Samik Upadhaya, Director of Scientific Affairs at Cancer Research Institute (CRI), shared on LinkedIn:
“As I head back to NYC from SITC2026, my head is swirling with ideas, new science, fresh perspectives, and renewed connections. There’s a lot to unpack and write about, but a few things are fresh on my mind.
I was blown away by some of the spatial biology work and this theme of deciphering spatial context for cancer immunotherapy ran throughout the conference. As a side, Arutha Kulasinghe showing how modern technologies can reveal new biology from tissue preserved since the 1918 influenza pandemic was super cool.
And Carlo Bifulco’s work + vision on using AI to extract spatial information from routine pathology slides left me thinking about what’s becoming possible, and how we actually bring these advances into clinical practice…the future might be closer than we think!
I love T cells but there was lots to be excited about beyond T cells too. Eric Vivier’s Coley Award lecture on NK cells, Ido Amit’s work on myeloid therapeutics, and Mikala Egeblad’s fascinating research on neutrophils and metastasis.
I really loved Mikala’s story about how curiosity, a little boredom, and the unexpected circumstances of the pandemic helped set a new research direction in motion. A nice reminder of how science actually unfolds and the various twists and turns it takes which we often forget about.
And I keep coming back to the fun, friendly debate between Toni Ribas and Brian Brown about what really makes tumors respond to immunotherapy. Jennifer Guerriero, did a wonderful job moderating. We need more of these conversations that challenge how we think about ‘familiar biology’.
We abrought some of our own work too! My colleague Fahad Benthani, presented our brand-new landscape analysis of bispecific antibodies in oncology. It was great to have conversations with colleagues about the findings and hear different perspectives on where the field is going. We will have more to share soon!
And what a ‘STAR-studded’ meeting! Seven Cancer Research Institute (CRI) Lloyd J. Old STARs participating, along with so many CRI fellows, investigators, Scientific Advisory Council members, and friends across the field.
Between our CRI Conversations gathering with Eric Vivier and Yvonne Chen, celebrating the Coley Award, catching up with familiar faces, and some wonderful chance encounters, I was reminded again how special this community is.
The science is incredible, of course. But for me, it’s the people behind it, the conversations in the hallways, the unexpected connections, and the possibilities that come out of them that make these meetings worth attending in person.
Until next time!”
You can also read:
Samik Upadhaya Shares Key Takeaways from SITC 2026 in Phoenix