Calendar

Donna Hansel, MD, PhD

Professor of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, School of Medicine, Oregon Health and Science University
Chair, M.D./Ph.D. Program Committee, School of Medicine, Oregon Health and Science University

Dr. Hansel’s research focuses on invasive mechanisms in bladder cancer and application of these findings to the identification of new variants of bladder cancer and modifications to bladder cancer staging criteria. Overall, she has presented her research nationally and internationally, and her work has appeared in more than 130 peer-reviewed publications and testicular cancer. Dr. Hansel received her undergraduate degree in Biology from the Johns Hopkins University and her M.D., Ph.D. degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

David M. Engman, MD, PhD

Chair Emeritus of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Cedars-Sinai
Retired Professor of Microbiology-Immunology and Pathology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Dr. Engman is a physician-scientist with clinical expertise in molecular genetic pathology and research interests in emerging infectious diseases and cancer.  He has dedicated much of his professional career to the mentoring of scientists, physicians and physician-scientists and directed the Northwestern University MD-PhD Program for nearly twenty years.  Dr. Engman served as President of the National Association of MD-PhD Programs and Chair of the MD-PhD Section of the Association of American Medical Colleges.  He was voted Mentor of the Year by the faculty of the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in 2015 and served as Chairman of the Department of Pathology at Cedars-Sinai from 2016 to 2020.

Peiwen Chen, PhD

Assistant Professor of Neurological Surgery, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Dr. Chen’s goal is to figure out how myeloid cells are triggered to infiltrate into the Glioblastoma (GBM) tumor microenvironment by glioma cells under specific genetic backgrounds (e.g., PTEN mutation and deletion), and, in turn, how they affect glioma cell biology and induce immunosuppression. Based on these mechanistic studies, he aims to develop novel immunotherapy strategies for GBM.

Dalnim Cho, PhD

Instructor, Department of Health Disparities Research, Division of Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

The purpose of Dr. Cho’s study is to identify the short- and long-term changes in stress, health behaviors, and quality of life and their associations in the transition from active treatment to survivorship. Young adult cancer survivors and their partners will be asked to complete a daily diary survey for 7 consecutive days (‘a burst’) 9 times over 2 years, with the bursts spaced 3 months apart.

Abby Green, MD

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Infectious Diseases, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis

Dr. Green is dual board-certified in both pediatric hematology-oncology and infectious diseases. She is an attending physician on the immunocompromised infectious diseases team at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at Washington University School of Medicine. She is on the Core Leadership Council of the Center for Genome Integrity at Siteman Cancer Center.

2022 DAPER Awardee

Berkley Gryder, PhD

Assistant Professor, Department of Genetics and Genome Sciences, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Assistant Professor, Case Comprehensive Cancer Center, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

Dr. Gryder’s laboratory studies the 3D architecture, composition, and function of long-range enhancers driving cancer gene expression programs. From this vantage point, the Gryder lab is developing new molecular strategies to control and collapse nuclear subcompartments called super-clusters, also known as transcriptional condensates.

Hae Lin Jang, PhD

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital

Dr. Jang’s research group develops innovative biomaterials and biotechnologies to solve medical problems, especially cancer metastasis in bone. They create an immune-integrated cancer metastasis in bone modeling platform to understand underlying pathological mechanisms and engineer novel immunomodulatory therapies to defeat cancer.

Michael Jackson, PhD

Senior Vice President, Drug Discovery and Development, Conrad Prebys Center for Chemical Genomics, Sanford Burnham Prebys
Adjunct Professor, Cell and Molecular Biology of Cancer Program, Sanford Burnham Prebys

Dr. Jackson is responsible for the operations of the Conrad Prebys Center for Chemical Genomics, a 55-person, multidisciplinary drug discovery enterprise, which has all the capabilities needed for small molecule drug discovery and drug repositioning. Prior to joining SBP, he spent 15 years at Johnson & Johnson developing a track record for research and development as he rose through the ranks from Vice President of Discovery to President of R&D at ALZA Corporation.

Cato T. Laurencin, MD, PhD

Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering and Biomedical Engineering, University of Connecticut
Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Connecticut
Chief Executive Officer, The Connecticut Convergence Institute for Translation in Regenerative Engineering
Director, The Raymond and Beverly Sackler Center for Biomedical, Biological, Physical and Engineering Sciences

Dr. Laurencin is the first surgeon in history elected to all four National Academies: the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the National Academy of Medicine, and the National Academy of Inventors. The founder of the field of regenerative engineering, he received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President Barack Obama in ceremonies at the White House, the nation’s highest honor for technological achievement. Laurencin received the 2021 Spingarn Medal from the NAACP.

Robert G. Rowe, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital

Dr. Rowe’s research is focused on the biology of normal and diseased blood stem cells. He is interested in the mechanisms underlying developmental differences in young and old blood stem cells and how these are perturbed in diseases such as bone marrow failure and leukemia.

2022 DAPER Awardee

Nilay Sethi, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Physician, Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Associate Physician, Medical Oncology, Brigham And Women’s Hospital

Dr. Sethi’s goal is to combine clinical observations and patient-derived data with rigorous basic science investigation to yield opportunities for impactful translational advances. He is committed to defining the mechanisms underlying gastrointestinal cancers with the hope that such insight will translate into new prevention and treatment methods.

2022 DAPER Awardee

Min Xue, PhD

Associate Professor of Chemistry, University of California, Riverside

The primary goal of Dr. Xue’s research group is to create chemical tools that enable a deeper understanding and effective treatments of human diseases, such as cancer. He takes a convergent approach and innovate through the interdisciplinary sciences involving bioanalytical chemistry, chemical biology, organic chemistry, multivariate statistics, and cancer biology.

2022 DAPER Awardee

Peter Kuhn, PhD

Deputy Director, Convergent Science Virtual Cancer Center
Director, USC Michelson Convergent Science Institute in Cancer
Dean’s Professor of Biological Sciences; Professor of Medicine, Biomedical Engineering and Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering, University of Southern California

Peter.Kuhn@csvcc.org

Dr. Kuhn is a physicist and educator with a career long commitment in personalized medicine and individualized cancer patient care with a focus on the redesign of cancer care that eliminates uncertainty in treatment choices and outcomes. He has a history of developing disruptive technologies that solve real-world scientific and healthcare problems.  He has significant experience in managing large scale research collaborations and interdisciplinary research teams at the interface of physics, life science and medicine. As the founder and director of the Scripps Physics Oncology Center, an NCI supported signature initiative, his research over the past 12 years has focused on the understanding of the fluid phase of solid tumors. At USC this enterprise is known as Convergent Science Institute in Cancer (CSI-Cancer). The results are both advancing cancer care through better understanding of the metastatic process in patients and through the translation of scientific results to clinically useful products. The underlying technology of the center is now being tested in over three thousand patients in the research setting as well as being commercially developed by Epic Sciences. His laboratory is now integrating patient, model system, and high-content single cell genomics data to translate clinically observed correlations into a mechanistic understanding of the physical and biological underpinnings of cancer dynamics to modify outcomes for the diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy management of ovarian, breast, lung, colon, prostate, and other tissue cancers.

Kenneth A. Bertram, MD, PhD

Special Advisor on Military Health, Convergent Science Virtual Cancer Center
Clinical Product Development Officer, Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine
Medical Director, Center for Defense Medicine, BioGenerator
Colonel, United States Army, Ret.

Dr. Bertram served 24 years on Active Duty in the U.S. Army as an Internal Medicine and Hematology/Oncology physician, as a medical research Program Manager, and as the Commander of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR). After retiring as a Colonel, he was selected to lead the Army’s Medical Advanced Development and Acquisitions teams. Dr. Bertram retired from Federal Service in 2018 and now spends half of his time at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine leading efforts to bring stem cells into clinical trials and half of his time as a Consultant to BioGenerator helping to bring innovative medical solutions to America’s Service Members and Veterans.

Thomas R. Cech, PhD

Chair, Convergence Council
Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry, University of Colorado Boulder
Director, University of Colorado BioFrontiers Institute
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Dr. Cech’s research centers on RNA and RNA-protein complexes. His group studies telomerase, the chromosome end-replicating enzyme that is reactivated in the majority of cancers. They also study how RNA regulates epigenetic silencing. Dr. Cech has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Medicine, and he has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the National Medal of Science. He served as president of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute from 2000 to 2009.

Stephen J. Freedland, MD

Warschaw Robertson Law Families Chair in Prostate Cancer, Cedars-Sinai
Director, Center for Integrated Research in Cancer and Lifestyle, Cedars-Sinai
Co-Director, Cancer Genetics and Prevention Program, Cedars-Sinai
Associate Director, Faculty Development Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute, Cedars-Sinai
Professor of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai
Staff Physician, United States Department of Veterans Affairs

Dr. Freedland’s research interests include urological diseases and the role of diet, lifestyle and obesity in prostate cancer development and progression, as well as prostate cancer among racial groups and risk stratification for men with prostate cancer. He is a committed mentor having mentored over 70 mentees and published over 200 publications wherein the mentee was first author.

James Hu, MD, FACP

Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine, Co-Director of the Adolescent Young Adult (AYA) Oncology Program and Medical Director of the Sarcoma Program, USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center
Colonel, United States Army Reserve (USAR), Ret.

Dr. Hu is a former military commander of a combat support hospital and served in the army for 30 years. He has more than 20 years of clinical experience in medical oncology and brings this acumen to the bedside. Understanding the rarity of sarcoma cancers, Dr. Hu has collaborated with other national experts on clinical trials and have also been the Principal Investigator of more than 15 clinical studies.

Amanda Randles, PhD

Alfred Winborne and Victoria Stover Mordecai Assistant Professor of Biomedical Sciences, Duke University
Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Computer Science, Duke University

Dr. Randles has 114 U.S. patents and 16 international patents in her name, and counting (mainly in parallel computing), she made international headlines in 2015 for creating the first three-dimensional simulation of blood flow through the human body. Her research in biomedical simulation and high-performance computing focuses on the development of new computational tools that we use to provide insight into the localization and development of human diseases ranging from atherosclerosis to cancer.

Jan Liphardt, PhD

Associate Professor of Bioengineering, Stanford University

Dr. Liphardt’s scientific training is in single-molecule biophysics and thermodynamics of small systems. The focus of his research is to determine how biological systems function. Systems under investigation range from the self-organization of receptors in membranes, the transport of cargos through biological pores, and the control of the DNA loopscape in the nucleus. He co-founded CancerBase, where patients can share medical data and learn from one another.

Nancy Krunic, PhD

Vice President and Global Head of Diagnostic Sciences and Partnerships, Novartis

Dr. Krunic is a dynamic leader with more than 20 years of experience in the global pharmaceutical and diagnostic industries.  In her current role at Novartis, she collaborates with strategic external partners and internal teams to identify, evaluate and implement diagnostic solutions for clinical biomarkers supporting development and commercial launch of innovative medicines. She is a core member of the BloodPac Consortium, a board observer at Freenome, and member of the American Society for Clinical Oncology.

Yu-Chong Tai, PhD

Anna L. Rosen Professor of Electrical Engineering and Medical Engineering, California Institute of Technology
Andrew and Peggy Cherng Medical Engineering Leadership Chair and Executive Officer for Medical Engineering

Dr. Tai’s research uses MEMS/NEMS technologies such as micromotors, microphones, neural chips, micro relays, micro power generators, micro valves, micro pumps, etc. for medical applications. He collaborates with physicians and biologists across the nation to develop integrated implants for cortical, retinal, and spinal applications. Micro implant devices include spinal neural stimulators, ECG implants, retinal prosthetic devices, intraocular lenses, etc.

Ian M. Thompson Jr., MD

Emeritus Professor, University of Texas
The Children’s Hospital of San Antonio Foundation

Dr. Thompson is a Urologic Oncologist with an interest in early detection, prevention, and treatment of prostate and other GU cancers. He has been a member of the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) since the 1980’s and chair of the GU Committee since the early 2000’s. He was in the Army at Brooke Army Medical Center and served as Chair of Urology and Cancer Center Director at the University of Texas Health Science Center. Dr. Thompson joined CHRISTUS Santa Rosa, as Hospital CEO and later with the two System Foundations.

Rodney Page, DVM, MS

Stephen J Withrow Presidential Chair in Oncology, Colorado State University
Professor of Oncology, Colorado State University
Director, Flint Animal Cancer Center

Dr. Page’s research interests have recently been focused on a ‘One Medicine’ approach to cancer. He has served as PI of the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study since 2008 (GRLS) and has led national efforts to bring translational and comparative oncology to a greater audience by developing two National Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine workshops and coordination of national research consortia for comparative cancer research. He is the 2019 recipient of the AVMA/AKC Career Achievement Award in Canine Research.

Deborah Lafter Scher, MBA

Executive Advisor to the Secretary, Center for Strategic Partnerships, United States Department of Veteran Affairs

Ms. Scher is a senior strategy and operations executive. She has built successful businesses in multiple healthcare sectors including senior care, academic medical centers, wellness, healthcare information and physician offices serving as the organization’s chief operating officer (COO), chief strategy officer (CSO), lead acquisitions executive and chief administrative officer (CAO). Ms. Scher provides guidance on public/private partnerships to enhance strategic missions.

Angela Lai, MSE

Chief Executive Officer, BetterOmics

Ms. Lai is a computer scientist, with decades of experience building complex computing infrastructure and machine-learning platforms at a global scale, including for regulated industries such as health science and financial systems. She was previously CTO of GRAIL, where she led the software and bioinformatics team to amass the largest clinical trial data set in oncology, and create a machine-learning platform with bespoke algorithms to detect cancer signals within tumor-derived cell-free nucleic acids in blood. She was previously CTO of GRAIL and spent over a decade at Google, where she was VP of Engineering.

David Spetzler, PhD, MBA

President and Chief Scientific Officer, Caris Life Sciences
Adjunct Faculty, Arizona State University
Board Member, Biden Cancer Initiative Standards Group

Dr. Spetzler is focused on the development of clinical assays to aid in the creation of precision medicine strategies for individual cancer patients, as well as noninvasive technologies to identify and predict early-stage cancer. He developed multiplexed nanotechnologies for single molecule detection of nucleic acid and protein targets. Dr. Spetzler also developed novel methods of using DNA to create biological computers to solve NP-complete optimization problems and built a novel optical detection system capable of measuring single molecule protein conformational changes with microsecond time resolution.

Adam Bass, MD

Herbert and Florence Irving Professor of Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center

Dr. Bass is a physician-scientist who has focused on the genomics of gastric and esophageal cancers, followed by defining mechanisms of key genomic aberrations in in vitro and in vivo models. Recently, he moved his research group to Columbia University to serve as a Founding Director of the Center for Precision Cancer Medicine.

Carole Baas, PhD

Patient Advocate, Convergent Science Virtual Cancer Center
National Advocate, National Cancer Institute’s Physical Sciences-Oncology Program
Member, Institutional Review Board, Baylor Research Institute

Dr. Baas represents the patient voice as one of the four founding editors of the scientific journal Convergent Science Physical Oncology, which focuses on how experimental and theoretical science contributes to a better understanding of cancer complexity and to the development of more effective diagnostic and treatment strategies. She is an advocate reviewer for the DoD Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program, PCORI and Komen.

Bobby Clark III

Maciej S. Lesniak, MD

Chair, Department of Neurological Surgery, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Michael J. Marchese Professor of Neurosurgery and Professor of Neurological Surgery, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Dr. Lesniak’s clinical and research interests focus on neurosurgical management of patients with brain and spinal cord tumors. He takes care of patients with both benign as well as malignant cancer of the brain/spinal cord. In addition, part of his practice is devoted to the care of neurovascular patients, including aneurysms and arteriovenous malformations.

Marsha D. Lewin, MS, MBA

Patient Advocate, Convergent Science Virtual Cancer Center
Member, Institutional Review Board, Cedar-Sinai

Ms. Lewin is an institutional review board community member. She reviews study goals and documents to ensure their clarity and consistency, and the protection of patient rights. As a retired management consultant, she is particularly interested in effective cross functional collaboration and education. Ms. Lewin has authored four books, published numerous articles, and mentored several consultants.

Daniel C. Link, MD

Professor, Departments of Medicine and Pathology & Immunology, Washington University Medical School, St. Louis, MO

Dr. Link’s research is focused on two general areas: characterizing the regulation of hematopoietic niches in the bone marrow under homeostatic and stress conditions and defining the molecular pathogenesis and treatment of leukemias. Cutting edge genomic, transgenic, and imaging approaches are being used in this research. The Link laboratory emphasizes a collaborative research environment and places a priority on the career development of its trainees.

Kathrin Milbury, PhD

Associate Professor, Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Dr. Milbury systematically developed a unique program of research evaluating mind-body medicine as well as other behavioral interventions as a supportive care approach for cancer patients and their family caregivers. Her clinical trials are conducted in collaboration with clinicians and scientists representing various disciplines and funded by the National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society, and other research foundations.

Leo L. Mingle Jr.

Patient Advocate, Convergent Science Virtual Cancer Center
Commander, United States Navy, Ret.
Former Assistant City Manager, City of Bellflower, CA

Mr. Mingle joined the US Navy in 1974 after earning his undergraduate degree in history and political science from Kent State University. He was Executive Officer of the Naval Station in Long Beach when he retired from the US Navy in 1994. Mr. Mingle also serviced as Assistant City Manager for the City of Bellflower in California from 1995 to 2017.

Susan K. Peterson, PhD, MPH

Professor and Deputy Department Chair, Department of Behavioral Science, Division of Cancer Prevention and Population Sciences, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX
Member, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Houston, TX
Adjunct Professor, Division of Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Public Health, Houston, TX

Dr. Peterson’s research focuses on understanding behavioral, psychosocial, and health-related outcomes of persons at increased risk for cancer and other sequelae, across the cancer prevention and survivorship continuum. A cross-cutting theme of her research is the development and evaluation of digital health assessments and interventions for populations at risk for hereditary cancer and cancer survivors. Her research also focuses on psychosocial and behavioral outcomes of genetic testing for hereditary cancer syndromes in cancer survivors and their families, as well as the integration of genomic services into general oncology care.

Peter C. Scacheri, PhD

Gertrude Donnelly Hess Professor of Oncology
Professor, Department of Genetics & Genome Sciences, Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine

Dr. Scacheri is a genomicist interested in the role of the epigenome in health and human disease.  He is known for his work on transcriptional enhancer elements in human cancer. Dr. Scacheri has published more than 75 peer reviewed papers as well as numerous book chapters, reviews, and perspective articles. He is also deeply committed to graduate student training.

Shiladitya Sengupta, MS, PhD

Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology
Associate Bioengineer, Department of Medicine, Brigham And Women’s Hospital
Principal Investigator, Dana Farber Cancer Institute

Dr. Sengupta develops novel biotechnologies for clinical translation based on the understanding of underlying biological mechanisms and disease pathology. At a fundamental level, he is currently working on three different themes: (1) the early events of metastasis; (2) understanding the mechanisms (such as phenotypic plasticity) that allow cancer cells to tolerate chemotherapy; and (3) developing next generation therapeutics, including nanomedicines, that can modulate the tumor stromal contexture, including the immune cells.

Ramesh A. Shivdasani, MD, PhD

Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Distinguished Physician, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Deputy Director, Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center

Dr. Shivdasani’s laboratory investigates the fundamental biology of digestive tract stem cells and cancers, with a focus on epigenetic and transcription factor determinants of organogenesis, cell differentiation, and neoplasia. The overarching goal is to understand, deeply and beyond the mutational paradigm, how normal cells become cancerous and how stem cell and differentiation mechanisms may be leveraged to help reverse the process.

Yinsheng Wang, PhD

Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, University of California, Riverside

Dr. Wang received his Ph. D. degree from Washington University in St. Louis after obtaining his BS and MS degrees from Shandong University and Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, respectively. Dr. Wang’s research involves the use of mass spectrometry, along with synthetic organic chemistry and molecular biology, for investigation about the occurrence and biological consequences of DNA damage as well as for the identification and functional characterizations of nucleic acid- and nucleotide-binding proteins.

Leonard I. Zon, MD

Director, Stem Cell Research Program, Boston Children’s Hospital
Grousbeck Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Zon’s laboratory aims to dissect how assaults to the hematopoietic system cause severe diseases such as leukemias, lymphomas, and anemias. They investigate hematopoietic development and disease using chemical screens, genetic screens, and analysis of novel transgenic lines in zebrafish. Dr. Zon is internationally recognized for his pioneering work in stem cell biology and cancer genetics.  He also maintains an active research program in the developmental origins of melanoma.

Kimberly L. Blackwell, MD

Chief Medical Officer, Tempus

Dr. Blackwell is an expert in metastatic breast cancer who led programs that resulted in numerous groundbreaking regulatory approvals in the cancer field. She has led oncology therapeutic development including IO assets and biomarker development as well as drug development and served on Boards of Directors and Scientific Advisory Boards of Pharma and Biotech companies. Dr. Blackwell’s innovative work in developing non-chemotherapy-based approaches for the treatment of breast cancer led to her inclusion on TIME magazine’s 2013 list of the 100 most influential people in the world.

Craig D. Shriver, MD, FACS, COL, USA (Ret)

Oliver H. Beahrs Professor of Surgery Uniformed Services
University Murtha Cancer Center (MCC) Director, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
Colonel, United States Army, Ret.

Dr. Shriver trained in Surgical Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. He is a renowned researcher with interests in cancer epidemiology, proteogenomics, surgical technique advances, and breast cancer. Dr. Shriver served 34 years on active duty with the Army and deployed four times in support of overseas combat operations.

Jason H. Moore, PhD, FACMI, FASA

Chair, Department of Computational Biomedicine, Cedars-Sinai

Dr. Moore is a biomedical informatician with expertise in the development, evaluation, and application of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms, methods, and software for the analysis of big biomedical and clinical data. His recent work has focused on the development of automated machine learning (AutoML) methods for democratizing AI.