Blogs

It’s hard to believe that 2018 is almost over. It’s been both a productive and challenging year for ASBMT, but overall, we’re proud of the work we’ve done with our members and on behalf of them. Let’s take a look back and see at some of the incredible things we accomplished in 2018.

The TCT Meetings of ASBMT and CIBMTR

We had a record-breaking number of attendants at our meeting this year in Salt Lake City. Not only that, this was the first year under our new rebranded name, the Transplantation & Cellular Therapy Meetings of ASBMT and CIBMTR (also known as the TCT Meetings). Formerly called the BMT Tandem Meetings, we wanted to update our name to better align with the content of our meeting (and it never hurts to get a fresh, new look).

Those who attended the meeting raved about it. This comes as a great honor to ASBMT leadership, not only because people enjoyed themselves, but also because of the rich educational opportunities offered there. We are looking forward to next year’s event, which is scheduled for Feb. 20-24, 2019 in Houston. It’s not too late to register!

The Clinical Education Conference for NPs, PAs and Fellows

ASBMT considers the TCT Meetings and the Clinical Education Conference for NPs, PAs and Fellows (or CEC) our premiere events each year. This fall, CEC was met with great enthusiasm, and covered a slew of interesting topics from clinician burnout to pediatric BMT lectures. This is the perfect event for any young person entering our field, and we’re always happily surprised at its success year after year.

Smaller – Yet Impactful – Educational Events

In addition to our large conferences, we hosted several smaller events throughout the year, some of which were new to our organization and others that are beloved programs.

ASBMT leaders Sergio Giralt, MD, and Miguel-Angel Perales, MD, hosted the First International Symposium on Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation-Related Toxicities in New York City last spring. The program was well received, and it brought together some of the best minds studying and performing HCT procedures, specifically HCT-related toxicities.

We also held our second annual HCT Survivorship SIG Meeting, which had more than 70 attendees. The meeting addresses survivorship and late effect needs of hematopoietic stem cell transplant survivors and their caregivers. One of the biggest things to come out of the meeting was the SIG’s ongoing efforts to create a nationwide stem cell directory.

We also hosted our Clinical Research Training Course, which gives 12 scholars an all-expense paid trip to learn about taking their findings from the laboratory to the clinic.  The course offers formal presentations mixed with extensive dialogue and discussion. Huge kudos go to the fearless leaders of CRTC, Margy MacMillian and Chris Bredeson, who pulled off an extremely successful event. One of our scholars, Tania Jain, MBBS, wrote about her experience in Salt Lake City on our blog, and painted a picture of both strong professional and personal connection.

Advocacy on Behalf of our Society

This year, we saw some significant proposed rule changes from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid. We worked diligently to make sure our members’ voices were heard. In August, several ASBMT leaders (including myself) met with CMS Administrator Seema Verma where we discussed the Medicare inpatient final rule for CAR-T therapies.

That meeting resulted in us working with the American Society of Hematology (or ASH) to find some viable solutions to this rule. We sent a letter to CMS in November outlining what we believe is the best course of action in this matter.

Later in November, ASBMT President-Elect Dr. Navneet Majhail and Dr. Joseph Alvarnas participated in a Congressional Roundtable to discuss the issue further with our leaders on Capitol Hill. We were well received there, and all felt like it was a right step in the conversation about covering these incredibly important therapies. Going into 2019, we will continue working on this issue and being a voice for our society and our patients

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This year we accomplished a lot, but we still have so much further to go. As our society keeps growing—both in size and scope—we want each and every one of our members to know that we’re working to educate, support, and advocate for them. Thank you to all your dedicated work this year, let’s hope next year is even better.