LeukO 2026 Global Virtual Congress Unites the Leukemia Community on Advances in Precision Medicine and Cellular Therapy
核心洞察
LeukO 2026: Global Virtual Congress on Leukemias convened September 3–4, 2026, bringing together international leaders in hematology, leukemia research, transplantation, cellular therapy, supportive care, and patient advocacy.
The two-day program covered more than 40 scientific topics spanning diagnosis, molecular characterization, emerging therapies, transplantation, survivorship, global access, and healthcare policy across CML, CLL, AML, ALL, and rare leukemias.
Day 2 highlighted treatment sequencing after covalent BTK inhibitors in CLL, precision medicine in pediatric ALL, FLT3 (搜索)-directed and mutation-agnostic strategies in AML, and AI-based CAR-T clinical trial matching.
LeukO 2026: Global Virtual Congress on Leukemias convened on September 3–4, 2026, bringing together international leaders in hematology, leukemia research, transplantation, cellular therapy, supportive care, and patient advocacy for two days of scientific exchange. Held virtually as part of the OncoDaily O Series, the congress covered more than 40 scientific topics spanning leukemia diagnosis and molecular characterization, contemporary treatment strategies, emerging therapies, transplantation, survivorship, global access, and healthcare policy.
The program was designed around both the rapidly changing science of leukemia and the practical challenges clinicians face when translating advances into care. Leukemias remain an important part of the global cancer burden, and although survival has improved substantially over recent decades, outcomes continue to vary according to leukemia subtype, patient age, disease biology, access to specialized treatment, and regional healthcare resources. Relapse, treatment resistance, treatment-related toxicity, and unequal access to advanced leukemia care remain particularly important challenges in acute leukemias, high-risk disease, and relapsed or refractory settings.
Scientific Leadership and International Faculty
The congress was led by Marina Konopleva, Director of the Leukemia Program at Montefiore Einstein Comprehensive Cancer Center, Co-Director of the Translational Blood Cancer Institute, and Professor of Oncology and Molecular Pharmacology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She was joined in the scientific leadership by Rami Komrokji, Vice Chair of the Department of Malignant Hematology at Moffitt Cancer Center, Senior Member of the Malignant Hematology and Experimental Therapeutics Program, and Professor of Medicine and Oncologic Sciences at the University of South Florida College of Medicine.
LeukO 2026 featured an international group of specialists and advocates working across adult and pediatric leukemia. Confirmed speakers included Giuseppe Saglio, Naval Daver, Maro Ohanian, Gabriele Todisco, Alexander Perl, Naveen Pemmaraju, Sarah Tasian, Scott Howard, Donjeta Bali Alia, Rawad Rihani, Anna Avagyan, and Maha AlDoughaim. The congress also incorporated perspectives from patient advocacy, with participation from Manette Le Grange, Executive Director of ACT 4 Children; Natalia Vilcu-Bajurean, President of Life Without Leukemia; Pat Garcia-Gonzalez, Chief Executive Officer of The Max Foundation; and Chandan Kumar, an acute lymphoblastic leukemia (搜索) survivor.
From Molecular Genetics to MRD: The Foundations of Modern Care
The scientific program began with the foundations of modern leukemia care, with sessions examining global epidemiology, contemporary diagnostic approaches, molecular genetics, risk stratification, and minimal and measurable residual disease (MRD) assessment. The program also explored the emerging role of artificial intelligence and digital pathology in leukemia diagnosis, reflecting the growing importance of technology alongside molecular and laboratory advances.
CML and CLL: Treatment Beyond Disease Control
Dedicated sessions on chronic myeloid leukemia (搜索) (CML) examined long-term treatment outcomes, treatment-free remission, resistant disease, BCR::ABL (搜索) mutations, asciminib, and next-generation tyrosine kinase inhibitors. For chronic lymphocytic leukemia (搜索) (CLL), the program addressed diagnosis and prognostication, continuous versus fixed-duration BTK inhibitor therapy, venetoclax-based regimens, Richter transformation, and approaches to relapsed or refractory disease.
On Day 2, Henrique Nunes Pêcego, a hematologist and stem cell transplant physician from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, addressed how treatment should be sequenced after covalent BTK inhibitors in CLL. His presentation explored emerging options including pirtobrutinib, BTK degraders, and fixed-duration venetoclax-based combinations, reflecting the expanding number of therapeutic choices available for patients whose disease requires treatment beyond earlier BTK-directed approaches.
Giuseppe Saglio, Emeritus Professor of Hematology and Internal Medicine at the University of Turin, addressed resistant CML and BCR-ABL mutations, focusing on the clinical considerations involved when patients develop resistance to treatment, including the importance of understanding the molecular mechanisms that may influence therapeutic response.
AML: From Frontline Therapy to Molecularly Targeted Treatment
Acute myeloid leukemia (搜索) (AML) represented another major focus of LeukO 2026. The program covered diagnostic and prognostic advances, frontline treatment for fit patients, management of older and unfit patients, and strategies for relapsed or refractory AML. Molecularly targeted treatment was examined through discussions involving FLT3 (搜索), IDH1 (搜索)/2, TP53 (搜索), and other molecular targets, alongside MRD-guided treatment approaches and post-transplant maintenance.
LeukO 2026 concluded with a conversation-style discussion moderated by Khaoula Mazouzi and featuring Alexander Perl and Naval Daver, focused on the evolving role of FLT3 (搜索)-directed and mutation-agnostic therapies in AML, examining their potential and application across both frontline and relapsed/refractory settings.
ALL: A Rapidly Changing Treatment Landscape
The congress dedicated extensive attention to acute lymphoblastic leukemia (搜索) (ALL), with sessions examining contemporary management of B-cell ALL, CAR-T cell therapy, bispecific antibodies, relapsed or refractory ALL, T-cell ALL, and recent innovations in pediatric ALL. Sarah Tasian, Chief of the Hematologic Malignancies Program at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, focused on precision medicine in pediatric ALL, exploring the growing role of disease biology and molecular characteristics in guiding increasingly individualized approaches to childhood ALL.
Beyond CAR-T: Transplantation, Cellular Therapy, and Supportive Care
The second day extended the discussion into hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and cellular therapy, with sessions examining cellular therapies beyond CAR-T, graft-versus-host disease, and post-transplant care. Yan Leyfman of the Meyer Cancer Center at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital explored the use of artificial intelligence in CAR-T cell clinical trial matching, examining how AI-based approaches may help connect individual patients with potentially relevant clinical trials.
Supportive care sessions addressed infectious complications, hematologic emergencies, treatment-related toxicities, fertility, survivorship, and long-term quality of life. Maro Ohanian and Keith Moskowitz discussed a Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating freeze-dried platelets in patients with leukemia, underscoring how advances in leukemia care extend beyond anti-cancer therapies to include approaches aimed at improving the management of treatment-related and disease-related complications.
From Telomerase Science to an Approved Medicine
Joseph Eid, Executive Vice President of Research and Development and Chief Medical Officer at Geron (搜索), explored the development of Rytelo, tracing its journey from telomerase science to an approved medicine. The presentation highlighted the long path that can connect an underlying biological concept with drug development, clinical investigation, and eventual therapeutic use.
The Global Question: Access to Modern Leukemia Care
The final part of the congress moved beyond individual treatments to examine leukemia care from a global healthcare perspective, with sessions focused on delivering high-quality leukemia care in resource-limited settings, improving access to novel therapies, applying real-world evidence and value-based care, and developing national leukemia networks, registries, and multidisciplinary care models.
The patient advocacy session, "Hope Beyond Treatment: A Helping Hand for Leukemia Patients," brought together advocates and organizations working across different regions. Natalia Vilcu, President of the Life Without Leukemia Foundation, shared the organization's experience in Moldova. Manette Le Grange presented the experience of ACT 4 Children, focusing on supporting children with leukemia in low- and middle-income countries and improving access to high-quality medicines. Pat Garcia-Gonzalez, Chief Executive Officer of The Max Foundation, shared the organization's experience in improving outcomes for people living with chronic myeloid leukemia (搜索) by expanding access to life-saving tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapies in low- and middle-income countries.
Across both days, one message remained clear: improving leukemia outcomes requires more than developing the next therapy. It also requires understanding who should receive it, when to use it, how patients can access it, and how every part of care can work together.