7:30 am Check In & Networking
8:20 am Chair’s Opening Remarks
Reframing Tumor Immunity & Resistance to Unlock the Full Potential of TIL Therapy
8:30 am Understanding the Art & Science of TIL Therapy by Reframing Immunity & Resistance
Synopsis
- Reframing tumor immunity with a new model: I before E: inflammation, inception, initiation, followed by immune editing with elimination, equilibrium, and escape
- Introducing pre- and post-TIL strategies to enhance the number and quality of TIL and overcome resistance
- Emphasizing the bespoke nature of TIL as a scientific advantage, and a strength
9:00 am Towards Scalable Immunotherapy: Automating TIL Manufacturing for GBM
Synopsis
- Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) surgical aspirates provide a viable and accessible source of TILs
- The CliniMACS Prodigy® Tumor Reactive T Cell System enables fully automated, GMP-compliant manufacturing of clinical-grade TILs
- CD137 selection enriches GBM-TIL with gene signatures correlated with tumor reactivity and enhanced tumor killing capacity
9:30 am Driving Quality & Safety in Real-World TIL Therapy Implementation
Synopsis
- Building high-reliability systems to support safe and scalable TIL therapy programs in clinical settings
- Leveraging quality-driven data to monitor patient outcomes and guide program development
10:00 am Session Reserved for Program Partner: ScaleReady
10:10 am Morning Refreshments & Poster Session
11:00 am A Novel Approach to Generate Tumor-Targeting T-Cells for Solid Tumors
Synopsis
- Leveraging GEMs to identify and enrich neoantigen-specific TILs via engineered APCs
- Enhancing TIL metabolic fitness using GEMs to boost persistence, trafficking, and function
- Applying antigen and GEM-based strategies to improve TIL quality and overcome tumor resistance
11:30 am Advancing TIL Trials: Strategic Approaches to Patient Recruitment and Operational Execution in TIL Therapy
Synopsis
- Operational lessons learned from supporting global TIL trials across diverse healthcare environments
- Strategies to enable cell therapy research naïve sites to participate in clinical studies
- How to expand recruitment by leveraging ex-US regions to improve speed, diversity, and site engagement
12:00 pm A Real-World Approach to the Early Identification of TIL Patient Candidates
Synopsis
- Fast-tracking TIL for patients unlikely to benefit from checkpoint inhibitors
- Minimizing immune exhaustion from prolonged immunotherapy exposure
- Enhancing referral networks to reach patients beyond major treatment centers
12:30 pm Lunch
Identifying Novel Biomarkers & Innovating in Translation Studies to Optimize the Route to the Clinic
1:30 pm Enhancing TIL Selection to Improve Specificity & Functionality
Synopsis
- Enriching highly tumor-reactive CD8+ TILs by selecting CD39/ CD103 double-positive cells
- Expanding exhausted TILs into billions while retaining tumorkilling functionality
- Demonstrating long-term persistence, trafficking, and efficacy in IL-2-supported clinical models
2:00 pm Advancing GT201 by Enhancing TIL Persistence, Demonstrating Clinical Activity & Uncovering Biomarker Insights
Synopsis
- Showcasing product design, mechanism of action, and preclinical data demonstrating enhanced TIL persistence and tumor cytotoxicity with reduced IL-2 dependency
- Demonstrating safety and preliminary efficacy data from approximately 10 solid tumor patients, including at least one complete response and multiple partial responses
- Deep diving into analyses leveraging single-cell profiling of longitudinal patient samples with TCR tracking to optimize manufacturing process and guide biomarker discovery
2:30 pm Refining TIL Therapy through Selective Expansion & Genetic Engineering
Synopsis
- Isolating tumor-reactive TIL using phenotypic markers to enhance therapeutic specificity
- Engineering selected TIL with viral constructs to boost potency and persistence
- Expanding enriched TIL populations in optimized culture conditions to improve product quality
3:00 pm Afternoon Refreshments & Networking
Advancing Global Regulatory Strategies & Clinical Adoption for TIL Therapies
3:30 pm Advancing Potency Assays for TIL Therapies to Prevent Clinical Holds & Streamline Route to Patients
Synopsis
- Comparing the development of potency assays for CAR-Ts, TCR-Ts, ex vivo T-cell therapies and TILs, highlighting the unique challenges faced by personalized T-cell therapies like TILs
- Exploring the complexities of developing potency assays for TIL therapies, including surrogate assays and GMP-ready validation
- Discussing the difficulties in validating potency assays that accurately target the mechanism of action of TILs
4:00 pm Translational & Regulatory Insights from Academic TIL Development
Synopsis
- Dissecting TIL product composition through definition of antigen specificity and TCR repertoire profiling
- Understanding translational data requirements to align with learnings from EMA interactions
- Bridging GMP manufacturing and clinical application in melanoma in a transition from academic to commercial setting
4:30 pm Understanding Global Approvals & Implementation of TIL Therapies
Synopsis
- Highlighting the process of implementing TIL therapies within publicly funded healthcare systems through health technology assessments
- Comparing regulatory approval pathways across countries to inform trial design and global strategy
- Addressing the role of academic institutions in sustaining TIL research amid industry and funding instability