Epigenomics of Common Diseases

ECD 2026, our 14th conference on common diseases, will showcase how advances in epigenomics are improving our understanding of disease mechanisms and supporting translation toward clinical and therapeutic applications. The meeting will bring together scientists and clinicians to discuss epigenetic regulation across the life course.

The programme will span epigenetic regulation across development and aging, with a focus on mechanisms underlying common diseases, including cancer and those associated with aging, as well as cellular plasticity. Discussions will explore how genetic and environmental influences shape epigenetic variation, alongside emerging epigenomic technologies that are opening new avenues for discovery and translation.

This friendly, interactive meeting encourages interdisciplinary exchange between basic, translational, and clinical researchers, supported by ample networking opportunities and inclusive meals. The programme will combine invited talks from international leaders with short oral presentations, posters, and poster pitch talks selected from abstracts.

The conference will start at approximately 12.00 on Wednesday, 4 November and close at approximately 13.00 on Friday, 6 November 2026.  All times are in GMT. See the time where you are here.

Discussions will focus on a variety of exciting topics, including:

• Epigenetics from development to disease
• Epigenetic mechanisms in aging and age-related diseases
• Epigenetic cell plasticity and cancer
• Genetics, epigenetics and environment
• Epigenetics and common disease: establishing causality
• New frontiers in epigenomic technologies

A draft programme will be available soon.

Scientific programme committee

Jordana Bell
King's College London, UK

Christoph Bock
CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine, Austria

Claudia Kleinman
McGill University, Canada

Charlotte Ling
Lund University, Sweden

Confirmed speakers to date

John Chambers (keynote)
Precision Health Research, Singapore/ Imperial College London, UK

Muzlifah Haniffa (keynote)
Wellcome Sanger Institute, UK

Bas Heijmans (keynote)
Leiden University, the Netherlands

Emma Dempster
University of Exeter, UK

Michaela Frye
German Cancer Research Center, Germany

Trevor Graham
Institute of Cancer Research, UK

Jacob Hanna
Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel

Maja Jagodic
Karolinska Institutet, Sweden

Päivi Pajukanta
University of California, Los Angeles, USA

Yijun Ruan
Zhejiang University, China

Fides Zenk
École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Switzerland

Organisers – Wellcome Connecting Science

Nagehan Ramazanoglu Bahadir
Programme developer

Amanda Fletcher
Event organiser

Registration deadlines:  

Early-bird in-person registration deadline: 3 August 2026
Standard in-person registration deadline: 7 September 2026
Late in-person registration deadline: 5 October 2026
Virtual registration deadline: 26 October 2026
All deadlines are at 11:59 pm (UK time).

In-person registration fees:

The in-person registration fee includes:

• Full access to scientific programme: oral and poster presentations, and networking on campus.
• Access to the online conference portal to network with online participants.
• Recordings of the live-stream sessions, which will be available ‘on-demand’ for four weeks after the event ends.
• Lunch and refreshments during the conference.

*Please note that breakfast and dinner will be provided for delegates who have booked onsite accommodation. Delegates not staying in onsite accommodation may purchase dinner at a cost of £45 per meal.

Virtual registration fee includes:

• Access to the virtual event portal (Log in details will be emailed a few days before the event starts)
• Live-stream sessions, including posters and online networking channels
• Recordings of the live-stream sessions, available ‘on-demand’ for four weeks after the event ends.

* To promote more inclusive scientific discussions with international colleagues at our conferences, virtual delegates based in Lower and Middle-Income Countries can register for free (see list of countries here).

If you are an editor or journalist, please contact the conference organiser for more information about the discounted fee or media pass.

Accommodation
Booked accommodation is for the nights of 4 and 5 November 2026.
Please note: there is limited onsite accommodation and this will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis; therefore, early registration is recommended.

If you wish to book campus accommodation either side of the conference dates, please contact the Hinxton Hall Conference Centre directly.

Accommodation services phishing scam – please be vigilant. More information.

Travel visas

Please check the UK government website for advice on whether you will need a visa or an electronic travel authorisation and how to obtain one: https://www.gov.uk/standard-visitor. 

Confirmed attendees requiring a letter to support a visa application should contact our events team.

Bursaries

Bursary deadline: 3 August 2026

Wellcome Connecting Science offers registration bursaries (usually up to 50% of the registration fee) to those who would benefit from attending the conference but face financial barriers to attending events.

Priority will be given to PhD students/trainees,  applicants from lower and middle income countries, or those from underrepresented/minoritised groups. Other early career researchers will be considered if funds allow.

To apply for funding support, please register and then select that you want to apply for a bursary. This will direct you to the online application form. Please explain why you need support and how you will benefit from attending the conference. Once you have submitted the application form, you will be emailed an abstract portal link. Please use this to submit your abstract before bursary deadline.

Applications without abstracts will only be considered in exceptional circumstances.

Additional funding opportunities

Visit our support page for information on financial support, including carer grants to help delegates with the costs of caring for children or dependent family members while attending a course or a conference.

Abstract deadline: 7 September 2026

We welcome abstracts from all areas relevant to the main themes of the meeting, for both oral and poster presentations. Several oral presentations will be chosen from the abstracts submitted. Presenters of oral presentations are expected to be onsite for the duration of the conference, whereas those presenting posters can do so in person or virtually.

To submit an abstract, you must first register for the conference. Once your registration is completed, you will be emailed a link to submit to the abstract submission portal. If you wish to edit your abstract following submission, please use the link in the abstract acknowledgement email.

All abstracts must be submitted and, if desired, edited by the deadline. The scientific programme committee will then assess your abstract and you will be notified about 2 weeks after the deadline whether you have been selected to present an oral or poster presentation. If you require acknowledgment that your abstract has been accepted earlier than this, please contact the event organiser.

Poster boards onsite will accommodate 118 cm high by 84 cm wide (A0-portrait) of printed material. Accepted abstracts will appear in the conference programme book; poster board numbers will be allocated at the conference.

All those accepted for a poster presentation will also have the opportunity present a ~1 min ‘poster pitch’ summarising their work.

With thanks to our sponsors:

The poster prize is generously supported by:

If you are interested in supporting this meeting, please contact us.

For more information about the benefits of having a presence at this meeting, see our sponsorship page.

Epigenomics of Common Diseases 2025

Keynote lecture by Jonathan Mill, University of Exeter, UK.

Feedback from our Epigenomics of Common Disease 2025:

“This conference is really perfect for networking. Due to the set-up, one can talk to almost everybody and always meet new people during the meal breaks.”

“The conference had an important impact on my line of research and as a researcher, as it showed me new possibilities and areas that I had no knowledge of until then to investigate and align with what I develop during my PhD.”

“The venue and small scale makes it much easier to connect with other delegates, even senior researchers. The poster sessions are great too!”

“It is really great to meet the PIs and senior researchers in the field, as well as getting feedback on ideas. In addition, the conference really gives a great, current overview of the field.”