Gustave Roussy and IFODS Congress renew collaboration with joint presidential session

From 17 to 19 June in Paris, the IFODS Congress, a benchmark event for French-speaking oncology, will highlight the latest advances in the global fight against cancer, with insights from leading experts. On Thursday, 18 June, an IFODS/Gustave Roussy presidential session will take stock of key topics in oncology. On the programme: therapeutic vaccines, artificial intelligence, and minimal residual disease. Dr Yannick Neuder, Member of Parliament and former Minister for Health and Access to Care, will conclude the session as a “guest witness”.

Co-organised by Gustave Roussy Transfert as part of IFODS, the 6th edition of the Onco Startup Summit, a full day dedicated to oncology start-ups,  will take place on 18 June.

The IFODS National Congress of Oncology aims to promote the latest advances in the fight against cancer among French-speaking oncology experts by presenting and contextualising the major studies unveiled at leading international congresses such as ASCO and ESMO.

For this 9th edition of this flagship congress, which will be held from 17 to 19 June at the Novotel Paris Tour Eiffel Conference Centre, Gustave Roussy and IFODS are renewing their partnership, launched in 2025, with a joint presidential session organised on Thursday 18 June from 14:15 to 15:30, chaired by Professor Fabrice Barlesi, Chief Executive Officer of Gustave Roussy.

Therapeutic vaccines, AI, and minimal residual disease

This session will be moderated by Dr Suzette Delaloge, medical oncologist and Director of the Interception prevention programme, Professor Silvia Novello, an international lung cancer specialist, as well as Professors Jean-Philippe Spano and Françoise Mornex, co-chairs of the congress.

During this session, three Gustave Roussy experts will speak on key themes driving the development of new avenues in oncology.

Dr Damien Vasseur, medical biologist, will discuss the challenges surrounding minimal residual disease (MRD).

In some patients, fragments of tumour DNA may persist in the bloodstream after treatment, even in the absence of visible signs on imaging. This molecular residual disease is an early indicator of relapse risk. Previous studies have shown that MRD-positive patients have a significantly higher risk of recurrence than MRD-negative patients.

Thanks to recent advances in molecular biology, it is now possible to detect MRD through a simple blood test. This approach paves the way for personalised monitoring and the introduction of pre-emptive treatments before clinical relapse.

Dr François-Xavier Danlos, medical oncologist in the Department of Therapeutic Innovation and Early-Phase Trials (DITEP), will present the latest developments in therapeutic vaccines.

Advances in immunotherapy over the past decade have opened important prospects for the development of cancer therapeutic vaccines. The principle involves administering to patients information about the proteins expressed by their cancer cells. The aim is to train immune cells to better recognise antigens expressed by tumour cells and eliminate them. Currently, two approaches are being explored: personalised vaccines, developed in the laboratory for each patient, and generic vaccines targeting common antigens expressed within a given group of diseases.

At Gustave Roussy, several clinical trials are being conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of these new treatments, alongside fundamental research.

Dr Julien Vibert, medical oncologist, will outline the challenges associated with implementing artificial intelligence tools in oncology.

The revolution driven by artificial intelligence is also transforming oncology. AI tools are already used in practice, particularly in imaging, to assist radiologists in detecting and characterising lesions on scans. In research, deep learning approaches enable the analysis of vast quantities of data, with the hope of identifying new therapeutic targets and better understanding cancer mechanisms.

Dr Julien Vibert, a specialist in artificial intelligence and computational oncology, will address the medical, scientific, and regulatory challenges involved in developing AI tools in oncology.

200 stakeholders at the Onco Startup Summit

Organised as part of the 9th French Interdisciplinary Oncology Days (IFODS), the Onco Startup Summit will bring together more than 200 stakeholders in oncology innovation on 18 June. This event provides entrepreneurs with a unique opportunity to accelerate the development of their projects and foster high-impact collaborations. The event will showcase numerous oncology start-ups through several pitch sessions. Entrepreneurs, investors, support organisations, and other key players in the ecosystem will exchange views on current challenges and trends in the sector.