessments and/or behavioral interventions. Additionally, our goals are to increase the representation and involvement of Nurse Scientists and Advanced Practice Nurses within SWOG serving as site investigators for DCP studies. If you are interested in attending (and are not on our email distribution list), please contact Co-Chairs: Jamie Myers, Chair, at jmyers@kumc.edu, or Christa Braun-Inglis at cbrauninglis@cc.hawaii.edu.

The Site Operations meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 18, 1:00 - 2:30 pm CT. 

It takes a village to lead research sites and make it possible for participants to enroll on trials. This special perspective is the focus of Site Operations, a subcommittee of the Oncology Research Professionals (ORP) Committee. A variety of practical topics will be discussed, including:

• SWOG statistical and operations updates
• NCI changes and new information
• SWOG quality assurance topics and questions

This meeting is open to everyone and provides an opportunity to hear updates and ask questions.  Please join us!

 

Jeri & Noboru Oishi Symposium

The Jeri & Noboru Oishi Symposium, held at every group meeting with support from The Hope Foundation for Cancer Research, is a key forum for continuing education of SWOG research site staff, nurses, clinical research associates, and other oncology research professionals, providing updates on group procedures and essential information about research data submission, oversight, monitoring expectations, quality improvement initiatives, flagship clinical trials, and much more. This fall's Oishi Symposium will be held Friday, September 19, 9:00 - 11:30 am CT. Information on topics and speakers will be posted here soon.

Oncology Research Professionals Open Forum

The ORP Open Forum is set for Friday, September 19, 12:00 - 1:30 pm CT. Please join us in-person to discuss topics in a small group setting.  Rotate among four 20-minute round table sessions of your choice to learn more about conducting SWOG trials, mitigating challenges, and implementing strategies with your facilitator and tablemates.

Please note we encourage in-person attendance as there will be no remote meeting links for this forum. Although recordings of the round table discussions will not be made, we will post handouts and facilitator contact details for each table topic to the SWOG website after the Group Meeting.

This meeting is open to everyone and provides an opportunity to hear updates and ask questions.  Please join us!