New technology and cutting-edge research have led to a renaissance in knowledge about the interactions between immune system cells and molecules and their role in controlling disease. Yet an increasingly sophisticated understanding of the immune system has highlighted how much we still have to learn. Many of the more basic biological discoveries are only now being translated into new clinical therapies for global health problems such as cancer and infectious disease. Moving immunology into the clinic is a multi-disciplinary endeavor that draws on cell and molecular biology, medicine, and computational and systems biology. Collaborations among basic scientists, medical professionals, industry representatives, and funding and regulatory agencies are required to advance this field. What researchers learn in the clinic fosters innovation in basic science as well; this iterative process is leading to complete remissions in chemotherapy-resistant cancer patients, preventing rejection and graft versus host disease in transplant recipients, and moving toward treatments in autoimmune diseases ranging from lupus to psoriasis. This symposium brings together experts in cancer immunotherapy, transplantation, and autoimmunity to highlight the therapeutic potential of modulating the immune system with drugs or biological treatments. Speakers will discuss not only where we are and where we have been, but what we need for the next push forward.