There are two main conference series of particular relevance to those with an interest in understanding and treating A-T and related conditions. Each tends to hold conferences every two years and as far as possible they are planned to fall in alternate years.
The A-T Workshops have been going since the 1980s and the ATW 2017, held in March of that year in Milan, was the 17th in the series. While ATW conference organisers generally make efforts to ensure that there is some focus on the clinical potential of research, these conferences primarily involve presentations on and discussions of laboratory research.
It is probably also fair to say that over the years the scope has widened from a focus on the condition to trying to understand all the various roles played by the ATM protein and its substrates and the role these play in cell biology, genome stability etc. However, this also means that they often cover the activity of the proteins involved in the other related conditions, which all interact significantly with the ATM protein.
Nevertheless, given the fact that there are so many unanswered questions about why the absence of ATM gives rise to the specific phenotypic features of AT, the conferences have an important role to play in explaining these features and in identifying potential pathways and targets for therapeutic intervention.
The conferences are coordinated by an informal group of scientists with a long-term interest in the field. The next conference will be held in Texas in May 2019. To be put in contact with the committee or the organiser, please contact admin@internationalregistry.org.
ATW 2015 in Beijing
Initiated in 2012, the A-T Clinical Research Conferences are designed to complement the ATW conferences by bringing together clinicians and therapists interested in understanding A-T and improving clinical care with researchers whose work is throwing light on the processes of A-T and opening the way to new therapies and treatments. The aim is to ensure that clinicians and researchers all have an overview of what is happening right across the sector and to encourage new research and collaborations. In this last respect they have a strong record and number of new research collaborations and projects have been generated by the conferences.
Three conferences have been held to date and the next is planned for November 2018 in Naples. One feature of the conferences is that they are based around short presentations with ample time for discussion. They also end with a round-up of key outcomes and issues, which is then written up and disseminated via the A-T Clinical Research Network.
The conferences are coordinated jointly by the A-T Society and the A-T Children’s Project, which also partially fund them. To contact the organisers, please email admin@internationalregistry.org.
Cambridge 2012
Nijmegen 2012
Given the wide range of medical specialities which are involved in treating a person with A-T, there are many national and international conferences which may be of interest to those working with the condition. Likewise, there are a number of different research conferences which deal with the cellular processes in which ATM and the other proteins specific to the conditions in the registry. Among those which might be of special interest are the conferences on research into the different ataxias organised by the ataxia patient organisations in the UK and USA. For more information on these, contact research@ataxia.org.uk.
Three conferences have been held to date and the next is planned for November 2018 in Naples. One feature of the conferences is that they are based around short presentations with ample time for discussion. They also end with a round-up of key outcomes and issues, which is then written up and disseminated via the A-T Clinical Research Network.
The conferences are coordinated jointly by the A-T Society and the A-T Children’s Project, which also partially fund them. To contact the organisers, please email admin@internationalregistry.org.
For those interested in meeting people with A-T and their families, the A-T Society organises an annual Family Weekend, usually attended by 40 to 50 families living with A-T and related conditions. These have a series of talks and presentations, many on research issues. However, with enough notice it may be possible to organise sessions on particular subjects, for example to consult families on their views or to explain and promote a particular research project. For more information, contact support@atsociety.org.uk.