Agenda

Advancing Itch Science: Bridging Research, Clinical Care, and Industry Innovation

Preliminary Agenda

Day 1: Friday, November 6, 2026 - Industry & Innovation Summit

11:00 am

Registration Desk Opens

12:00 pm - 12:45 pm

Networking Lunch

1:00 pm - 2:00 PM

Industry-Sponsored Session

2:00 pm - 2:45 pm

Panel: Regulatory Science in Itch: What Regulators Want but We Don't Yet Measure

Endpoints (itch, NRS, sleep, neural biomarkers)
Patient-centered outcomes
Regulatory perspectives

2:45 pm - 3:00 pm

Break

3:00 pm - 3:45 pm

Pipeline Accelerators

Real-world data
Smartphones & wearables for itch behavior
Biomarker-enabled trials (skin, blood, imaging)

3:45 pm - 4:15 pm

Patient Advocacy & Access Session

Patient organization perspectives
Health disparities in itch care
Patient to Patient Engagement Consortium

4:15 pm - 5:00 pm

Opening Ceremony & Keynote Plenary

Keynote: Neuroimmune Revolution in Itch—From Bench to Care

Xinzhong Dong, PhD
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

7:45 am - 8:30 am

Breakfast & Networking

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

Gil Yosipovitch, MD
Director, Miami Itch Center
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine

8:50 am - 9:20 am

Foundational Plenary: Central vs Peripheral Itch Circuits

Brian Kim, MD
Professor, Vice Chair of Research, Director Alan Institute
Mount Sinai Icahn School of Medicine

9:20 am - 10:45 am

Session I: Neuroimmune Mechanisms of Chronic Itch

Chairs:

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

Cytokine pathways
MRGPRs, TRP channels
Mast cell–nerve synapse biology
Glial modulation & spinal itch circuits

10:45 am - 11:00 am

Break

11:00 am - 12:15 pm

Session II: Translational & Biomarker Advances

Chair: Leigh Nattkemper, PhD
Miami Itch Center
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine

Spatial transcriptomics & nerve imaging
Serum biomarkers (BNP, periostin, IL-31)
Animal models of itch beyond mice models)
Mini-Posters: Flash Talks

12:15pm - 1:15 pm

Industry-Sponsored Session

Poster Session

1:15 pm - 2:00 pm

Clinical Plenary: Treating Severe itch—What Works Now & Next

Shawn Kwatra, MD
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

Biologics pipeline
Small molecules
Neuromodulation & behavioral therapy
Mini-posters: flash talks

3:15 pm - 3:30 pm

Break

3:30 pm - 4:15 pm

Session IV: Diversity, Disparities & Patient Experience

Itch in skin of color
Psychodermatology & itch anxiety feedback loops
Sleep disruption: new data

4:15 pm - 5:00 pm

Closing Roundtable: Building a National Itch Research Network

Data & biorepository collaboration
Annual trainee awards
Advocacy initiatives
Policy & payer engagement

5:00 pm - 5:30 pm

Awards & Closing Remarks

Best poster (trainee)
Rising itch investigator award
Announcement: next summit

5:30 pm

Adjourn

(Agenda subject to change)