The IASLC named four thoracic oncology experts to co-chair the WCLC26

IASLC (The International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer) shared a post on X:

“Press Release: The IASLC named 4 thoracic oncology experts to co-chair the WCLC26, to be held September 12-15, 2026 in Seoul, South Korea: Myung-Ju Ahn, MD, PhD, Wentao Fang, MD, Jiraporn Setakornnukul, MD, PhD, & Yasushi Yatabe MD, PhD.

Learn More.”

Myung-Ju Ahn

Myung-Ju Ahn is a Professor of Hemato-Oncology at Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine in Seoul, Korea. She is an active member and leader in various cancer research organizations, including ISLCA, AACR and ASCO. Ahn also chairs the Multidisciplinary Immuno-oncology Study Group and is the President of the Korean Society of Medical Oncology. She serves as Chief of the Executive Committee at the Korean Cancer Study Group and Chairperson of the Lung Cancer Disease Committee. Her research focuses on developing predictive and prognostic markers for lung cancer, advancing drug discovery, and creating a genome atlas for non-small cell lung cancer.

Wentao Fang

Wentao Fang, M.D. is the Deputy Chief of the Department of Thoracic Surgery and Chief of the Division of Mediastinal Surgery at Shanghai Chest Hospital, as well as Chief Director of the Clinical Center for Esophageal Diseases at Jiaotong University.

Prof. Fang specializes in minimally invasive thoracic surgery, pulmonary resections, systemic lymph node dissection for esophageal cancer, and thymectomy. He is involved in several professional organizations, including ITMIG, IASLC, and ISDE, and serves on various editorial boards, including as Associate Editor of the Journal of Thoracic Diseases. He also reviews for journals like Cancer and the Journal of Thoracic Oncology.

Yasushi Yatabe

Dr. Yasushi Yatabe is the Chief of the Department of Diagnostic Pathology and the Division of Molecular Pathology. His research focuses on thoracic malignancies, including lung cancer, thymoma, and mesothelioma, with a strong emphasis on biomarkers and translational research.

His expertise lies in anatomic and molecular pathology, particularly in thoracic oncology. Dr. Yatabe has made significant contributions to the field, serving as a chapter editor for the WHO Classification of Tumors of the Lung, Pleura, Thymus, and Heart in 2015 and 2021. He was the Past Chair of the Pathology Panel for the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer from 2015 to 2017 and also co-chaired the CAP/IASLC/AMP molecular testing guidelines during the same period.