Poster Walk Guidelines and Applications

Key Dates and Deadlines

Poster Walk Overview

Audience

The target audience should be laboratory and clinical research investigators interested in highlighting cutting-edge science in the poster abstracts featured in the annual meeting.

Poster Walk Format

The 2026 ASH Annual Meeting Poster Walks highlight cutting-edge emerging hematology science presented during the meeting’s poster sessions. A total of seven (7) Poster Walks will be featured, including:

All approved Poster Walks, both in-person and virtual, can contain up to five (5) posters. Each Poster Walk is designed to include a brief overview of the selected abstracts, followed by an interactive Q&A period between the session organizers, abstract authors, and audience. Specifically, each walk will include five (5) minutes of introductions led by the Chair(s), 30 minutes of brief presentations summarizing the selected posters delivered by each poster author, followed by 25 minutes of audience questions and answers with the poster authors and organizers.

For the in-person Poster Walks, the submitter of the approved application and the corresponding journal Editor will co-chair the session, moderate the discussion, and collaborate to select four to five (4-5) abstracts to be featured during the session. Virtual Poster Walks will be chaired by the submitter of the approved application.

Continuing Medical Education (CME)

Continuing Medical Education (CME) credits will not be offered for the Poster Walks.

Eligibility and Scoring Criteria

Eligibility Requirement

• The rationale should highlight the need for the Poster Walk and what the audience will get out of it.
• For repeat applicants, the rationale should indicate how the focus of the current year’s Poster Walk builds on or differs from the prior year’s walk.
• Registration for the ASH annual meeting is required for moderating and/or chairing a Poster Walk.

Oversight and Review

The ASH Committee on Scientific Affairs (CSA) reviews all Poster Walk applications and makes recommendations to the Executive Committee for approval. The CSA has direct oversight of the Poster Walk program content development, organizers, and speakers, reserving the right to alter the program if deemed appropriate.

Roles, Responsibilities, and Poster Walk Schedule

Registration for the ASH annual meeting is required for moderating and/or chairing a Poster Walk. Likewise, speakers/selected abstract authors must be registered to attend the ASH annual meeting.

Poster Walk participants (i.e., Chairs and Speakers) can participate in only one Poster Walk each year.

Chairs and Moderators

The chair and/or moderator of a Poster Walk is responsible for:

• Submitting a Poster Walk application. All Poster Walk applications are due August 6, 2026 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time.

• The following must be included in the application:

  • Proposed Poster Walk title.
  • Brief rationale for the Poster Walk. (Guide: Explain why a Poster Walk on this topic is relevant and how the audience will benefit from the walk).
  • Indicate the abstract categories the Poster Walk will cover.
  • Provide up to eight (8) keywords that will be used to generate a report with an appropriate number of abstracts for the Poster Walk.

  NOTE: The submitter will NOT be required to select specific abstracts at the time of application. If an application is approved, the organizers will be given access to embargoed Annual Meeting abstracts in late September. At that time, the organizers (Chair and corresponding journal Editor) will select the posters to be featured in the Poster Walk.

Speakers

The speaker of a Poster Walk is responsible for:

• Developing and uploading their slides into the presentation management system in advance for review by the Chair(s).
• Arrive 30 minutes prior to the session time.
• Summarize their poster on two (2) slides total and submit to ASH
  • One (1) title slide and
  • One (1) slide summarizing the poster details
• Present their poster during the session.
• Participate in the panel discussion/Q&A at the end of the session.

Logistics

Session logistics once a walk is approved:

• Early September: ASH staff will notify submitters of approved walks, who will serve as Chairs. For in-person Poster Walks, ASH staff will also introduce the Chair to the corresponding journal Editor who will co-chair the walk.
• Mid-October: Chairs/Co-Chairs will be asked to select posters to be featured in their respective walks, after which the abstract authors will be notified.
• Late October: Abstract authors participating in the Poster Walks will be invited and confirmed.
• Early December: ASH staff will organize planning calls with the Poster Walk Chair/Co-Chairs and their featured poster presenters to discuss session details and format.
• December: Poster Walks take place during the scheduled times referenced below.

Poster Walk Schedule

Poster Walks will take place at the Blood Journals Studio, located in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, Hall F.

All times listed are in Central time.

Each Poster Walk will be one hour long and scheduled to take place during any of the timeslots referenced above.

Approved in-person Poster Walks will not be recorded and will not be broadcast to a live virtual audience. However, for approved virtual Poster Walks, a recording of the walk will be made available on the annual meeting virtual platform until 11:59 p.m. Pacific time on Friday, January 1, 2027.

Policies Guiding Poster Walk Planning and Execution

Conflict of Interest Disclosure Policy

Poster Walk organizers and abstract presenters will complete their conflict-of-interest (COI) disclosure in the ASH online speaker management system in accordance with ASH Conflict-of-Interest Policy. These disclosures will then be displayed during the presentation in accordance with ASH's Conflict of Interest Policy.

To minimize bias and manage potential conflicts of interests, Poster Walk organizers/Chairs are strongly discouraged from selecting abstracts in which they are actively involved as either a principal investigator, presenting or senior author.

ASH Embargo Policy

Poster Walk organizers may not break the Annual Meeting Embargo Policy; only data contained within the accepted abstract may be discussed. Data beyond what is already contained within the published abstract is embargoed until the time of the poster presentation at the annual meeting and may not be discussed prior to that date.

Demographic Information Disclosure

Given ASH’s commitment to ensuring that clinical trial enrollment reflects the spectrum of the general population at risk for the disease under investigation, ASH requests that demographic information regarding sex, ancestry, age, or other relevant factors of enrolled subjects be included in Poster Walk presentations with a clinical trial focus, if this information is available. If some or all information is not available, the Society asks that presenters disclose in their oral presentation the limitations that led to such data not being collected.

Scientific Integrity

Transformative scientific research is an essential part of ASH’s mission. As such, ASH expects all scientific research presented or discussed during the ASH Poster Walks to conform to the generally accepted standards of experimental design, data collection, analysis, and interpretation.

ASH’s Commitment to Excellence Through Expansion and Inclusion

In an effort to keep each session and the entire Annual Meeting program representative of all individuals who contribute to the field, organizers should remain mindful of the following:

• A variety of affiliations and geographic locations (including regional and global variation) throughout each program is encouraged.
• ASH encourages speakers from a wide variety of backgrounds and perspectives to participate in each program.
• The participation of early career/junior level speakers is also encouraged.

Professionalism and Respect

All Poster Walk participants are required to adhere to ASH’s annual meeting code of conduct policies, and to use the following guidance on professionalism when referencing colleagues during formal sessions in the meeting:

• When making an introduction, please include the individual’s name, institution, location, and credentials.
• Use appropriate professional titles (e.g., “Doctor” for individuals holding MD and/or PhD degrees) when introducing or referencing colleagues during all formal portions of the ASH annual meeting.
• Confirm correct name pronunciation in advance by checking directly with speakers, particularly when uncertain.
• Chairs and moderators should model and reinforce these standards and are expected to encourage the same level of professionalism from audience members during question-and-answer periods.

Guidelines for Sponsorship and Promotion

Sponsorship

The Poster Walks are sponsored solely by ASH. Poster Walk organizers cannot solicit additional funding from corporate partners or other external sources. ASH reserves the right to raise additional funding for the Poster Walks. There will be no honoraria, or registration remittance, for Poster Walk Chairs or speakers.

Promotion of Poster Walks

Information about the Poster Walks will be displayed on the ASH website, in the annual meeting mobile app, the virtual meeting platform, and in the annual meeting Program Book. Attendees registering for the annual meeting may be asked whether they plan to attend any of the Poster Walks to collect participants’ information and project attendance. There is no additional charge to attend the Poster Walks. ASH will promote the Poster Walks in conjunction with its marketing for the annual meeting.

Questions

For questions about the Poster Walk application process, please contact posterwalks@hematology.org.