07:30-08:00

Registration, Continental Breakfast, Exhibit Fair

07:45- 08:00

Welcome and Introduction
Essam Mekhaiel MD
Medical Director, Interventional Pulmonology, Advocate Health Care

08:00- 08:20

Lung Cancer Screening Update: We Found a Lung Nodule, Now What to Do? (Pulmonary Nodule Risk Stratification)
Kevin Haas, MD
Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Allergy,
Associate Program Director- Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship, University of Illinois at Chicago
Director, Interventional Pulmonary, Jesse Brown VA Chicago

08:20 – 08:40

Beyond the Numbers: Redefining Diagnostic Yield in Lung Nodule Assessment
Septimiu Murgu, MD, FCCP, DAABIP
Professor of Medicine, University of Chicago

08:40– 09:00

The Evolving Role of Advanced Imaging in Lung Nodule Diagnosis
Christine Argento
VA Milwaukee Interventional Pulmonary Director, PCCM/CCM fellowship VA site Director
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Medical College of WI, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Medical College of Wisconsin/ VA Milwaukee

9:00-9:20

CT-to-Body Divergence in Bronchoscopy: Strategies and Anesthesia Considerations
Sonali Sethi, MD, FCCP
Director, Lung Cancer Diagnosis and Staging Program
Program Director for Interventional Pulmonary Fellowship & Fellows Procedural Training
President-Elect American Association of Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology,
Respiratory Institute - Department of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine & Transplant Center, Cleveland Clinic

9:20-9:40

Intratumoral Therapy of Thoracic Malignancies
Daniel Sterman, MD
Thomas & Suzanne Murphy Professor of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine, Director, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care & Sleep Medicine, Director, Multidisciplinary Pulmonary Oncology Program, Principal Investigator, NYU Pulmonary Oncology Research Team (NYU PORT), Departments of Medicine & Cardiothoracic Surgery, NYU Langone Health

9:40-10:00

AI-Driven Approaches to Lung Nodule Risk Stratification
Uzair Ghori, MD, DABIP
VA Milwaukee Interventional Pulmonary Director, PCCM/ CCM Fellowship VA Site Director - VA Milwaukee
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine - Medical College of Wisconsin

10:00– 10:20

Coffee Break / Exhibit Fair

10:20– 10:40

Next-Generation Imaging in Peripheral Bronchoscopy: Application of OCT, CLE, and Beyond
Ali Sadoughi, MD
Director of Interventional Pulmonology and Bronchoscopy Services, Montefiore Medical Center- Albert Einstein College of Medicine

10:40– 11:00

Ground Glass Nodules: Biopsy Now or Watchful Waiting?
Momen Wahidi, MD, MBA
Professor of Medicine, Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine
Medical Director, Canning Thoracic Institute
Health System Director, Interventional Pulmonology, Clinical Practice Director, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care,
Co-Medical Director, Northwestern Medicine Lung Cancer Screening Program, Northwestern Medicine

11:00– 11:20

European Approach to Lung Nodules
Thomas Gaisl, MD, MPH, PhD
Interventional Pulmonology, Universitätsspital Zürich, Switzerland

11:20– 11:40

From Low to High: Tips and Tricks for a Better Diagnostic Yield
Huzaifah Salat, MD
Pulmonologist | Intensivist | Advanced Bronchoscopist
Regional Medical Director of Respiratory Care - Metro Milwaukee Hospitals
Assistant Professor of Medicine (Adjunct)- University of Wisconsin Madison School of Medicine & Public Health

11:40-12:00

Tool-in-Lesion Confirmation: The Future is Now
Amir Hanna, MD  

12:00 – 12:40

Lunch Break / Exhibit Fair

12:40-1:00

Liquid Biopsy vs. Re-biopsy: An Interventional Pulmonology Perspective
Prashant Joshi, MD

1:00-1:20

Fiducial Marking in Pulmonary Nodules: Facilitating Lung-Sparing Surgery
Hasnain Bawaadam, MD, MPH, FCCP, FRCP, D-AABIP
Medical Director for Interventional Pulmonary and Respiratory Care Services-Department of Interventional Pulmonology and Critical Care, Associate Professor of Medicine, Rosali, Aurora Medical Center- Kenosha

1:20-1:40

Back to the Basics- The Role of Thin and Ultrathin Bronchoscopy in the Era of Robotics
Alexander Chen, MD
Director, Interventional Pulmonology
Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine
Associate Professor of Surgery, Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine

1:40- 2:00

 From Frozen Edges to Burning Cores: Updates in Lung Nodule Ablation
Joseph Mammarapallil, MD, PhD
Associate Professor, Cardiothoracic Division - Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center

2:00-2:20

Break / Exhibit Fair

2:20-2:40

From Heat and Ice to Pulsed Electricity: Redefining Pulmonary Ablation

Essam Mekhaiel, MD, FCCP, DAABIP
Interventional Pulmonologist & Pulmonary Critical Care Physician, Director of Interventional Pulmonology,
Advocate Christ Medical Center

2:40-3:00

From Detection to Resection: The Surgical Perspective in Early-Stage Lung Cancer
Paul J. Gordon, MD
Thoracic Surgeon, Director Thoracic Oncology, Advocate Christ Medical Center

3:00-3:20

Year In Review
Robert Lentz, MD
Professor of Medicine and Thoracic Surgery, Pierre Massion Director in Lung Cancer Research, Director of Interventional Pulmonology, Vanderbilt Interventional Pulmonology Research-Director, MASLAB--Co-Director, Vanderbilt University

3:20-3:40

Discussion and Q&A
Should All Suspicious Nodules Get a Biopsy Before Surgery? Thoracic Surgery vs. IP perspectives

3:40-4:20

Panel Discussion
Moderators: Essam Mekhaiel, MD, FCCP, DAABIP & Uzair Ghori, MD, DABIP

1. Pre-Procedural Imaging in the Era of Robotic Bronchoscopy: Is Cone Beam CT Enough

2. Biomarkers in the Management of Lung Nodules

3. Should Nodules Less Than 8 mm Be Biopsied? Revisiting Fleischner Guidelines

4. Management of Multifocal or Bilateral Nodules (Surgical Candidacy or Ablative Therapy Planning)

5. What Is an Acceptable Diagnostic Yield in 2025/2026?

4:20-4:30

Closing Remarks