Thoracic Oncology Group of Australasia TOGA

Reflecting on Success: TOGA's 2025 Annual Scientific Meeting

Conference Convenor, A/Prof Bryan Chan (back row, left) and the Local Organising Committee of TOGA's 2025 ASM

Held from 30 July-1 August at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, the 2025 TOGA ASM brought together more than 400 professionals from across the lung cancer community. The Conference Convenor, A/Prof Bryan Chan, and Local Organising Committee put together a quality program focused around the central theme, ‘Implementing Change in Thoracic Cancer Care Through Multidisciplinary Innovation’.

The meeting drew a diverse crowd of influential professionals from respiratory medicine, medical oncology, radiation oncology, surgery, nursing, and allied health, as well as patient involvement.

TOGA was privileged to host several distinguished international speakers in person, including Professor Solange Peters, the Oncology Director at Lausanne University Hospital, whose plenary outlined recent advances in SCLC – historically a disease with limited treatment progress. Mr Kelvin Lau, a Consultant and Lead Thoracic Surgeon from St Bartholomew's Hospital in London gave a plenary talk on the benefits of advanced bronchoscopic technologies that enable precise access to small peripheral lung tumours  including navigation systems, robotic control, and image guidance.

With Australia’s National Lung Cancer Screening Program now underway, attention is turning to optimising early-stage diagnosis and treatment. Dr Tracy Leong presented practical guidance for nodule assessment, while Peter Bligh (NACCHO) and Ewan Wylie (Heart of Australia) shared models for delivering screening to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and rural and remote communities.

In addition to the main program, the conference featured a number of meetings and activities including:

• • Optimal Care Pathway workshop: The workshop provided a comprehensive overview of the lung cancer diagnosis journey, tracing the path from a general practitioner's office to the multidisciplinary team.
  • Oral abstracts and posters: Congratulations to Ms Elizabeth Zemek who received the New Investigator Award for her oral presentation and Ms Jazmin Mireya Guayco Sigcha and her team who were awarded Best Poster.
  • Conference reception: A networking event to celebrate the achievements of the membership from the past year and to catch up with friends and colleagues.
  • Life Member awards: TOGA recognised three individuals whose contributions have had a profound impact on thoracic cancer care: Prof Ken O’Byrne, Prof Michael Millward, and Ms Joanne Wade.
  • Translational Researcher speed dating: A networking session for laboratory, translational, and early career researchers to spark collaboration.

The 2025 TOGA ASM could not have succeeded without the efforts of the Conference Convenor A/Prof Bryan Chan and the Local Organising Committee.

We look forward to having all attendees and more back at the 2026 ASM in Melbourne.

Professors Solomon and Pavlakis Secure Landmark $14.7 Million Funding for Groundbreaking Lung Cancer Liquid Biopsy Trial

Prof Ben Solomon (left) and Prof Nick Pavlakis (right)

The ASPiRATION 2L trial, led by Chief Investigators Prof Ben Solomon (CIA) and Prof Nick Pavlakis (CIB), alongside a national team of esteemed researchers, will evaluate the use of serial liquid biopsies (sampling the blood to detect circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA)) to guide treatment decisions for 500 patients with advanced oncogene-addicted NSCLC that has become resistant to therapy.

Determining the tumour genomic profile that gives rise to resistance is an active area of research, but to date has relied on sampling tumour tissue through invasive tissue biopsy.

Resistance to earlier generation targeted therapies arose primarily through escape variants of the mutation driving tumour growth, but as targeted therapies have become more sophisticated, there is a growing body of evidence, including TOGA’s ALKTERNATE and OSCILLATE clinical trials, suggesting that resistance is now also dependent on co-mutations that constantly evolve during the course of treatment.

Liquid biopsy is less invasive and able to be undertaken more frequently to build an ongoing profile of the tumour genome. This enables more frequent feedback on how the tumour genome is responding to additional treatments.

This innovative approach that will be employed in ASPiRATION2L aims to revolutionise personalised medicine, moving away from empirical therapies, and introducing genomically-directed therapy. It is hypothesised that this approach will enable people to live with metastatic NSCLC in a chronic disease-like state with improved survival and quality of life, and reduce the use of costly, ineffective treatments.

Your Go-to Podcast: Conversations in Lung Cancer Research

Tune in for conversations with leading experts, inspiring stories, and the latest updates on clinical trials. Stay informed and empowered in the fight against lung cancer. Listen on Apple or Spotify.

The Role of Liquid Biopsy in Modern Oncology
The guests discuss the concept of liquid biopsy, its advantages and limitations, and its clinical applications in lung cancer treatment. They explore how liquid biopsy can provide faster diagnosis and treatment options, especially for patients who cannot undergo traditional tissue biopsies.

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