Cancer Glyco-X 2026: Intersections of Cancer and Glycoscience
The study of glycosylation offers exciting new opportunities to improve cancer detection and treatment. By bringing together scientists across the cancer and glycoscience fields, Cancer Glyco-X aims to serve as a springboard for new collaborations focused on accelerating breakthroughs.
The 2026 symposium will highlight the intersection of cancer and glycoscience. Speakers will explore glycobiology, biomarkers, technology development, immunology and more.
For questions or to be added to our email list, please contact Courtney Zirkle.
May 5, 2026
- 7:30 a.m. Registration and Breakfast Buffet
- 8:30 a.m. Welcome
- 8:40 a.m. Session 1: Tumor Glycoimmunology 1
- 10:15 a.m. Break
- 10:45 a.m. Session 2: Tumor Glycoimmunology 2
- 12:30 p.m. Lunch and Poster Session
- 2:00 p.m. Session 3: Tumor Glycometabolism/EMT/Metastasis
- 3:35 p.m. Break
- 4:00 p.m. Session 4: Model Systems to Study Glycosylation in Cancer
- 6:00 p.m. Dinner
May 6, 2026
- 8:00 a.m. Buffet Breakfast
- 9:00 a.m. Session 5: Technologies to Study Glycosylation in Cancer
- 10:35 a.m. Break
- 11:00 a.m. Session 6: Bioinformatics/Data Integration in Cancer Glycoscience
- 12:35 p.m. Lunch
- 2:00 p.m. Session 7: Clinical Applications of Glycoscience in Cancer
- 3:35 p.m. Closing Remarks and Discussion
Poster abstracts may be submitted during registration, which will open in summer 2025. For questions or to be added to our email list, please contact Courtney Zirkle.
Eligibility
Students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty and research staff are welcome to submit an abstract. If the number of submitted poster abstracts exceeds the space, the organizers will select the abstracts that are most relevant to the conference theme.
Abstract format
Submitted abstracts should represent original research. The title should be brief and descriptive, and the body should include rationale, methods and results. Please prepare abstracts using the below template.
Abstract submission
Poster abstracts should be submitted during the registration process.
Questions?
Questions regarding abstract submission, posters or the poster session can be directed to Courtney Zirkle.
TITLE OF ABSTRACT IN ALL CAPS (STYLE = TITLE)
Presenting Author1,2, Other Author1, and Last Author1,3(Style = Authors)
1First Dept., Institution, City, State, Country, 2Second Dept., Institution, City, State, Country, and 3Last Dept., Institution, City, State, Country (Style = Affiliations)
Body of abstract using 300 words or less. Define each abbreviation at first use. All fonts should be Arial, 11 pt. and text should be single spaced. Once you have filled in this template, choose File>Save As and save your file as a Word document (.doc or .docx) with the filename lastname_abstract. (Style = Body)
EXAMPLE
GLYCANS AS BIOMARKERS FOR PANCREATIC DUCTAL ADENOCARCINOMA
Anna Smith1
1 Department of Cell Biology, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI, United States
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is the most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for approximately 85% of cases. It remains one of the deadliest forms of cancer with a five-year survival rate of only 13% …
When is the 2026 Cancer Glyco-X Symposium? How much does it cost?
The 2026 Cancer Glyco-X Symposium will take place May 5–6, 2026. The registration fees for the symposium are:
- $50 for trainees (graduate students and postdoctoral fellows)
- $150 for non-trainees
What does the registration fee include?
The registration fee includes lunch and an evening networking reception.
Can I register a group for the 2026 Cancer Glyco-X Symposium?
Yes! The registration form allows one person to register and pay for a group. Once registration is complete for one person, please click “add person” in the bottom right corner of the form. Input the second person’s information and continue in this manner until all parties in the group are registered. The system will then charge a total cost for the group.
Will late registrations for the 2026 Cancer Glyco-X Symposium be accepted?
Unfortunately, late registrations will not be accepted. All attendees must register online by 11:59 p.m. EST on Monday, April 27, 2026.
What if I need accessible parking?
Please contact Courtney Zirkle at [email protected] to discuss any accessibility needs.
What if I have dietary needs?
Please include any dietary allergies or restrictions on your registration or application form. Every effort will be made to accommodate requests.
How do I become a sponsor?
Please contact Courtney Zirkle at [email protected] for more information on sponsorship opportunities.
What is the refund policy for the symposium?
Refund requests must be made in writing on or before April 27, 2026, and sent to Courtney Zirkle at [email protected].
How do I get to VAI?
Van Andel Institute is located in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, and is approximately 20 minutes from the Gerald R. Ford International Airport. VAI is conveniently located within walking distance of multiple local hotels. Lyft, Uber, and taxi services are available in Grand Rapids.
Looking for accommodations? Here are some close suggestions:
Amway Grand Plaza, Curio Collection by Hilton – 187 Monroe Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Distance to VAI: 0.6 miles
JW Marriott Grand Rapids – 235 Louis St NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Distance to VAI: 0.7 miles
AC Hotel – 50 Monroe Ave NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Distance to VAI: 0.6 miles
Code of Conduct Guidelines
We are dedicated to providing a harassment-free, non-discriminatory symposium experience for all participants, regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, disability, pregnancy, height, weight, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or other personal characteristics covered by applicable law. We will not tolerate harassment of conference participants in any form. We expect participants at our events to engage in constructive and professional discussions at all times. Harassment can include unwelcomed attention, inappropriate comments or jokes that refer to sexual topics, requests for dates, or other sexual activities as well as the use of language that may demean or degrade individuals. These behaviors are not appropriate for any of our conference venues, including talks, workshops, networking sessions, poster sessions, social networking platforms, and other online media platforms. Any participant violating these guidelines will be removed from the symposium at the discretion of the conference organizers.
Anyone who has experienced the above, or who has witnessed such behavior, should notify Courtney Zirkle. Anonymous reporting may also be done through the EthicsPoint Hotline.
University of Nebraska Medical Center
Professor, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Dr. Susan L. Bellis is a Professor in the Department of Cell, Developmental and Integrative Biology, and the Alma B. Maxwell Endowed Chair at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Dr. Bellis received a Ph.D. in biochemistry from the University of Rhode Island in 1993, and conducted postdoctoral studies at SUNY Health Sciences Center in Syracuse, NY. She joined the UAB faculty in 1998. Research in the Bellis laboratory focuses on the effects of glycosylation on the structure and function of cell surface receptors involved in cancer development, progression and immune suppression. Dr. Bellis’ research has been supported by the National Institutes of Health, Department of Defense, Mizutani Foundation and other agencies. She is a member of the Alliance of Glycobiologists for Cancer Research, a collaborative network sponsored by the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Bellis has served on numerous grant review panels for federal and international agencies and is a member of multiple editorial boards. She recently received the Springer Nature Editor of Distinction Award. Finally, Dr. Bellis has played leadership roles in the glycoscience field, as evidenced by her service as the 2023 President of the Society for Glycobiology.
Professor, University of Alberta
Professor Ratmir Derda received his undergraduate degree in physics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, his Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and postdoctoral training at Harvard University. He joined the University of Alberta in 2011 as an Assistant Professor where he is now a Professor of Chemistry. A fundamental goal of the Derda Lab is to understand the molecular recognition and molecular discovery using a combination of DNA-encoded technologies and machine learning. The Derda Lab pioneered enabling platform technologies for chemical diversification of readily available genetically encoded libraries of peptides displayed on phage. This technology has been translated to 48Hour Discovery, an Edmonton-based biotechnology company founded by Derda in 2017 to provide lead discovery in the peptide-derived therapeutic space. In broader DNA-encoded chemistry, the Derda Lab pioneered DNA encoding of multivalent architectures using the so-called “liquid glycan array” (LiGA) and generalized this concept to modality-agnostic Liquid Molecular Arrays. This concept is currently translated in Liquid Biotechnology S.I. Professor Derda’s independent research is documented in 74 peer-reviewed research papers, ten invited reviews, editorials, and book chapters. Since 2011, he has given more than 150 invited lectures and trained over 120 highly qualified personnel and received >10 national and international awards.
Medical University of South Carolina
Van Andel Institute
GRA Eminent Scholar and Professor, University of Georgia
Prof. Lewis is a GRA Eminent Scholar and Professor at the Center for Molecular Medicine, Complex Carbohydrate Research Center, and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Georgia, along with being an Adjunct Professor at the University of California, San Diego. He leads a lab focused on using and developing systems biology and cell engineering methods to study immunological and neurodevelopmental disorders. He focuses particularly on the development of bioinformatic and systems biology methods to study the protein secretion pathway, metabolism, glycosylation, cell-cell communication, and engineering desirable traits into cells to enhance the production of biologics, including protein drugs, gene therapies and cell therapies. He has served on advisory boards in the biotechnology and biopharma space, and is co-founder of two biopharma companies, NeuImmune, Inc. and Augment Biologics, both of which focus on the design and development of candidate glycoprotein therapeutics.
Principal Research Associate, University of Newcastle, UK
Dr. Jennifer Munkley is a group leader at Newcastle University. Her research is focused on exploiting glycans to improve the diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer. Jennifer has worked on prostate cancer since 2011, and was initially focused on understanding how testosterone drives prostate tumour growth. After discovering the link between testosterone and the glycans, Jennifer became fascinated by glycobiology and its potential to help patients with prostate cancer and in 2018 she started her own research group in this area. Notable achievements include key publications demonstrating the importance of glycans in prostate cancer pathology, the translation of the GlycoScore blood test into a clinical trial for prostate cancer diagnosis, and ongoing studies performing pre-clinical evaluation of glycan-targeting drugs as new therapies for prostate cancer bone metastasis.
Stanford University
Mayo Clinic
Chair, Department of Molecular Cell Biology and Immunology, Amsterdam UMC
The Scripps Research Institute
Johns Hopkins University
Medical University of South Carolina
Van Andel Institute
Dr. Brian Haab searches for new ways to diagnose and stratify pancreatic cancers based on the sugars, or glycans, on the outside of cancer cells. Part of the problem Dr. Haab aims to solve is that cancers often look and behave normally — until after they’ve started making people sick. Dr. Haab is sleuthing out clues to build a library of diagnostic tools that will help providers diagnose tumors earlier and optimize treatment.
Stanford University
Mayo Clinic
Event Details
Contact Info:
Email: Courtney Zirkle