Workshops
Second International Chordoma Research Workshop - 2008
The Second International Chordoma Research Workshop is scheduled for April 3-5 in Bethesda, Maryland.
This year's meeting will include over 80 leading researchers from across the globe, building on the
groundwork laid at the First ICRW in May 2007. Breakout groups will focus on Mechanisms of Disease,
Therapeutic Development, Clinical Management, and Resource Development. This exciting workshop will
cover a wide range of topics from developmental biology to drug development, with special emphasis on
creating consensus recommendations for the pathological diagnosis and clinical management of chordoma.
First International Chordoma Research Workshop - 2007
In May 2007, the Chordoma Foundation co-hosted the First International Chordoma Research Workshop
along with the NIH Office of Rare Diseases, the National Human Genome Research Institute, the National
Institute of Neurologic Disorders and Stroke, and the National Cancer Institute. The workshop brought
together a diverse group of 53 physicians and scientists from around the world, including some of the
brightest minds in sarcoma research, drug development and human genetics. Participants included both
scientists deeply involved in chordoma research and experts in related fields. What emerged was broad
consensus regarding research priorities, and a plan for moving the field forward. For the first time
ever an enthusiastic and collegial chordoma research community coalesced around a set of shared goals
aimed at improving the treatment of chordoma patients, and new collaborations were initiated involving
multidisciplinary research teams in North America, Europe and Asia. An important outcome from the
workshop is an ongoing clinical trial using Sutent for 20 chordoma patients with advanced disease.
This is only the second U.S. clinical trial specifically for chordoma patients.
