Report: American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) to host virtual Annual Meeting, October 25-28

ARLINGTON, Va., July 9, 2020 — Registration opens today for the American Society for Radiation Oncology’s (ASTRO) 62nd Annual Meeting, to be held October 25-28, 2020 via an interactive virtual platform. The meeting, Global Oncology: Radiation Therapy in a Changing World, will feature reports from the latest clinical trials; panels on global oncology, health disparities and the novel coronavirus; and an immersive attendee experience in a virtual convention center. Media resources are available at http://www.astro.org/astro2020press, and attendee registration is available at http://www.astro.org/annualmeeting.

Originally planned as an on-site meeting in Miami, the ASTRO 2020 Annual Meeting was moved to a web-based platform due to safety concerns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Given the large volume of new science to be unveiled, the content will be available for 30 days after the meeting ends.

“Cancer doesn’t wait, even during a pandemic. With the health and safety of cancer patients in mind, we chose to invest in an interactive platform so that we can offer attendees a complete meeting experience,” said ASTRO President Thomas J. Eichler, MD, FASTRO. “Attendees will be able to engage with each other on live video and chat platforms and access more than 2,500 abstracts. We will have live, on-demand and interactive sessions to showcase the latest research and best practices in cancer treatment. Recognizing that many meetings were cancelled or abbreviated this year, we enhanced our educational program and will have more than 200 hours of continuing medical education (CME) credits available for 30 days after the meeting ends.”

The meeting platform will include a digital rendering of the Miami Beach Convention Center that attendees can navigate to interact with other attendees and ASTRO leadership, visit networking lounges, participate in job interviews and attend live and on-demand sessions.

Additional highlights from the upcoming meeting include:

  • More than 2,500 abstract presentations, including a virtual poster hall with author narration and live Q&A, and more than 120 expert panels on topics such as COVID-19 and cancer treatment, implicit bias, immunotherapy, medical marijuana and patient safety
  • Cancer Breakthrough sessions where experts from ASCO, AACR, ESTRO and other leading medical societies will share the top advances in their fields from the past year
  • News briefings with live presentations of high-impact studies and Q&A with leading scientists (schedule to be announced in early October)
  • A keynote address from internationally renowned health economist Felicia M. Knaul, PhD, Director of the Institute for Advanced Study of the Americas at the University of Miami
  • A virtual Exhibit Hall where hundreds of exhibitors will offer product demonstrations and live discussions, as well as an Innovation Hub that will showcase new technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning

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General information about the meeting is available at http://www.astro.org/annualmeeting. For questions about the press program, press registration and interview rooms, contact ASTRO’s media relations team at [email protected] or 703-286-1600.

ABOUT ASTRO

The American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) is the world’s largest radiation oncology society, with more than 10,000 members who are physicians, nurses, biologists, physicists, radiation therapists, dosimetrists and other health care professionals who specialize in treating patients with radiation therapies. The Society is dedicated to improving patient care through professional education and training, support for clinical practice and health policy standards, advancement of science and research, and advocacy. ASTRO publishes three medical journals, International Journal of Radiation Oncology * Biology * Physics, Practical Radiation Oncology and Advances in Radiation Oncology; developed and maintains an extensive patient website, RT Answers; and created the nonprofit foundation Radiation Oncology Institute. To learn more about ASTRO, visit astro.org or RTanswers.org, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.

TDnews

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