Welcome to the European Association for Cancer Research
Connecting cancer researchers together
EACR-Mark Foundation Joint Conference: The Rise of Early-Onset Cancers - Biology, Causes, and Detection
Bergamo, Italy : 11 - 13 November 2025
Scientific programme
To download and print the programme, use the links below.
Listed times are in Central European Time (CET)
REGISTRATION (light refreshments will be served at 12:00)
CONFERENCE WELCOME
SESSION 1: Global landscape of early-onset cancers (1)
Chair: Alberto Bardelli
Keynote Speaker: Yin Cao Washington University in St. Louis, US
'Accelerating cancer risk factor discovery for younger and future generations'
Q&A 13:35-13:50
Ahmedin Jemal American Cancer Society, US
'The changing landscape of early-onset cancers'
Q&A 14:10-14:20
José Montes de Oca Carlos Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas, Mexico
Proffered Paper 1: 'Accelerated Tumor Aging in Mexican Breast Cancer Patients: Integrating Transcriptional Clocks with Functional Models'
Q&A 14:30-14:35
EXHIBITOR INTRODUCTIONS
COFFEE BREAK, EXHIBITION & SOLO TRAVELLER MEET-UP
Giulia Martina Cavestro UniSR, Italy
'Diet and lifestyle as associated factors in early-onset colorectal cancer: Preliminary data from the DEMETRA study'
Q&A 15:35-15:45
Andrew Biankin University of Glasgow, UK
'Moving away from a one size fits all for young people with cancer'
Q&A 16:05-16:15
POSTER SPOTLIGHTS
NETWORKING QUIZ
Our fun, informal quiz offers conference participants the chance to make new connections on the first evening of the meeting
WELCOME RECEPTION
POSTER DISCUSSION SESSION 1
Led by members of the Scientific Programme Committee
Listed times are in Central European Time (CET)
EARLY POSTER VIEWING with coffee and biscuits
INDUSTRY SPOTLIGHT - CeGaT
Marco Silvano CeGaT
'21st Century genetic oncodiagnostics'
SESSION 2: Global landscape of early-onset cancers (2)
Chair: Shuji Ogino
Ulrike Peters Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, US
'Early onset colorectal cancer: Integrating epidemiological trends with molecular mechanisms'
Q&A 09:35-09:45
Seongmi Russell Washington University in St Louis, USA
Proffered Paper 2: 'Early-Life Colonization by Enterotoxigenic Bacteroides fragilis Drives Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Susceptibility'
Q&A 09:55-10:00
Jelle Wesseling Netherlands Cancer Institute, Netherlands
'Ductal Carcinoma In Situ: When cancer is not really cancer'
Q&A 10:20 - 10:30
Ilenia Laterza Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Italy
Proffered Paper 3: 'The Role of E. coli Toxin CNF1 in Colorectal Cancer Progression and Metastasis'
Q&A 10:40-10:45
COFFEE BREAK & EXHIBITION
José Perea Biomedical Research of Salamanca, Spain
'Immunometabolic dimension of early-onset colorectal cancer. Paradigm for the other early-onset cancers?'
Q&A 11:35-11:45
Muhammad Shah Zaib University of Trento, Italy
Proffered Paper 4: 'Microbiome alterations of colorectal cancer according to age of onset, stage, and anatomic location'
Q&A 11:55-12:00
POSTER SPOTLIGHTS
INDUSTRY SYMPOSIUM - SARTORIUS
Gennaro De Vita Sartorius
'Innovative Bioanalytical Tools for Enhanced Live-Cell Imaging'
Q&A 12:30-12:40
LUNCH
POSTER DISCUSSION SESSION 2
Led by members of the Scientific Programme Committee
SESSION 3: Clinical, molecular and biological features
Chair: Salvatore Siena
Keynote Speaker: Shuji Ogino Harvard University, US
'Assessing long-term risk factor exposures is a critical gap in early-onset cancer research: how can we overcome it using tumor biomarker analyses?'
Q&A 15:35-15:50
Silvana C E Maas VHIO, Spain
Proffered Paper 5: 'Methylation fingerprints expose novel environmental contribution to early-onset colorectal cancer'
Q&A 16:00-16:05
Giulia Calafato IRCCS Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Bologna, Italy
Proffered Paper 6: 'Dysregulation of Wnt/β-catenin/mTOR axis and intestinal stemness cross-talk in obesity-dependent early-onset colorectal cancer'
Q&A 16:15-16:20
Irit Ben-Aharon Rambam Health Care Campus, Israel
'The evolving enigma- early onset colorectal cancer'
Q&A 16:40-16:50
COFFEE BREAK & EXHIBITION
Nicola Segata University of Trento, Italy
'The microbiome in early-onset colorectal cancer'
Q&A 17:40-17:50
The EMBO Keynote Lecture
Alberto Bardelli IFOM, Italy
'The exposome and early onset colorectal cancers'
Q&A 18:10-18:20
CONFERENCE DINNER (optional ticketed event)
Listed times are in Central European Time (CET)
EARLY POSTER VIEWING with coffee and biscuits
SESSION 4: Experimental models
Chair: Yin Cao
Cheryl Walker Baylor College of Medicine, US
'Epigenomic reprogramming by early life environmental exposures alter cancer risk in adulthood'
Q&A 09:20-09:30
Gianluca Mauri Ospedale Niguarda, Italy
'From biological understanding to personalized clinical management of early-onset colorectal cancer'
Q&A 09:50-:10:00
Pauliina Kallio University of Helsinki, Finland
Proffered Paper 7: 'A Multipotent PROX1+ Tumor Stem/Progenitor Cell Population Emerges During Intestinal Tumorigenesis and Mediates Treatment Resistance in Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer'
Q&A 10:10-10:15
COFFEE BREAK & EXHIBITION
Selma Masri UC Irvine, US
'Circadian Clock Misalignment in Colorectal Cancer: Links with Early-Onset Disease'
Q&A 11:05-11:15
KEYNOTE LECTURE
Sir Mike Stratton Wellcome Sanger Institute, UK
'Mutagenic exposures to normal colorectal epithelium and their potential role in early-onset colorectal cancer'
Q&A 11:40-11:55
SUMMARY & AWARDS
DEPART
Key dates
Travel Grant application deadline:
15 September 2025
Abstract submission deadline:
15 September 2025
Registration and Payment deadline:
17 October 2025
This conference is organised in partnership with, and supported by a grant from, the Mark Foundation for Cancer Research
