Newswise — SAN DIEGO – Attendance at the 69th AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo reached a record high at this year’s conference in San Diego. Held from July 30-August 3, the meeting featured groundbreaking advances in diagnostic research and technology that will solve a broad range of challenging patient health problems.
As of Wednesday, August 2, more than 21,300 laboratory medicine professionals and healthcare leaders had registered for the meeting, which is a 7.9% increase over meeting attendance in 2016 and the highest number of attendees that have come to the meeting in its history. More attendees are expected today, the last day of the meeting.
Highlights of the conference program included five plenary talks presented by life sciences visionaries on subjects ranging from the future of genome engineering with CRISPR to strategies for effectively combating substance abuse. Jennifer Doudna, PhD, winner of AACC’s 2017 Wallace H. Coulter Lectureship Award and co-inventor of CRISPR, gave the opening keynote on her current research to refine this revolutionary gene editing tool into a method that could correct disease-causing genes.
Monday’s plenary speaker, Teresa K. Woodruff, PhD, DSc, delved into emerging clinical tests that can help young female cancer patients to manage their fertility as well as potential interventions that could restore ovarian function after chemotherapy or radiation. Tuesday’s plenary with Jay Shendure, MD, PhD, gave an in depth look at massively parallel DNA sequencing techniques, new technologies on the horizon, and the applications of these techniques in clinical medicine. On Wednesday, Victoria Fraser, MD, discussed the strategies and diagnostic tools that clinical labs can use to curb the spread of antibiotic resistance. And in today’s closing keynote, A. Thomas McLellan, PhD, emphasized that, in order for true progress to be made in the fight against substance abuse, treatment for addiction must be considered essential to routine healthcare.
Additionally, in a special session, the winner and two finalists from the Qualcomm Tricorder XPRIZE competition described their 5-year odyssey to develop mobile diagnostic devices inspired by the fictional Star Trek tricorder that diagnose 13 health conditions and capture real-time vital health signs.
The 69th AACC Clinical Lab Expo featured 789 exhibitors and covered 246,000 net square feet, also making this the largest show floor in AACC’s history. This dynamic exhibit featured groundbreaking tests from all laboratory medicine disciplines, including mobile health, molecular diagnostics, mass spectrometry, point-of-care, and automation.
“We are thrilled that this year’s AACC Annual Scientific Meeting drew a record-breaking number of attendees,” said AACC CEO Janet B. Kreizman. “This affirms that this meeting is the premier forum for presenting innovative research and technology that is key to advancing laboratory medicine and patient care. I look forward to seeing what new breakthroughs will be unveiled at next year’s conference as the AACC Annual Scientific Meeting continues to grow and drive laboratory medicine and healthcare into the future.”
The 70th AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo will be held in Chicago from July 29–August 2, 2018.
About the 69th AACC Annual Scientific Meeting & Clinical Lab Expo
The AACC Annual Scientific Meeting offers 5 days packed with opportunities to learn about exciting science from July 30–August 3. Plenary sessions feature the latest research on CRISPR biology, preserving fertility for cancer patients, new applications for DNA sequencing, the challenges of antibiotic resistance, and effective care for substance abuse disorders.
At the AACC Clinical Lab Expo, more than 750 exhibitors will fill the show floor of the San Diego Convention Center, with displays of the latest diagnostic technology, including but not limited to mobile health, molecular diagnostics, mass spectrometry, point-of-care, and automation.
About AACC
Dedicated to achieving better health through laboratory medicine, AACC brings together more than 50,000 clinical laboratory professionals, physicians, research scientists, and business leaders from around the world focused on clinical chemistry, molecular diagnostics, mass spectrometry, translational medicine, lab management, and other areas of progressing laboratory science. Since 1948, AACC has worked to advance the common interests of the field, providing programs that advance scientific collaboration, knowledge, expertise, and innovation. For more information, visit www.aacc.org.
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