in New Jersey, held on May 25 at the College Avenue Student Center at Rutgers University. The Cancer Institute of New Jersey (CINJ) and the New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research (NJCCR) host the Annual Retreat on Cancer Research in New Jersey each year, bringing together world-renowned scientists from the cancer field.

The event included a series of mini-symposia, several poster sessions highlighting the latest cancer research being conducted at the Cancer Institute and other leading institutions throughout New Jersey, and a public forum focused on advances in cancer research and treatment in the past year. As noted in the program, a panel of expert researchers from New Jersey presented perspectives on nutrition and cancer prevention, angiogenesis, emerging new drugs for therapy, genetics of cancer, and complementary medicine.

CINJ Director Steven K. Libutti, MD, FACS, opened the retreat. Elaine Fuchs, Ph.D., renowned for her research in skin biology, its stem cells and associated genetic disorders, particularly cancers, was the keynote speaker. During the “Cancer Control and Prevention” session, Professor of Communication Kathryn Greene and her colleagues presented their research on “HPV Vaccine Hesitancy and Information Needs in Low-Uptake Communities.” Greene, along with Associate Professor of Communication Maria Venetis, doctoral students Liesl Broadbridge and Lauren Lee, and CINJ’s Alexandre Buckley de Meritens, MD and Katie Devine, Ph.D., MPH presented two posters: “Support persons’ disclosure of patients’ cancer-related information to oncology providers” and “Facilitating psychological adjustment for breast cancer patients through empathic communication and uncertainty reduction.”

*Lauren Lee with her poster.

*Liesl Broadbridge with her poster.

Photos: Courtesy of Lauren Lee and Liesl Broadbridge