Agenda
Advancing Itch Science: Bridging Research, Clinical Care, and Industry Innovation
Day 1: Friday, November 6, 2026 - Industry & Innovation Summit
10:00 am
Registration Desk Opens
11:30 am - 1:00 pm
Panel: Future-Proofing Itch Trials: Endpoints That Matter to Patients – and Will Matter for Approval
1:00 pm - 1:50 PM
Industry-Sponsored Session / Lunch
2:00 pm - 3:45 pm
Pipeline Accelerators
4:00 pm - 5:00 pm
Opening Ceremony & Keynote Plenary
Keynote: Neuroimmune Revolution in Itch—From Bench to Care
The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
5:00 pm - 6:30 pm
Welcome Reception & Poster Preview Session
Join us for light refreshments and food, and visit the industry exhibits.
Day 2: Saturday, November 7, 2026 - Scientific & Clinical Itch Congress
7:00 am
Registration Desk Opens
7:40 am - 8:30 am
Industry-Sponsored Session / Breakfast
8:30 am - 8:50 am
Opening Remarks & Day Overview: The Itch Landscape in 2026: What We Know, What We've Solved, What's Still Broken
Director, Miami Itch Center
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
8:50 am - 9:10 am
Foundational Plenary: Central vs Peripheral Itch Circuits
Professor, Vice Chair of Research, Director Alan Institute
Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine
9:10 am - 10:45 am
Session I: Neuroimmune Mechanisms of Chronic Itch
Ethan Lerner, MD, PhD
Associate Professor of Dermatology
Massachusetts General Hospital
Sarbjit Saini, MD
Professor of Medicine, Allergy & Immunology
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
10:45 am - 11:00 am
Break
11:00 am - 12:15 pm
Session II: Translational & Biomarker Advances
Santosh Mishra, PhD
Associate Professor
NC State University
Leigh Nattkemper, PhD
Miami Itch Center
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
12:15pm - 1:05 pm
Industry-Sponsored Session / Lunch
Poster Session
1:15 pm - 2:00 pm
Clinical Plenary: Treating Severe itch—What Works Now & Next
Joseph W. Burnett Endowed Professor and Chair in Dermatology
University of Maryland School of Medicine
2:00 pm - 3:15 pm
Session III: Emerging Therapies & Unmet Needs
3:15 pm - 3:30 pm
Break
3:30 pm - 4:15 pm
Session IV: Diversity, Disparities & Patient Experience
Psychodermatology, Itch Anxiety Feedback Loops, Sleep Disruption
Mohammad Jafferany, MD
Professor of Psychodermatology, Psychiatry, and Behavioral Sciences
Covenant Healthcare College of Medicine at Central Michigan University
Itch in Ethnic Populations and the Elderly
Daniel Butler, MD
Associate Professor, Dermatology
Director, Inflammatory & Aging Skin Research Program
University of Arizona College of Medicine
4:15 pm - 5:00 pm
Closing Roundtable: Building a National Itch Research Network
5:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Awards & Closing Remarks
5:30 pm
Adjourn
(Agenda subject to change)