Cellular responses to changes in oxygen availability have important implications for both physiology and pathophysiology, in particular in the setting of solid tumor progression. A number of hypoxia-inducible pathways have been characterized, such as the large transcriptome regulated by hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs). However, many other oxygen-sensing pathways exist within the cell. The aim of this meeting is to disseminate up-to-date information on basic mechanisms of cellular and tissue hypoxia responses, and discuss the impact of these responses on physiology and cancer, with an emphasis on HIF-independent, but nevertheless fundamental, oxygen-sensing pathways. Outcomes of this meeting will include the dissemination of new scientific knowledge, the discussion of new methodologies, the education of graduate students and postdoctoral fellows in this discipline, and promotion of new collaborations between clinicians, basic researchers and industrial partners. This will be the eighth Keystone Symposia meeting on Hypoxia, which brings together academic, clinical and industrial researchers to enhance synergy between these groups and develop translational strategies for targeting hypoxic stress responses for therapeutic benefit.