The American Thoracic Society (ATS) 2025 International Conference is set to bring together more than 10,000 healthcare professionals from 85 countries in San Francisco, California, from May 18-21, 2025. The four-day event promises to deliver comprehensive coverage of the latest advances in pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine research.
Key Conference Highlights
The conference will feature a broad spectrum of scientific presentations, from basic science discoveries to late-breaking clinical trial results. According to Sandeep Sahay, MD, FCCP, Director of the Pulmonary Hypertension Program at Houston Methodist Hospital, the meeting's strength lies in its comprehensive approach.
"What I really like about ATS is that it provides a whole spectrum of insight, knowledge, from basic science to the clinical and the clinical trials," Dr. Sahay noted. "I'm looking forward to some interstitial lung disease clinical trial results, which probably will be presented soon at the ATS meeting and will publish simultaneously."
A notable addition to this year's conference is the Respiratory Innovation Summit, which aims to foster collaboration between scientific researchers and industry partners to accelerate the development of new therapeutics across various respiratory diseases.
Patient-Centered Initiatives
The 2025 conference will place significant emphasis on patient advocacy, with dedicated panels bringing together patients and scientific leaders. Dr. Sahay, who will participate in one such panel, highlighted the importance of these initiatives.
"I think these will be perfect and excellent opportunities for patients to express their viewpoints and the scientific leaders to learn from that, so that we can advance our patient management, patient care, and science in a more meaningful way, which is more relevant to our patients," he said.
The conference also offers robust mentoring programs designed to support early-career physicians, specialists, fellows, and residents, providing valuable career development opportunities.
Landmark Clinical Trials
Several high-profile clinical trials will present results at ATS 2025, potentially reshaping treatment approaches across multiple respiratory conditions:
Tezepelumab Studies
Two important analyses of tezepelumab, a human monoclonal antibody that blocks thymic stromal lymphopoietin, will be presented. The first examines its efficacy in patients with severe, uncontrolled asthma across multiple exacerbation trigger types from the Phase 3 DIRECTION study. The second evaluates its impact on upper and lower airway outcomes in adults with severe, uncontrolled chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps, with and without comorbid asthma, from the Phase 3 WAYPOINT study.
MATINEE Trial for COPD
The MATINEE Phase 3 trial will present findings on mepolizumab, a humanized anti-interleukin-5 monoclonal antibody, in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Post-hoc analyses will examine the impact on health-related quality of life using the St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire and assess efficacy based on disease duration.
Sotatercept Safety Data
Long-term safety data for sotatercept, an activin signaling inhibitor approved for pulmonary arterial hypertension, will be presented from pooled analyses of the PULSAR, SPECTRA, STELLAR, and SOTERIA studies. The presentation will focus on exposure-adjusted incidence rates of adverse events, providing critical information for clinicians using this therapy.
Ganciclovir for Cytomegalovirus Prevention
A Phase 3 randomized, placebo-controlled trial will present findings on ganciclovir prophylaxis to prevent cytomegalovirus reactivation in critically ill patients with sepsis-associated acute respiratory failure. The study aims to determine whether this approach increases respiratory support-free days in this vulnerable population.
Tirzepatide for Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Post-hoc analyses of the SURMOUNT-OSA clinical studies will evaluate the associations between tirzepatide treatment and changes in obstructive sleep apnea parameters versus placebo, stratified by baseline OSA severity.
Expert Perspectives
The conference will feature interviews with leading experts in the field, including:
- James Stoller, MD, Chairman of the Education Institute at Cleveland Clinic, who will discuss an AI algorithm developed to identify alpha1 antitrypsin deficiency
- Gerard Criner, MD, Chair of thoracic medicine and surgery at Temple University, who will review results from the MATINEE and Aiflow-3 clinical trials
- Arthur Reingold, MD, professor of epidemiology at UC Berkeley, who will explain advances in respiratory vaccine research
- Amy Attaway, MD, pulmonologist at Cleveland Clinic, who will discuss specialized clinics for diagnosing and treating sarcopenia due to COPD
Broader Impact
The ATS 2025 conference comes at a critical time for respiratory medicine, with ongoing challenges in managing conditions like asthma, COPD, pulmonary hypertension, and sleep disorders. The presentations and discussions are expected to influence clinical practice guidelines, research priorities, and therapeutic development across these areas.
"ATS has a very strong mentoring program, which really helps to support early career physicians or specialists or fellows and residents in training for their career development," Dr. Sahay emphasized, highlighting the conference's role in nurturing the next generation of pulmonary specialists.
With its comprehensive agenda covering key topics in respiratory medicine and critical care, ATS 2025 is positioned to be a landmark event for advancing patient care and scientific understanding in these fields.
