In This Section

Embargo Policy and Exceptions

Please read the following information closely regarding the embargo policy for the AACR Annual Meeting 2025. You may contact Julia Gunther at [email protected] with additional questions.

Embargo Policy

Abstracts submitted to the AACR Annual Meeting are confidential and embargoed until the AACR publishes the abstract in the AACR’s online itinerary planner. The abstract release schedule is as follows:

  • Full regular abstracts – i.e., TITLES AND TEXT – will be published on March 25, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. ET.
  • Late-breaking and clinical trials abstract TITLES ONLY (no text) will be published on March 25, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. ET.
  • Late-breaking and clinical trials abstract TEXT will be published on April 25, 2025 at 12 p.m. CT/1 p.m. ET.
  • Please note: Abstracts selected for the official AACR Annual Meeting Press Program will not be published according to the schedule above and instead will be published and lift embargo at the time of the related press conference or presentation at the meeting.

Public information officers or public relations firms representing academia or industry with abstracts in the meeting can issue press releases on information that is publicly available via the AACR’s online itinerary planner according to the schedule above. 

  • A press release that includes data from a regular abstract may be issued on March 25, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. ET, when the AACR publishes that information online.
  • A press release that includes the title and logistical presentation details only (presenter, session information, etc.) of a late-breaking or clinical trials abstract may be issued on March 25, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. ET, when the AACR publishes that information online. These title-only press releases must not include any data or information from the abstract.
  • A press release that includes data from a late-breaking or clinical trials abstract may be issued on April 25, 2025 at 12 p.m. CT/1 p.m. ET, when the AACR publishes that information online.
  • For posters: A press release that includes full data from a poster (beyond what is available in the abstract) may be issued at 12 p.m. CT/1 p.m. ET on Friday, April 25, when e-posters are made available to meeting attendees through the virtual meeting platform.
  • For oral presentations: A press release that includes full data from an oral presentation (beyond what is available in the abstract) may be issued at the beginning of the session where the study will be presented.

Once an abstract is accepted for presentation at the AACR Annual Meeting, the AACR holds the copyright to the abstract. The abstract may not be published or reproduced elsewhere.

Institutions or companies planning to promote abstracts that are selected for the official AACR Annual Meeting Press Program must contact Julia Gunther at [email protected] to ensure all embargo policies are followed. The AACR public relations team will contact presenters directly if their abstract is selected for the press program.

EMBARGO VIOLATIONS: PRESENTERS AND PUBLIC RELATIONS

Presenters, their companies/institutions, and affiliated public relations representatives who break the AACR’s embargo policy as outlined above could jeopardize an abstract’s placement in the scientific program and press events.

EMBARGO VIOLATIONS: MEDIA

Individuals registered as press for the AACR Annual Meeting 2025 agree to abide by all embargoes. In advance of the meeting, the AACR may provide abstracts, press releases, and other materials under embargo to facilitate accurate and comprehensive reporting. Failure to abide by the AACR’s embargoes may result in removal from AACR pre-embargo press lists and dismissal from current and future AACR meetings.

Exceptions to Embargo Policy

Certain laws may require disclosure of clinical trial data through federal and international registries within a specific amount of time following trial completion, or disclosure of clinical trial data by federal and international agencies for regulatory purposes related to drug safety and efficacy. Such disclosures will not be considered a violation of the AACR’s Embargo Policy, but the courtesy of advance notice to the AACR by email at [email protected] is requested.

Beyond the types of required disclosures outlined above, rare exceptions to the AACR’s Embargo Policy may be granted by the AACR for public health reasons or to meet other regulatory requirements. More information on requesting an exception is below.

Important Reminders

  • Requests for exceptions to the AACR’s Embargo Policy must be made at least 2 business days before any public release, following the guidelines below.
  • If an exception is granted, the AACR may still decide, following peer review, whether or not to accept an abstract. Once an abstract is accepted, the AACR reserves the right to place the abstract—or change its placement—in the scientific program and/or official press program as the AACR deems appropriate, depending on the information that has been released.
  • Please contact [email protected] with requests for exceptions or any questions.

SEC and Other Regulatory Exceptions

A publicly traded company may determine that, in order to comply with regulatory requirements, it is obligated to disclose data or other information from a confidential abstract before the AACR publishes the abstract online.

A company in this situation must request an exception to the AACR’s Embargo Policy. To do so, the company must submit a letter signed by the company’s legal counsel to [email protected], with a copy directed to the lead author of the abstract. This letter should include the abstract title, describe the format and timing of the disclosure, state that the company must disclose the information to comply with applicable securities laws, and confirm that the company will disclose the minimum amount of information needed for compliance.

Exception requests must be received by the AACR at least 2 business days before the requested public release, though it is strongly recommended that the company contact the AACR as soon as possible.

The AACR will review the request and confirm via email whether the abstract qualifies for an exception. If the AACR determines that an exception applies, the company may issue a press release or otherwise announce the information necessary for compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

The AACR requests that any press release or other public disclosure:

  • indicate that the full data set has been submitted to or will be presented at the applicable AACR meeting;
  • use qualitative descriptors to summarize study data rather than disclosing specific quantitative details;
  • avoid speculation or interpretation about the impact of the results; and
  • be shared with the AACR in advance of distribution.

Even if an exception is granted, the AACR reserves the right to accept or not accept an abstract following peer review. The AACR may also place the abstract in the meeting’s scientific program and/or official press program at its discretion. The abstract’s placement in the scientific program or inclusion in the official press program may be changed if the press release conveys significantly more information than what is outlined above, thereby decreasing the novelty of the information at the time of presentation.