SAB Chair David Tuveson, MD, PhD, Chief Scientist of the Lustgarten Foundation and Director of the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Cancer Center, led the meeting, which featured presentations and discussions from world-renowned reasearchers leading each of the Foundation's six LABS (Lustgarten Advancing Breakthrough Science) including Elizabeth Jaffee, MD, Johns Hopkins, Tyler Jacks, PhD, MIT, Reuben Shaw, PhD, Salk Institute, Bert Vogelstein, MD, Johns Hopkins, and Brian Wolpin, MD, MPH, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, among others., Johns Hopkins, Tyler Jacks, PhD, MIT, Reuben Shaw, PhD, Salk Institute, Bert Vogelstein, MD, Johns Hopkins, and Brian Wolpin, MD, MPH, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, among others.
"The Lustgarten SAB meeting is where discovery meets direction," said David Tuveson, MD, PhD. "We come together to evaluate the science, identify the biggest opportunities, and accelerate the work that will change patient's lives. This year, the momentum in the field was unmistakable."
Over the course of two days of in-depth sessions, attendees shared insights from Lustgarten Foundation's LABS program, which provides long-term funding to promote the development of innovative ideas and speed the pace of discovery by incentivizing interdisciplinary team science. The agenda also spotlighted emerging investigators through presentations by Christina Towers, PhD, Salk Institute, and Tracy Liu, PhD, West Virginia University, recipients of the Foundation's Ruth Bader Ginsburg and John Robert Lewis Career Development Awards, a program designed to foster the next generation of pancreatic cancer researchers.
The 2025 meeting focused heavily on KRAS-driven pancreatic cancer. Discussions explored breakthroughs in KRAS inhibitors, combination therapies, and clinical trial design - all aimed at advancing the most promising science from the lab bench to the clinic faster. Andy Aguirre, MD, PhD, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Ken Olive, PhD, Columbia University, Ron Evans, PhD, Salk Institute, and Anirban Maitra, MBBS, NYU, led sessions about new therapeutic strategies and opportunities for collaboration across the field.
"The Scientific Advisory Board meeting showcases exactly what makes the Lustgarten Foundation unique - our ability to bring together the brightest minds in pancreatic cancer research to share findings, challenge ideas, and collectively accelerate progress," said Linda Tantawi, CEO of the Lustgarten Foundation. "Every conversation held at this table brings us closer to new treatments and, ultimately, to saving lives."
The meeting concluded with a strategic roadmap outlining new funding opportunities to investigate and advance novel therapeutic combinations. Through these initiatives, the Lustgarten Foundation continues to support high-impact research to transform pancreatic cancer into a curable disease.
About Lustgarten Foundation
The Lustgarten Foundation is the largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research in the world, funding preeminent pancreatic cancer researchers, driving the pursuit of bold and innovative science toward earlier detection and better treatments, and transforming pancreatic cancer into a curable disease. The Foundation funds research where creative risks yield high rewards to accelerate and expand life-saving treatment options. We believe time is everything to patients and their families, and that community is power. Lustgarten programs and events provide people affected by pancreatic cancer a voice and a place to create hope, together. For more information about the Lustgarten Foundation, visit lustgarten.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
SOURCE Lustgarten Foundation
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