Boston, MA • Oct 7- 8, 2026

Register for ICoNS'26

Meet a few of this year’s presenters

  • Walter Gilbert

    Nobel Laureate

  • State Representative Adam Anderson

    Florida / Sunshine Genetics Act

  • George Church

    Harvard Wyss Institute

  • Wendy Chung

    GUARDIAN Study

  • Charles DeLisi

    Boston University; Human Genome Project

  • Robert C. Green

    BEACONS / BabySeq

  • Natasha Bonhomme

    Expecting Health

  • Jim Bonham

    NHS / ISNS

  • Nicolas Encina

    ICoNS President

  • Jelili Ojodu

    APHL

  • Sikha Singh

    APHL

The Joseph B. Martin Conference Center at Harvard Medical School* was built in 2003 as a premier educational facility. Located at 77 Avenue Louis Pasteur in Boston, MA, the center hosts academic, medical, and scientific conferences, including historical retrospectives on health policy.

The center is named after Joseph Boyd Martin, a Canadian physician and former dean of Harvard Medical School.

* ICoNS is not affiliated with Harvard University, nor is ICoNS a Harvard University program or activity

Register for ICoNS'26

ICoNS’26 Organizing Committee

Nicolas Encina

President, ICoNS

Nidhi Shah

Dir. of Operational Development, ICoNS

Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth

Robert Green

Co-Chair, ICoNS. Harvard Medical School. BEACONS. BabySeq

David Bick

Co-Chair, ICoNS

Principal Clinician, Generation Study

Sikha Singh

Director, APHL

Ingrid Holm

Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School

Trish Encina

Marketing, ICoNS

Gerald Mastellone

Special Projects, ICoNS

Senior Director, APHL

Jelili Ojodu

Monique Johnson

Owner, Monx Design House

ICoNS ANNUAL MEETING

Annual Convening of Global Thought-Leaders and Stakeholders in Newborn Sequencing

Representatives Across the Entire Healthcare Ecosystem From Over 50 Countries

Clinicians • Researchers • Policy Makers • Technology • Therapeutics • Advocacy • Diagnostics • Ethics • Hospital Systems • Laboratories

Sponsors

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2026 Agenda

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Day 1 October 7

Morning Session

Opening Chair: Nicolas Encina

Session II Chair: Melissa Wasserstein

Day 1 Morning
Registration

Registration & Networking

Opening Remarks

Opening statements by the ICoNS President, Nicolas Encina

Welcome Address

Welcome address from Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital

Wendy Chung, Boston Children’s Hospital

Keynote Speaker

Keynote Presentation

Speaker: Robert Green, ICoNS Chair, Professor of Medicine (Genetics) Harvard Medical School. BEACONS. BabySeq

The Long Arc of Genomics

Opening Panel: Robert Green welcomes Nobel Laureate, Walter Gilbert, genomics and synthetic biology pioneer, George Church, and initiator of the Human Genome Project, Charles DeLisi.

Group Photo

Group Photo

Morning Break

Morning Break

Guest Speaker

Title: Genomics & Newborn Screening

Speaker: Jim Bonham, President International Society of Neonatal Screening (ISNS)

Featured Abstract Session

Integrating Untargeted Metabolomics as a Second-Tier Functional Tool for Variant Interpretation in Genomic Newborn Screening

Speaker: José ManuelGonzález de Aledo Castillo

Featured Abstract Session

Eight genomic newborn screening implementation challenges observed in Early Check

Speaker: Heidi Cope

Featured Abstract Session

Parental Perspectives and Experiences with Genetic Testing and Surveillance for Cancer Predisposition in Healthy Young Children

Speaker: Kayla Hamilton

Genetic Privacy & Law

Genetic Privacy & Law

Speaker: Natalie Ram, Maryland Francis King Carey

Lightning Poster Talks

Featured Oral Poster sessions. Two-minute lightning rounds.

Lunchtime Seminars

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Featured

Afternoon Session

Session I Chair: Nidhi Shah

Session II Chair: TBD

Workshop Moderator(s): Yvonne Bombard, Aaron Goldenberg

Featured
Workshops

Auditorium: Should gNBS programs plan for clinical data reuse?

Rotunda: From Checkbox to Cornerstone: Designing High-Impact Community Advisory Boards (CAB’s) in gNBS

Afternoon Break

Afternoon Break

Guest Speaker

Sanofi

Guest Speaker

N-of-1 Therapies

Speaker: Timothy Yu

Featured Abstract Session

Outcomes and impact of the GUARDIAN (Genomic Uniform-screening Against Rare Disease in All Newborns) expanded genomic newborn screening (gNBS) study

Speaker: Brenna Boyd

Featured Abstract Session

Genomic newborn sequencing in a national health system: insights from the first 45,000 results of the Generation Study

Speaker: Alice Tuff-Lacey

Featured Abstract Session

An Optimized Workflow for High Molecular Weight DNA Extraction from Dried Blood Spots for Long-Read Sequencing

Speaker: Pingfang Liu

Featured Abstract Session

Genomic Newborn Screening Across Diverse Genetic Ancestries: GUARDIAN Screen‑Positive Rates and Ancestry Specific Findings Among >19,000 Newborns

Speaker: Britt Johnson

Fireside Chat

From Discovery to Action: A Parent Lens on Genomic Sequencing in Newborn Screening

Natasha Bonhomme (M), Erica Barnes (Executive Director, Minnesota Rare Disease Advisory Council), Becky Quick (“Squawk Box” Co-Anchor, CNBC, Founder, CNBC Cures Summit).

Closing Remarks

Nicolas Encina, ICoNS President

Poster Session & Networking Reception

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Day 2 October 8

Morning Session

Opening Chair: TBD

Session II Chair: TBD

Day 2 Morning
Registration
Opening Remarks

Day 2 commencement from Nicolas Encina, ICoNS President

Morning Address

Integration in Public Health

Speaker: Jelili Ojodu, Senior Director, Newborn Screening and Genetics, APHL

Keynote Speaker

Sunshine Genetics Act

Speaker: Representative Adam Anderson, Florida House of Representatives

Year 1: gNBS in UAE

Reflections on year 1

Speaker: Mohamed Alameri, Division Director Genome and Biobank at Department of Health Abu Dhabi

Year 1: gNBS in Puglia

Reflections on year 1

Speaker: Mattia Gentile, Director of UOC, Laboratory of Medical Genetics

Global Trends Panel

The Global Landscape of gNBS: From Macro Trends to Regional Realities

Nidhi Shah (M): Representative Anderson (R-FL), Mattia Gentile (Puglia), Mohamed Alameri (UAE), Kimihiko Oishi (Japan), Jim Bonham (UK), Lilian Downie (Australia)

Morning Break
Speaker

TBD

Featured Abstract Session

Health economic analysis from a genomic newborn screening pilot, Babyscreen+

Speaker: Lilian Downie

Featured Abstract Session

Overcoming the benign-control bottleneck in variant classification using primate genomes

Speaker: Aimee Dudley

Featured Abstract Session

Benchmarking Emerging Technologies for gNBS Pipeline Integration: A Technology Integration Readiness Index

Speaker: Pakhi Dixit

Speaker

TBD

Lunchtime Seminars

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Featured

Afternoon Session

Session I Chair: TBD

Workshop Moderator: TBD

Featured
Workshops

Auditorium: From Fetal Genomics to gNBS: Defining the Earliest Actionable Window

Rotunda: Valuing gNBS: Aligning Economic Evidence with Decision-Maker Needs

Afternoon Break
Chair Address

Operationalizing Global gNBS: Moving from Clinical Trials to Collective Action

Speaker: David Bick, ICoNS Co-chair, Generation Study, ICoNS Subcommittee Leads

Guest Speaker

Public Sentiment on gNBS

Speaker: Aaron Goldenberg, Professor of Bioethics, Case Western Reserve University

Guest Speaker

TBD

Fireside Chat

Pathways to Equitable Access

Ingrid Holm (M): Aaron Goldenberg (Case Western), Sikha Singh (APHL), Natalie Ram (Maryland Francis King Carey)

Closing Remarks

Nicolas Encina, ICoNS President

The Annual Gathering of Experts in Genomic Newborn Screening

Pioneers shaping the future of preventive care converge annually to share updates and exchange ideas aimed at protecting future generations of newborns and families.

Whether you’re an expert or enthusiast, come experience the frontiers of genomics and human health.

Register for ICoNS'26

Important Announcements

    • The Inn at Longwood Medical

      • Use this booking link $305++ per room, per night, available any number of nights October 6-10, 2026,(Reservation must be made by September 1, 2026)  Hotel is a 5 minute walk to the conference.

    • Courtyard by Marriott Brookline

      • Use this booking link October 6-9, 2026: (Reservation must be made by September 6, 2026)  $299++ per room, per night. Complimentary shuttle service available from the hotel to Longwood Medical and then a 2 minute walk from Longwood Medical to the conference. 

    • Hilton Garden Inn Brookline

      • Use this booking link October 6-9, 2026: (Reservation must be made by September 6, 2026)  $329++ per room, per night.  Hotel is a 15 minute walk to the conference or short Uber ride.

    • Omni Boston at the Seaport

      • Use this booking link, October 7-8,2026: (Reservation must be made by September 8, 2026) $359-399 per room, per night. Hotel is 4 miles from the conference. 10 minute Uber ride or 40 minute walk.

  • Virtual sessions will livestream in Eastern Standard Time (EST). Unedited sessions will also be available 24 hours after the last livestream of each conference day. Links will be available through the event app. Edited sessions will be available a few weeks after the conference for registrants. 

  • Special note to exhibitors, speakers and delegates.

    ICoNS is NOT affiliated or related to any travel agencies or destination management companies and will never solicit you for flights or accommodations.

    It is important to be aware that you may be contacted by phone, fax, or email by third party companies that act as travel agencies, wholesalers or destination management companies to solicit you with aggressive or deceptive tactics for room reservations. Room poachers and pirates may also misrepresent themselves as the official conference housing bureau and may illegally use the conference name or logo, however these companies are neither related nor affiliated with ICoNS and its meetings in any way.

 

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