14-16 October 2026
Lisbon, Portugal
Call for abstracts will open on 27 January 2026.
Apply for oral or poster presentations.
The Champalimaud Research Symposium 2026
(CRSy26) will gather an interdisciplinary community of researchers to discuss the interplay between the neural and immune systems in relation to cancer initiation, progression and therapy. This symposium will emphasise the dynamic interactions among tumour cells, neurons and immune components, and how these relationships impact tumour growth, metastasis and the tumour microenvironment.
Key topics will include mechanistic insights into neuro-immune signaling pathways, the influence of stress and innervation on tumor immunity, and how immune responses can affect neural activity within tumours and beyond.
(CRSy26) will gather an interdisciplinary community of researchers to discuss the interplay between the neural and immune systems in relation to cancer initiation, progression and therapy. This symposium will emphasise the dynamic interactions among tumour cells, neurons and immune components, and how these relationships impact tumour growth, metastasis and the tumour microenvironment.
Key topics will include mechanistic insights into neuro-immune signaling pathways, the influence of stress and innervation on tumor immunity, and how immune responses can affect neural activity within tumours and beyond.
Symposium Chairs
Carlos Minutti
Immunoregulation Lab, Champalimaud Foundation, Lisbon, PT
Henrique Veiga-Fernandes Immunophysiology Lab, Champalimaud Foundation, Lisbon, PT
Carlos Minutti
Immunoregulation Lab, Champalimaud Foundation, Lisbon, PT
Henrique Veiga-Fernandes Immunophysiology Lab, Champalimaud Foundation, Lisbon, PT
Confirmed Keynote Speakers
Douglas Hanahan
EPFL, Lausanne, CH
Florent Ginhoux
Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, FR
Douglas Hanahan
EPFL, Lausanne, CH
Florent Ginhoux
Gustave Roussy, Villejuif, FR
CRSy is the main scientific symposium of the Champalimaud Research. Since 2017, it has fostered global dialogue among researchers across various disciplines, focusing on groundbreaking advancements in neuroscience, physiology and cancer.
Adrienne Fairhall, PhD
University of Washington
Seattle, Washington, USADr Adrienne Fairhall is a Professor in the Department of Neurobiology and Biophysics and adjunct in the Departments of Physics and Applied Mathematics at the University of Washington in Seattle. She obtained her Honors degree in theoretical physics from the Australian National University and a PhD in statistical physics from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. She co-directs the University of Washington’s Computational Neuroscience Center. Her research group focuses on mathematical modeling of neural systems, collaborating with experimentalists on a wide range of model organisms, from hydra to mosquitoes to primates. She uses methods from dynamical systems, biomechanics, Bayesian modeling and information theory to characterize how neurons encode information and subserve sensory, motor and cognitive functions in nervous systems.
︎ Visit the speaker’s lab here