The definition and research framework for acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) remain fragmented across different regions of the world. The primary objective is to bring together global experts, field leaders, and researchers to work collaboratively toward a unified understanding of ACLF. ACLF should be recognized as a single disease entity—similar to acute liver failure (ALF) or other well-defined disease etiologies—with clearly established diagnostic criteria, standardized therapeutic algorithms, and uniform patient management pathways. Such harmonization will facilitate collaborative research, attract industry support, enable competitive research funding, and, most importantly, represent a critical step toward improving patient survival and outcomes in this high-mortality condition. Key topics addressed in this session include:

• Gut failure in ACLF and critically-ill patients with cirrhosis
• Immune failure in ACLF and advanced cirrhosis
• Nontransplant therapeutic strategies in ACLF
• Transplant decision-making in ACLF
• Biomarkers/models for prediction and prognostication in ACLF

This infomative symposium examines the care of patients with alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) from an equity and inclusion perspective. Key topics include: equity in the transplant candidate selection process; socioeconomic factors that limit access to care among those with alcohol use disorder (AUD); and reducing the stigma associated with ALD and AUD. 

Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a leading driver of fibrosis progression and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with implications that extend beyond the liver. This joint session traces the clinical continuum from MASLD/metabolic dysfunction–associated steatohepatitis (MASH) to liver cancer, highlighting how metabolic inflammation, fibrosis, and comorbidity shape cancer risk, prevention, and treatment.
 
The first part of the session focuses on MASLD/MASH as a systemic, pro-oncogenic condition. Topics include: (1) epidemiologic links between MASLD and hepatic and extrahepatic malignancies; (2) inflammation as a clinical framework connecting metabolic dysfunction, fibrosis progression, and cancer risk; (3) fibrosis as the key inflection point for risk stratification using noninvasive tools; and (4) the impact of contemporary MASH therapies on inflammation, fibrosis dynamics, and long-term oncologic outcomes.
 
The second part of the session follows the MASLD/MASH fibrosis to cancer continuum across liver cancer. Topics include: (1) mechanistic insights into how fibroinflammatory signaling and stromal remodeling enable tumor initiation and immune evasion; (2) risk-stratified HCC surveillance that moves beyond cirrhosis only paradigms, integrating fibrosis assessment with practical pathways when ultrasound visualization is inadequate; (3) cancer prevention and interception strategies in advanced fibrosis, including chemopreventive signals and pragmatic trial designs; and (4) immuno-oncology–era treatment of MASLD/MASH–associated HCC, emphasizing how fibrosis burden and metabolic comorbidity influence selection and sequencing of systemic and locoregional therapies.

Metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is a leading driver of fibrosis progression and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), with implications that extend beyond the liver. This joint session traces the clinical continuum from MASLD/metabolic dysfunction–associated steatohepatitis (MASH) to liver cancer, highlighting how metabolic inflammation, fibrosis, and comorbidity shape cancer risk, prevention, and treatment.

The first part of the session focuses on MASLD/MASH as a systemic, pro-oncogenic condition. Topics include: (1) epidemiologic links between MASLD and hepatic and extrahepatic malignancies; (2) inflammation as a clinical framework connecting metabolic dysfunction, fibrosis progression, and cancer risk; (3) fibrosis as the key inflection point for risk stratification using noninvasive tools; and (4) the impact of contemporary MASH therapies on inflammation, fibrosis dynamics, and long-term oncologic outcomes.

The second part of the session follows the MASLD/MASH fibrosis to cancer continuum across liver cancer. Topics include: (1) mechanistic insights into how fibroinflammatory signaling and stromal remodeling enable tumor initiation and immune evasion; (2) risk-stratified HCC surveillance that moves beyond cirrhosis only paradigms, integrating fibrosis assessment with practical pathways when ultrasound visualization is inadequate; (3) cancer prevention and interception strategies in advanced fibrosis, including chemopreventive signals and pragmatic trial designs; and (4) immuno-oncology–era treatment of MASLD/MASH–associated HCC, emphasizing how fibrosis burden and metabolic comorbidity influence selection and sequencing of systemic and locoregional therapies.

The 2026 Transplant Course—jointly presented by American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the International Liver Transplantation Society—is a premier international educational forum for transplant surgeons, hepatologists, and multidisciplinary transplant professionals.

Bringing together globally recognized faculty, the course offers expert-led sessions and case-based discussions focused on contemporary clinical practice, ethical and regulatory considerations, and emerging innovations in liver transplantation. Key topics include: living donor and donation after circulatory death (DCD) transplantation; equitable organ utilization; outcomes optimization; and the responsible integration of new technologies. Organizers aim to provide attendees with practical, actionable insights to enhance patient-centered care, strengthen transplant program quality, and contribute to the evolving future of liver transplantation worldwide.

Session 1: Living Donor Liver Tranplantation      
Session 2: Transplant Oncology   
Session 3: When to say no to the Prospective Liver Transplant Recipient   
Session 4: Controversies and Challenges in Organ Transplantation Beyond Liver          
Session 5: Wellness of the Transplant Team

This workshop highlights the evolving landscape of cirrhosis diagnosis and management, and explores how these changes are reshaping clinical research. Faculty challenge the traditional approaches to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) screening, and portal hypertension assessment and management. Presenters discuss the evolving concept of cirrhosis recompensation with a focus on implications for clinical trial design, end points, and patient stratification. Faculty provide a forward-looking view of cirrhosis research and address key research questions that need to be addressed in the near future. The workshop includes 3 breakout sessions where attendees have the opportunity to interact with experts in smaller groups to discuss clinical research topics of interest, including: (1) noninvasive tools for the management of portal hypertension; (2) recompensation in alcohol-associated liver disease; and (3) the future of HCC screening. 

This workshop highlights the evolving landscape of cirrhosis diagnosis and management, and explores how these changes are reshaping clinical research. Faculty challenge the traditional approaches to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) screening, and portal hypertension assessment and management. Presenters discuss the evolving concept of cirrhosis recompensation with a focus on implications for clinical trial design, end points, and patient stratification. Faculty provide a forward-looking view of cirrhosis research and address key research questions that need to be addressed in the near future. The workshop includes 3 breakout sessions where attendees have the opportunity to interact with experts in smaller groups to discuss clinical research topics of interest, including: (1) noninvasive tools for the management of portal hypertension; (2) recompensation in alcohol-associated liver disease; and (3) the future of HCC screening. 

The spatial organization and zonation of the liver are fundamental to its functions and ability to repair and regenerate. Disruption of this spatial organization during inflammation and injury impairs hepatic function contributing to chronic liver diseases. Recent advances in spatial multi-omic technologies now allow researchers to visualize how gene expression and cellular pathways vary across hepatic zones, revealing how structural context governs metabolic specialization, regenerative capacity, and disease susceptibility.

This 2-part workshop brings together leading experts applying these technologies to investigate the liver in health and disease. Presentations encompass the mechanisms that preserve tissue organization and support repair to the cellular interactions driving fibrosis and metabolic dysfunction. Attendees learn how spatial transcriptomic, proteomic, lipidomic, and epigenomic analyses are redefining our understanding of liver biology and opening new avenues for biomarker discovery and therapeutic innovation.

The spatial organization and zonation of the liver are fundamental to its functions and ability to repair and regenerate. Disruption of this spatial organization during inflammation and injury impairs hepatic function contributing to chronic liver diseases. Recent advances in spatial multi-omic technologies now allow researchers to visualize how gene expression and cellular pathways vary across hepatic zones, revealing how structural context governs metabolic specialization, regenerative capacity, and disease susceptibility.

This 2-part workshop brings together leading experts applying these technologies to investigate the liver in health and disease. Presentations encompass the mechanisms that preserve tissue organization and support repair to the cellular interactions driving fibrosis and metabolic dysfunction. Attendees learn how spatial transcriptomic, proteomic, lipidomic, and epigenomic analyses are redefining our understanding of liver biology and opening new avenues for biomarker discovery and therapeutic innovation.

Effective communication is a core component of hepatology care. Yet teams may struggle with complex conversations about prognosis, goals of care, and end-of-life planning. This workshop provides advanced training for clinicians across the hepatology workforce (trainees, advance practice practitioners, physicians) in communicating with adults with serious illnesses affecting the liver (decompensated cirrhosis, hepatocellular carcinoma) and their caregivers. 

This workshop integrates focused didactics with small group, simulated encounters. Participants break into small groups and review standardized patient cases that build progressively on core skills: delivering serious news, responding to emotion, managing uncertainty, and eliciting goals and values. Facilitators with expertise in palliative care, hepatology, and medical education provide real-time, supportive feedback to help participants translate communication techniques into practice.