SITC Neoadjuvant Initiatives

Neoadjuvant IO therapies can enhance systemic antitumor immunity, prevent relapse after surgery, and facilitate research into biomarkers of response and resistance to immune checkpoint blockade.

Despite global progress and several regulatory approvals since 2021, many questions remain. Chaired by Sapna Patel, MD and Suzanne Topalian, MD, FAIO, the SITC Neoadjuvant Task Force aims to address four critical areas:

Clinical Trial Design

Optimal clinical trial design to test perioperative treatment regimens

Learn more >

Surgical Considerations

Surgical considerations across and between different cancer types

Learn more >

Disease Specific Concerns

Disease-specific considerations for optimizing systemic treatment

Learn more >

Scientific Opportunities

How best to leverage scientific opportunities

Learn more >

Neoadjuvant Task Force Leaders and Initiatives

Sapna Patel, MD

Neoadjuvant Task Force Co-Chair

Sapna Patel, MD
University of Colorado Cancer Center

Suzanne Topalian, MD, FAIO

Neoadjuvant Task Force Co-Chair

Suzanne Topalian, MD, FAIO
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy

Clinical Trial Design Working Group

Understanding optimal clinical trial design to test perioperative treatment regimens.


Patrick Forde, MD

Chair

Patrick Forde, MD
Trinity College Dublin

Topic Areas

  • Neoadj ± adjuvant vs adjuvant only
  • Adaptive post-surgical tx
  • Neoadj regimen A vs B
  • Neoadjuvant only vs perioperative
  • Platform trials, endpoints

2025 Initiative

Virtual Summit focusing on contribution of phases across tumor types and endpoints

Working Group Members

Patrick Forde, MD (Chair)
Trinity College, Dublin

Tina Cascone, MD, PhD
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Andrea Ferris, MBA
LUNGevity

Italia Grenga, MD, PhD
AstraZeneca

Erin Larkins, MD
FDA

Jason Luke, MD, FACP
UPMC Hillman Cancer Center

Grainne O’Kane, MB, BCH, BAO, MRCPI, MD
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Solange Peters, MD, PhD
CHUV Lausanne

Mark Yarchoan, MD
Johns Hopkins University

Surgical Considerations Working Group

Addressing surgical considerations across and between different cancer types.


Charlotte E. Ariyan, MD, PhD

Chair

Charlotte E. Ariyan, MD, PhD
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center

Topic Areas

  • Pre-neoadjuvant planning: surgical field marker or no marker?
  • Timing of surgery
  • Extent of surgery after neoadjuvant: integration with imaging, difficulties, and opportunities for de-escalation

2025 Initiative

Manuscript addressing the ideal timing of surgery after neoadjuvant therapy, perioperative toxicity, and pathologic and radiologic response to neoadjuvant therapy

Working Group Members

Charlotte Ariyan, MD, PhD (Chair)
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center

Clint Allen, MD
NIH/NCI

Georgia Beasley, MD, MHSc
Duke University

Genevieve Boland, MD, PhD
Massachusetts General Hospital

Stephen Broderick, MD, MPHS
Johns Hopkins Medicine

Ari Hakimi, MD
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center

Elizabeth Mittendorf, MD, PhD, MHCM
Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center

Sangeetha Prabhakaran, MD, FACS
University of New Mexico

Jonathan Spicer, MD, PhD
McGill University

Disease-specific Concerns Working Group

Discussing disease-specific considerations for optimizing systemic treatment.


Reinhard Dummer, MD

Chair

Reinhard Dummer, MD
University Hospital of Zurich

Topic Areas

  • Patient selection
  • Critical anatomic tumor locations
  • Poor IO responding tumors
  • Duration of neoadj treatment
  • Optimal treatment combinations

2025 Initiative

Recorded panel of experts discussing similarities and differences in neoadjuvant treatment approaches and opportunities for sharing lessons across disease specialists

Working Group Members

Reinhard Dummer, MD (Chair)
University Hospital of Zurich

Neil Gross, MD, FACS
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Lucie Heinzerling, MD, PhD, MPH
University Hospital, LMU Munich, Germany

Marleen Kok, MD, PhD
Netherlands Cancer Institute

James Larkin, MD, PhD
Royal Marsden Hospital

Natasha Leighl, MD, MSc, BSc 
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network

Thomas Powles, MBBS, MD, MRCP
Queen Mary University of London, Barts Cancer Institute

Caroline Robert, MD, PhD
Institut Gustave Roussy

Scientific Opportunities Working Group

Maximizing scientific opportunities in neoadjuvant IO clinical trials.


Kellie N. Smith, PhD

Chair

Kellie N. Smith, PhD
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Topic Areas

  • MRD and ctDNA-guided interventions
  • Tumor intrinsic/extrinsic mechanisms of resistance
  • Biomarker discovery & development; path resp optimization
  • Infrastructure & operational hurdles to scientific progress & discovery
  • Big data considerations (including data sharing & integration) & algorithm development

2025 Initiative

Manuscript addressing maximizing correlative studies in neoadjuvant IO trials for basic science discoveries and biomarker development

Working Group Members

Kellie Smith, PhD (Chair)
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine

Valsamo Anagnostou, MD, PhD
Johns Hopkins University

Christian Blank, MD, PhD
The Netherlands Cancer Institute

Tricia Cottrell, MD, PhD
Queen’s University Canada

Laura van ’t Veer, PhD
University of California, San Francisco

Linghua Wang, MD, PhD
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center