Scientific Program – ISOBM 2025

The 47th ISOBM Conference will feature cutting-edge research on biomarkers, molecular diagnostics, AI in oncology, and personalized medicine. The program includes plenary sessions, oral and poster presentations, workshops, and industry speed talks, fostering discussion and collaboration among leading experts, clinicians, and researchers.

Our program includes:
🔹 Plenary Sessions – Keynotes from world-renowned experts.
🔹 Oral & Poster Presentations – Latest scientific advancements.
🔹 Panel Discussions – Engaging debates on future directions.
🔹 Industry Speed Talks – Insights into new technologies and applications.
🔹 Workshops – In-depth discussions on cutting-edge research.

Conference Schedule Overview

Get a quick look at the full schedule for ISOBM 2025. Explore keynote sessions, panel discussions, poster presentations, and workshops. You can download the complete schedule as a PDF for easy access.

Program Schedule

Sunday, October 12 – Preregistration & Welcome Reception

17:00 - 19:00 Registration and Welcome Reception

08:00 - 09:00	Registration
09:00 - 09:30	Opening Ceremony
09:30 - 10:30	Session 1 – Liquid Profiling by Protein Markers Chairs: S. Holdenrieder, M. Kowalewska A new era of biomarkers: translational strategies to impact cancer care Stefan Holdenrieder (DEU) Recent advances in the use of biochemical tumor markers in cancer practice Qing Meng (USA) Integrated diagnostics in oncology: bridging tumor markers with molecular testing and imaging through clinical case studies Tomris Ozben (TUR) Multiplex protein imaging in tumour biology Bernd Bodenmiller (CHE)
10:30 - 11:00	☕ Coffee + Posters
11:00 - 12:00	Session 2 – Liquid Profiling by Nucleic Acid Markers Chairs: L. Looijenga, E. Heitzer Liquid insights – ctDNA as a powerful tool for precision oncology Ellen Heitzer (AUT) Clinical application of plasma ctDNA in early cancer detection Aviad Zick (ISR) Multicancer early detection (MCED) approaches NN Characterization of posttranslational histone modifications on circulating nucleosomes Axel Imhof (DEU)
12:00 - 13:00	Panel Discussion: Early Cancer Detection
13:00 - 14:00	🍽️ Lunch
14:00 - 14:30	Keynote 1: Commanding the Future: Will It Be Us or AI? Torsten Haferlach (DEU)
14:30 - 15:30	Session 3 – Hematological cancers Chair: T. Haferlach Artificial Intelligence in pathology: transforming diagnosis and discovery Andreas Mock (DEU) AI-empowered computational pathology tools for precision oncology Tingying Peng (CHN) Biomarkers in hematology diagnosis with therapy implications Gregor Hoermann (AUT) MRD in hematology: different guidelines and methods with one common goal Constance Baer (DEU)
15:30 - 16:00	Panel Discussion: Artificial Intelligence in Medicine
16:00 - 16:30	☕ Coffee + Posters
16:30 - 17:00	Keynote 2: Hope or Horror: AI and Ethics in Medicine Alena Buyx (DEU)
17:00 - 18:00	Session 4 – Urological Cancers Chairs: R. Kucera, M. Garrido PROBASE: A risk-adapted German screening programme for prostate cancer Peter Albers (DEU) Predictive and prognostic biomarkers in urological cancers Christopher Poremba (DEU) Comprehensive genomic characterization of bladder cancer in tissue and blood Iver Nordentoft (DNK) Molecular patterns in testicular cancer Leendert Looijenga (NLD)
18:00 - 19:00	Session 5 – Biobanking and Study Networks (BBMRI-ERIC) Chairs: J. Habermann, M. Kiehntopf BBMRI-ERIC – an exciting resource for biomarker research Jens Habermann (AUT) CanServe – a European study network for connected research Andrea Wutte (AUT) Hospital-integrated Biobanking 2.0 Michael Kiehntopf (DEU) Biobank network in the Czech Republic Judita Kinkorova (CZE)
19:00 - 19:30	ISOBM General Assembly
19:30 - 22:00	Networking Evening (with guided Poster Tour)

08:00 - 08:30	Registration
08:30 - 09:30	Session 6 – Gynecological Cancers Chairs: V. Kulasingam, J. Osredkar The SURVIVE study – Re-evaluating standard surveillance in early breast cancer survivors using liquid biopsies Sabine Heublein (DEU) Multiplex proteomics for tailored ovarian cancer monitoring Vathany Kulasingam (CAN) Prognostic role of CA-125 elimination rate constant (KELIM) in patients with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer Josko Osredkar (SVN) Effect of molecular characterization of endometrial cancer on the way of treatment Leon Meglic (SVN) Dysbiosis, immunity, and biomarkers: unraveling the molecular landscape of vulvar carcinoma Magdalena Kowalewska (POL)
09:30 - 10:30	Session 7 – Gastrointestinal Cancers Chairs: V. Heinemann, S. Böck Guiding targeted and immune therapies in gastrointestinal cancers Volker Heinemann (DEU) IMPROVE-IT2: Optimization of (post)operative treatment in colorectal cancer by plasma ctDNA Kåre Andersson Gotschalck (DNK) Molecular surgery – a novel concept with clinical implications Martin Angele (DEU) Circulating autoantibodies in pancreatic cancer: from tumor biology to clinical application Xu Qian (CHN)
10:30 - 11:00	☕ Coffee + Posters
11:00 - 12:00	Session 8 – Epigenetic Biomarkers Chairs: R. Schneider, M. Sanchez-Carbayo Disrupted epigenetics: mechanisms of cancer disease Robert Schneider (DEU) Novel insights from the DNA methylome atlas Natanel Loyfer (ISR) Birthdating of pediatric tumors Stefan Pfister (DEU) Single-molecule, multi-modal, analysis of the epigenetics of plasma isolated nucleosomes Efrat Shema (ISR)
12:00 - 13:00	Panel Discussion: Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) Detection
13:00 - 14:00	🍽️ Lunch
14:00 - 14:30	Keynote 3: Liquid biopsy for precision medicine Klaus Pantel (DEU)
14:30 - 15:30	Session 9 – Therapy Response Monitoring Chairs: N. Normanno, M. Chechlinska ctDNA analysis for therapy monitoring and MRD detection Nicola Normanno (ITA) Molecular monitoring of therapy response in urological cancer Marta Sanchez-Carbayo (ESP) Implementation of tumor marker-based algorithms in therapy monitoring Freek van Delft (NLD) Pharmacometric models to support individual dosing Oliver Scherf-Clavel (DEU)
15:30 - 16:00	Industry Speed Talks
16:00 - 16:30	☕ Coffee + Posters
16:30 - 17:30	Session 10 – Extracellular Vesicles (GSEV) Chairs: M. Pfaffl, K. Menck Analysis of plasma extracellular vesicles using flow cytometry for cancer diagnostics Kerstin Menck (DEU) Detection and monitoring of cancer using activity-based biomarkers from plasma extracellular vesicles Jan van Deun (NLD) Monitoring glioblastoma beyond MRI via serum extracellular vesicle profiling Katrin Reiners (DEU) Identification of new druggable cancer targets by using extracellular vesicles Kathrin Gaertner (DEU)
17:30 - 18:30	Session 11 – Lung Cancer Chairs: H. van Rossum, M. van den Heuvel A lab perspective of lung cancer tumor markers Huub van Rossum (NLD) Modeling strategies combining changes in multiple biomarkers for therapy monitoring Michel van den Heuvel (NLD) Tumor marker-based algorithms for therapy prediction and prognosis in NSCLC Thomas Muley (DEU) Biomarkers for immune therapy monitoring in lung cancer David Lang (NLD)
18:30 - 19:00	Poster Speed Talks
19:30 - 22:00	Gala Dinner – Bavarian Evening (extra)

08:00 - 08:30	Registration
08:30 - 09:30	Session 12 – Molecular Pathology Chairs: C. Poremba, S. Holdenrieder Immune signals in cancer Jürgen Ruland (DEU) Molecular-based classification of cancers Jennelle Hodge (USA) ExLiquid: exploiting liquid biopsies to advance cancer precision medicine Christof Winter (DEU) Fragmentomics and multimodal ctDNA diagnostics Tina Moser (AUT)
09:30 - 10:30	Session 13 – Moving Ahead - Precision Medicine 2.0 Chairs: B. Westphalen, S. Lange Molecular prevention – where do we stand? Michael Quante (DEU) Beyond genomics – novel biomarkers on the verge of clinical relevance Carolin Mugler (DEU) AI biomarkers – transforming personalized healthcare? Kristian Unger (DEU) Innovative endpoints for trials in precision medicine Maike Collienne (DEU)
10:30 - 11:00	☕ Coffee + Posters
11:00 - 12:00	Session 14 – Evidence-based Medicine (WHO IARC IC3R) Chairs: D. Lokuhetty, I. Indave The WHO Tumour Classification and the IC3R Dilani Lokuhetty (LKA) Mapping the Evidence for the WHO Classification of Tumours: a Living Evidence Gap Map Iciar Indave (FRA) EppiMapper: a novel tool for coding studies according study design Fiona Campbell (GBR) A new Hierarchy of Evidence for Tumours in Pathology (HETP) Magdalena Chechlinska (POL) Development of a decision tree for accurate coding of study types Elena Beriso (ESP)
12:00 - 13:00	Panel Discussion: Novel Clinical Study Concepts
13:00 - 14:00	🍽️ Lunch
14:00 - 14:30	Keynote 4: Effective Treatment Depends on Diagnosis: Why Cancer Classification Matters Ian Cree (GBR)
14:30 - 15:30	Session 15 – Multimodal and Integrated Diagnostics Chairs: V. Haselmann, C. Winter Integrative ctDNA diagnostics in personalized cancer patient care Verena Haselmann (DEU) Integrative imaging-based diagnostics for personalized cancer patient care Matthias Froelich (DEU) Diagnosing with words – Large Language Models in medicine Daniel Truhn (DEU) LLM-based tumor-agnostic diagnostics Jaqueline Lammert (DEU)
15:30 - 16:00	Industry Speed Talks
16:00 - 16:30	☕ Coffee + Posters
16:30 - 17:30	Session 16 – New Biomarkers and Applications (EGTM) Chairs: V. Barak, P. Oehr EGTM sets standards for established and new tumor markers Vivian Barak (ISR) Circulating tumor DNA: Will it replace standard cancer biomarkers? Michael Duffy (IRL) Early detection of multiple cancer types using breath samples Reef Einoch Amor (ISR) Resistance to endocrine therapy and CDK4/6 inhibitors in advanced ER+/HER2- breast cancer Andrea Nicolini (ITA)
17:30 - 18:30	Session 17 – Standardization and Harmonization (IFCC, GenomeMet) Chairs: H. van Rossum, Q. Meng The IFCC initiative of harmonization of tumor markers Huub van Rossum (NLD) LC-MS based reference methods for tumor markers Daan van de Kerkhoff (NLD) Optimizing biochemical tumor marker testing and interpretation: a CLSI guideline-based approach Qing Meng (USA) The GenomeMET project: approaches for standardization of liquid biopsy and genomic profiling methods Alison Devonshire (GBR) Ensuring accurate patient results for cancer patients - EQA for liquid biopsy testing Jenni Fairley (GBR) Results from a pilot EQA for liquid biopsy testing in Germany Marcel Kremser (DEU)
18:30 - 19:00	Award Ceremony and Closing Session

08:30 - 10:30	Workshops I–III
10:30 - 11:00	☕ Coffee
11:00 - 13:00	Workshops IV–VI
13:00 - 14:00	🍽️ Lunch
14:00 - 16:00	Workshops VII–IX
16:00 - 16:30	☕ Coffee
16:30 - 18:30	Workshops X–XII
18:30	Farewell

Meet Our Experts: ISOBM Board, Scientific Committee, and Speakers

ISOBM BOARD	LOCAL SCIENTIFIC BOARD	SPEAKERS (is regularly updated)
Prof. Barak, ISR	Prof. Angele, GER	Prof. Cree, UK
Prof. Chechlinska, POL	Prof. Böck, GER	Prof. Dor, ISR
Prof. Garrido, POR	Dr. Bronkhorst, GER	Prof. Duffy, IRL
Prof. Holdenrieder, GER	Prof. Haferlach, GER	Dr. Foy, UK
Prof. Kowalewska, POL	PD Dr. Haselmann, GER	Prof. Habermann, AUT
Prof. Kucera, CZR	Prof. Hoffmann, GER	Prof. Heitzer, AUT
Prof. Kulasingam, CAN	Prof. Klawonn, GER	Prof. Illert, GER
Prof. Looijenga, NED	PD Dr. Lange, GER	Prof. Lokuhetty, SRL
Prof. Meng, USA	Prof. Pfaffl, GER	Prof. Nicolini, ITA
Dr. Moro, CAN	Prof. Poremba, GER	Prof. Pantel, GER
Prof. Oehr, JPN	Prof. Ruland, GER	Prof. Pauli, CHE
Prof. Osredkar, SLO	Dr. Trulson, GER	Prof. Quante, GER
Prof. Sanchez-Carbayo, ESP	Dr. Westphalen, GER	Prof. Qian, CHN
Dr. van Rossum, NED	Dr. Winter, GER	Prof. van den Heuvel, NED

Call for Abstracts

We invite researchers to submit abstracts showcasing their latest work in biomarker research, molecular diagnostics, AI in oncology, and personalized medicine. Submissions will be reviewed by the ISOBM Scientific Committee, which will determine acceptance and presentation format (oral or poster).

Key Topics of the Conference
1. Biomarker Types & Molecular Diagnostics
- Molecular pathology and blood-based biomarkers
- Liquid profiling/liquid biopsy
- ctDNA, CTCs, epigenetics, fragmentomics
- Protein-based markers, tumor markers
- Extracellular vesicles and associated markers
- Immune diagnostics
2. Clinical Applications & Cancer Management
- Biomarkers for solid and hematological cancers
- Early cancer detection and screening
- Prognostic and predictive biomarkers
- Monitoring of therapy response and toxicity
- Minimal residual disease detection
- Targeted and immune therapies, cancer vaccines
3. Technology & Innovation
- Technological breakthroughs
- Genomics, proteomics and metabolomics
- Multimodal and integrative diagnostics
- Imaging technologies
- Artificial intelligence and machine learning
- Advanced biostatistics and algorithms
4. Research, Trials & Standardization
- Clinical biomarker trials
- Evidence-based medicine (EBM)
- Standardization and harmonization
- Biomarker validation and IVDR regulation
- Biobanking and sample collections
- Personalized medicine

📌 Abstract submission is only possible after registering for the conference.

For detailed guidelines, deadlines, and the submission form, please visit our Abstract Submission Page.

Workshop Day

📅 October 16, 2025 | 🪙 €50

On the final day of the ISOBM 2025 Conference, we are offering a selection of interactive workshops covering essential topics in biomarker research, biostatistics, artificial intelligence, and scientific publishing.

Workshop Topics:

Early Career ISOBM Network for Young Scientists
Standardization and Harmonization of Tumor Markers
How to Get Your Paper Published?
Extracellular Vesicles: Analytics and Clinical Applications
The Role of Preanalytics for Biobanking and Study Networks
Training in Evidence-based Pathology I
Training in Evidence-based Pathology II
Liquid Profiling Methods for ctDNA Analysis in Clinical Practice
Biostatistical Approaches for Biomarker Validation
AI-Based Tools for Literature Research and Data Analysis
The Pipeline Challenge: Strengths and Limitations of NGS Evaluation Tools
Meet the Experts: Quality Requirements of Biomarkers from Bench to Bedside

💡 Important Information:

Participants can select up to four workshops when registering.
Final workshop scheduling will depend on demand and availability.
Workshops will only take place if a sufficient number of participants register. ISOBM reserves the right to cancel or modify sessions in case of low demand or scheduling conflicts. In such cases, participation cannot be guaranteed.
There is a general fee of €50 to cover the costs of the workshop day (catering included).

Bavarian Evening – Conference Dinner

📅 October 14, 2025 | 🪙 €80

Join us for a memorable Bavarian Evening, where tradition meets networking! Enjoy an authentic Bavarian dining experience with regional specialties, local beer, and live music in a cozy, festive atmosphere. This evening offers the perfect opportunity to relax, connect with fellow participants, and experience Bavarian hospitality at its finest.

🎫 Limited spots available – make sure to reserve your ticket when registering!

Join Us in Murnau!

Be part of ISOBM 2025 and engage with the global scientific community to advance biomarker research and precision oncology.

Scientific Program – ISOBM 2025

Conference Schedule Overview

Program Schedule

Sunday, October 12 – Preregistration & Welcome Reception

Monday, October 13 – Conference Day 1

Tuesday, October 14 – Conference Day 2

Wednesday, October 15 – Conference Day 3

Thursday, October 16 – Workshop Day