28 August, 2018

ASH 2018 TRAVEL GRANTS & UNTANGLING AMYLOIDOSIS 2018 FSS Announcement

Two big announcements!

FIRST: 

All are invited to attend the UNTANGLING AMYLOIDOSIS 2018 Friday Satellite Symposium (UA2018ASH) prior to the American Society of Hematology 2018 Annual Meeting, on Friday, November 30, 2018. 7:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. SDCC - Room 28 A-D. 

At our first Untangling Amyloidosis FSS in 2015, we reviewed principles of diagnosis, staging, and management of AL amyloidosis, and also discussed emerging anti-fibril and RNAi therapies for AL and ATTR amyloidosis. Now, at UA2018ASH we revisit these topics and more. We will examine advances and setbacks in the treatment of AL amyloidosis, including the use of monoclonal antibodies; the results of landmark trials in ATTR therapy which have already resulted in the first FDA approved therapy for ATTR amyloidosis (and likely two others in the near future!); adjunctive therapy for AL and ATTR cardiac amyloidosis; and clinical trial design in the current amyloidosis research landscape. 

Our esteemed speaker list includes: 

Giovanni Palladini, MD, PhD
Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo
Pavia, Italy

Suzanne Lentzsch, MD, PhD
Columbia University
New York, NY, United States

Ashutosh Wechalekar, MBBS, DM
University College London Medical School Royal Free Campus
London, United Kingdom

Jeffrey Zonder, MD
Karmanos Cancer Institute
Detroit, MI, United States

Teresa Coelho, MD
Hospital Santo Ant?nio
Porto, Portugal

John Berk, MD
Boston University School of Medicine
Boston, MA, United States

This CME conference will be live streamed for those unable to attend the live event, and will also be archived for future online viewing and CME credits. Details on that to follow. 

SECOND:

Thanks to the generosity of the Amyloidosis Foundation, we are pleased to offer four travel grants related to UA2018ASH. 

Eligible applicants include medical students, residents, or fellows with an interest in amyloidosis, as well as individuals in the midst of completing a PhD in cancer biology or another field related to amyloidosis.  If the applicant is the first or last author on an abstract focusing on any topic directly related to amyloidosis submitted for presentation at the ASH 2018 Annual Mtg, s/he is encouraged to include that information with their application. 

Applicants must apply via email (zonderj@gmail.com) by 5 pm EST, Sunday, September 30th, 2018. The email must include the applicant's full name, contact information (phone and email), current academic affiliation, training director/research supervisor contact information (phone and email), and a proposed article for an online amyloidosis journal club session. The applicant is strongly encouraged to explain why s/he feels the proposed article merits inclusion for the journal club. Applications will be reviewed by a selection committee (Andrew Kin, MD, Karmanos Cancer Institute; Vaishali Sanchorawala, MD, Boston University; Sascha Tuchman, MD, University of North Carolina). Four proposals will be selected based on the chosen article and rationale for selecting the article, with consideration of the applicant's demonstrated interest in amyloidosis (related publications, research projects, lecture presentations, etc). Awardees will be announced by Sunday, October 7th, 2018. 

It is expected that selected awardees will co-moderate an online journal club session related to their article on one of the four following dates: October 28, November 4th, November 11th, and November 18th, 2018. Each session will be co-moderated by Dr. Jeffrey Zonder, one of the selection committee members, or another amyloidosis researcher TBD. The awardee will work with his/her co-moderator to develop the content for the journal club ahead of the actual online session. All awardees are encouraged to participate in each of the four online journal club sessions (though each will co-moderate only one session).  Additionally, each awardee is REQUIRED to attend the Untangling Amyloidosis 2018 FSS on Friday, November 20th, 2018. Grant awardees will be recognized at the symposium. Awardees will be asked to "tweet" or otherwise post online commentary/content related to the symposium in real time at the event. 

Awardees who complete the online journal club activity and attend the Untangling Amyloidosis 2018 FSS will be provided UP TO 5 (FIVE) NIGHTS HOTEL ACCOMMODATION AT THE CROWN PLAZA SAN DIEGO (THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 29th THROUGH TUESDAY, DECEMBER 4th) and will be reimbursed for ONE COACH CLASS AIRLINE TICKET and the REGISTRATION FEE FOR THE ASH 2018 MEETING

Please share this information widely! The application deadline is absolute, and the clock is ticking. This is a great opportunity for trainees interested in amyloidosis, and it is great pleasure for all of us involved in the symposium, the grant committee, and the journal club to meet and work with younger colleagues.