Enhancing Diversity and Addressing Disparities at the 7th Cancer Cachexia Conference

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ABSTRACT This proposal requests partial support for the 7th Cancer Cachexia Conference organized by the Cancer Cachexia Society (CCS), to be held from September 28-30, 2023, in Edinburgh, Scotland. This iteration of the conference follows prior events in Boston, Montreal, Washington DC, Philadelphia, and two virtual versions during COVID. The long-term goal of the conference series is to foster research, awareness, and understanding of cancer cachexia among scientists, clinicians, patients, and caregivers, for the purpose of advancing identification, treatment, and cure for this major unmet medical need. Indeed, cachexia causes considerable patient and family distress and is estimated to cause some 30% of cancer deaths; yet until recently, cachexia was seldom addressed in any of the major cancer meetings. This conference series has served to help grow awareness and research around cancer cachexia and remains the only one devoted solely to this topic. Research in cancer cachexia is small relative to all cancer research and is global, with roughly equivalent research activity in North America, Europe, and Asia and notable efforts in Brazil and Australia. Hence, we have opted to hold the 7th conference in Scotland to facilitate international access and collaboration. The Aims of the 7th Cancer Cachexia Conference are to: 1 - Deliver a rich scientific program for participants while promoting networking and new collaborations. 2- Promote interaction among patients, caregivers, providers, and investigators and develop enduring patient-facing educational material. 3- Provide for training and mentorship of graduate students, postdoctoral associates, and junior faculty. 4-Expand and grow diversity, equity, and inclusion in the conference and the wider field of cancer cachexia research. The impact of this conference will be to promote progress and growth in the clinical investigation of anti-cachexia therapies and to strengthen knowledge, research, and research capacity in cancer cachexia.