WHAT: Members of the press are cordially invited to meet with the speakers from AACR's Annual Meeting opening plenary session, taking place 8 a.m. PDT, Sunday, April 17, 2005 at the Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif.

WHEN: This media availability will follow the plenary session, which ends at 11:30 a.m. PDT

WHERE: AACR Press Briefing Room, second floor, Anaheim Convention Center, Room 211-A

WHO: Participants in the session include:

Michael B. Kastan, M.D., Ph.D., Cancer Center Director and Chairman, Department of Hematology/Oncology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tenn. Dr. Kastan is a practicing oncologist whose laboratory research focuses on radiation biology, DNA damage and repair, tumor suppressor genes, determinants of chemosensitivity and radiosensitivity, and causes of cancer. Dr. Kastan made the seminal discovery that the p53 tumor suppressor protein participates in cellular responses to DNA damage. More recently, his lab demonstrated how the ATM protein is activated by DNA damage. Dr. Kastan is the 2005 AACR Annual Meeting Chairperson and, as such, he is chairing the opening plenary session, entitled "The Impact of Scientific Discovery on Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment."

Clifton Leaf, executive editor, Fortune Magazine. Mr. Leaf helps oversee the magazine's editorial coverage and staff, and directs Fortune's Wall Street and investing coverage. His March 22, 2004 cover story, "Why We're Losing the War on Cancer (and How to Win It)," generated much discussion in the cancer research community.

Tyler E. Jacks, Ph.D., the David H. Koch Professor of Biology, the Director of the Center for Cancer Research at MIT, and investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Jack's laboratory has pioneered and constructed a series o
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Contact: Yarissa Ortiz
ortiz@aacr.org
215-440-9300
American Association for Cancer Research
8-Apr-2005