Advisory Boards

Dr. Charles M. Balch, oncologist, surgeon, and one of the world’s pre-eminent melanoma and breast cancer experts, has devoted more than 35 years to trailblazing research and to leadership positions in academic and clinical settings. Balch is a renowned teacher and lecturer and a revered mentor in the field of surgery and oncology. He currently serves as professor of surgery at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas and as editor-in-chief of Patient Resource Cancer Guides.

Balch has led global efforts to build networks in the areas of outcomes research and clinical trials, authoring more than 670 publications on clinical investigations involving staging and prognostic factors in melanoma, standards of surgical treatment in melanoma and breast cancer, and the conduct and methodology of clinical research and immunology. His laboratory research accomplishments include significant contributions in tumor immunology and human T lymphocyte differentiation. His scientific publications have been cited in the biomedical literature in more than 19,000 articles, and he has lectured in more than 32 countries and most major U.S. academic centers.

Balch chairs the Melanoma Staging Committee of the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC). He is editor of Cutaneous Melanoma, the authoritative textbook on melanoma, now in its fifth edition. He is the founding editor-in-chief of the Annals of SurgicalOncology andBreast Diseases (emeritus).

In one of several notable clinical leadership roles with comprehensive cancer centers, Balch most recently served at Johns Hopkins Medical Center as professor of surgery, oncology and dermatology; deputy director for clinical trials and outcomes research; and director of the Johns Hopkins Clinical Research Network. He earlier fulfilled similar duties at UT M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, The City of Hope National Medical Center, and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

As Melanoma Staging Committee chair, Balch and other experts organized the largest prognostics factors analysis ever conducted. The study involved 60,000 melanoma patients from three continents and major cancer cooperative groups. Their analyses extensively revised the staging system for melanoma. Balch’s contributions to the melanoma literature comprise six books and nearly 200 book chapters and articles relating to his clinical investigations. He has been a principal investigator of numerous clinical trials, many of them NCI-funded National Phase III trials, and has assumed key roles internationally in randomized surgical trials. The results of these trials have defined current melanoma surgery standards and established the safety of using more conservative surgical excision of primary melanoma. Additionally, he has led five cooperative clinical trials involving combinations of adjuvant biological therapy or chemotherapy in high-risk melanoma patients.

In the area of breast cancer, Balch was a co-principal investigator in the only randomized surgical trial comparing Halsted radical mastectomy with modified radical mastectomy. He helped pioneer skin saving mastectomies followed by immediate breast reconstruction. His immunology research has included participation in fundamental work delineating human T lymphocyte and NK cell differentiating surface markers, and in developing anti-HNK1 monoclonal antibody that fi rst identifi ed the CD57 antigen on NK cells. Balch has served in various administrative and leadership positions with the American Society of Surgical Oncology (president), the American Board of Surgery (board of directors), the Association of Academic Surgeons (president), the Commission on Cancer (chair, board of directors), and the AJCC (executive committee). Recent honors include an honorary PhD from the University of Crete and the Highest Alumni Award from the University of Toledo, where he graduated with a BS in biology. He earned his MD from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons.

Dr. James O. Armitage is a graduate of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Nebraska, a fellowship in hematology oncology at the University of Iowa and a brief stint in private practice in Omaha. He developed and directed the Bone Marrow Transplant program at the University of Iowa and later at the University of Nebraska. He served as Vice-Chair of Internal Medicine, Chair of Internal Medicine, Dean of the College of Medicine and currently is The Joe Shapiro Professor of Medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Dr. Armitage is board certified in internal medicine, medical oncology, and hematology, a Fellow of both the American and Royal College of Physicians, a past member of the National Cancer Advisory Board, past president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and American Society of Blood and Marrow Transplantation. He is married and the father of four children and four grandchildren.

Dr. LaSalle D. Leffall Jr., is one of the leading authorities in breast cancer. He served as Chair of the Susan G Komen for the Cure organization and is past president of the American Cancer Society, Society of Surgical Oncology, American College of Surgeons, Society of Surgical Chairmen and Society of Black Academic Surgeons. Currently, he is Chair of the President’s Cancer Panel (for President Obama) and of C-Change (Along with former President George H. W. Bush). He was Professor and Chairman, Department of Surgery at Howard University for 25 years.

As a young man, J. Max Austin, Jr., M.D. left his home town of Wetumpka, Alabama to attend Georgia’s Emory University. Four years and a bachelor’s degree later he came back to his home state, earning a medical degree at the Medical College of Alabama in 1967. Except for a year out of the state for residency training and two years in the Air Force, Austin has been in Alabama ever since.

Dr. Austin has practiced gynecologic oncology and taught residents and fellowship students in this state throughout his career. Indeed, the state of Alabama-and treating its female cancer patients-are very dear to his heart.

Austin did his first year of residency in Atlanta in 1968-69, then he finished his OB/GYN residency and fellowship in Alabama. Having progressed along the academic ladder, he is now a full professor at the UASOM. He also founded Southern Gynecology, a private practice in Birmingham, and practiced there 22 years.

When Austin returned to the UASOM in 2000, the University of Alabama Health Services Foundation and the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology established the J. Max Austin, Jr., M.D. Professorship in Gynecologic Oncology in honor of his contributions to medicine and medical education in Alabama.

“There are some counties in Alabama that are equivalent to third-world countries in the death rates from cervical cancer, “he says. “This is tragic. We need to continue to educate, to teach the latest techniques in detection and diagnosis of gynecologic malignancies because many of them are potentially treatable if diagnosed early.”

Dr. Makary specializes in minimally-invasive cancer surgery and is an associate professor of public health at Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Makary is an active researcher, focusing on the delivery of health care and public health implications of new medical interventions. He is a frequent medical commentator for CNN and FOX News, and speaks nationally on the subjects of healthcare quality, health policy, and cancer prevention.

Dr. Makary led The United Nations World Health Organization (W.H.O.) technical work group to develop standardized health metrics to compare surgical outcomes across countries. From his overseas experiences, Dr. Makary founded The Lotus Global Health Foundation®, a non-profit organization which supports humanitarian medical efforts in developing countries.

Dr. Makary is the recipient of numerous research and teaching awards, including the Research Award of the Washington Academy of Surgery and the Best Teacher Award for Georgetown Medical School.

He is the author of “General Surgery Review”, a textbook of surgery, and over 100 scientific publications. His research expertise includes high-risk populations, environmental health, and risk management in medicine. He is internationally recognized for outcomes research and his work has been published in The New England Journal of Medicine and The New York Times.

In 2007, he was named the Mark Ravitch Endowed Chair in Gastrointestinal Surgery, becoming the youngest surgeon at Johns Hopkins to receive an endowed chair.

Dr. Makary holds degrees from Harvard University, Thomas Jefferson University, and Bucknell University. He completed surgical training at Johns Hopkins University and Georgetown University.

Al B. Benson III, MD, is a professor of medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. He is also the associate director for clinical investigations at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, a National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, at Northwestern University. In addition, he is an attending physician at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, a staff physician at Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, and a consultant to the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago.

Benson earned his medical degree at the University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, following which he completed an internal medicine residency at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics in Madison, Wis. He was an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Illinois and co-medical director for the National Public Health Service in Champaign, Ill. He then served as a clinical oncology and research fellow at the University of Wisconsin Clinical Cancer Center, where he received an American Cancer Society Fellowship Award.

Benson is active on numerous professional committees, often serving as an officer. He is a recipient of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Statesman Award (Fellow of ASCO) and has served on a number of committees. He has been a member of the Task Force on Quality of Cancer Care, the co-chair of ASCO’s Colorectal Cancer Guidelines Subcommittee, the Stage II Colon Cancer Guidelines Panel and the Guidelines Panel for Use of Radiofrequency Ablation for Colorectal Cancer Hepatic Metastases. He also is the chair of both the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Gastrointestinal and Data Monitoring Committees and a member of the NCI GI Steering Committee. In addition, he is a past president of the Illinois Medical Oncology Society, past president of the Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC), an executive committee member and immediate past-chair of the Board of Directors of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) and a member of the Board of Directors of the NCCN Foundation. He is the chair of both the NCCN Hepatobiliary Guidelines Panel and of the Colon, Rectal and Anal Panel, and a member of the Pancreatic Cancer and Neuroendocrine Panels. He is also a past president of the International Society of GI Oncology (ISGIO). Benson is a member of the Scientific Board of Directors of the Patient Advocate Foundation, the National Patient Advocate Foundation and Friends of Cancer Research.

He is on the editorial board of the ASCO Connection, American Health and Drug Benefits, Personalized Medicine in Oncology, Journal of Comparative Effectiveness Research and Gastrointestinal Cancer Research, among others.

His most recent national awards include the NCCN Rodger J. Winn award and the ACCC Outstanding Achievement in Clinical Research Award.

Benson’s research is primarily in the areas of gastrointestinal cancer clinical trials, cancer clinical trials, biologic therapies, phase I cancer clinical trials and cancer guideline development. He has authored or co-authored numerous reports, reviews and book chapters focusing on these topics. His research in biologics, cancer therapy and cancer prevention has been awarded funding from a variety of sources including the NIH.

Dr. John Niederhuber is a nationally renowned surgeon and researcher with a clinical emphasis on gastrointestingal, hepatobiliary and breast cancers. He is recognized for his pioneering work in hepatic artery infusion chemotherapy. Dr. Niederhuber has been a long-time external advisor to the National Cancer Institute and has authored and coauthored more than 180 publications and edited four books.

Dr. Niederhuber recently joined Inova Health System as Executive Vice President and CEO of the Inova Institute for Translational Research and Personalized Medicine. Prior to that he served as Director of the National Cancer Institute, one of the National Institutes of Health from 2006 until July, 2010. During his tenure as NCI director, Dr. Niederhuber shaped the Nation’s investment in cancer to address areas that are likely to pay the largest health dividends. He began The Cancer Genome Atlas, an effort to comprehensively identify the genomic changes in all major cancer types and subtypes. In addition to genomic studies of cancer and work in cancer immunotherapy, programs in nanobiology, systems biology, investigations into the tumor microenvironment, cancer initiating cells, and subcellular imaging have benefited under his direction. Dr. Niederhuber is recognized by his peers as a visionary leader in oncology. He daily puts into practice his expertise as both a cancer physician and a basic research scientist. His colleagues have acknowledged his leadership and accomplishments by electing him vice president and president of the Society for Surgical Oncology and president of the Association of American Cancer Institutes. He has served as a member of C-Change (a community of executives from government, business, and the non-profit community dedicated to conquering cancer) and as a member of the CEO Roundtable on Cancer. Dr. Niederhuber is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, recognizing his outstanding scientific accomplishments and commitment to service in health sciences.

Dr. Buchholz is professor and chair of the Department of Radiation at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston where he holds the Frank T. McGraw Memorial Chair in the Study of Cancer. Buchholz received his MD degree from Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, MA and his postdoctoral residency and fellowship training at the University of Washington School of Medicine in Seattle, WA. His major clinical and research interest has been in the field of breast cancer radiation oncology.

Nicholas Petrelli, M.D. is Professor of Surgery in the Department of Surgery at Thomas Jefferson University and Bank of America Endowed Medical Director of the Helen F. Graham Cancer Center at Christiana Care, Newark, Delaware.

Dr. Petrelli has been active on numerous advisory panels, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology Expert Panel on Colorectal Cancer Surveillance and the National Cancer Institute Colorectal Cancer Consensus Working Group. He is an active member of a number of professional organizations, including the Society of University Surgeons, the American Surgical Association, the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the Society of Surgical Oncology. He is the past President of the Society of Surgical Oncology. He presently is Chair of the Colorectal Committee of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project (NSABP).

Dr. Petrelli has been the author of 293 manuscripts in peer reviewed journals. He is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Clinical Oncology and Editor of the Surgical Oncology Clinics of North America. He also is a member of the editorial boards of the journals Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology and Surgical Oncology.

Dr.Petrelli earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame in 1969 and his medical degree from Tulane Medical School in 1973. He completed his general surgery residency in San Francisco in 1978 and post doctoral training in surgical oncology at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in 1980. He spent the ensuing 21 years at the Roswell Park Cancer Institute during which time he was appointed Chair of the Division of Surgical Oncology and Director of the Surgical Oncology Fellowship Program from 1991 to 2001.

He has been married to his wife Cathy for 30 years and they have 2 children, Nicole a junior at Hilbert College in Buffalo, NY and Gabriella, a senior in high school. Nicole is interested in forensic science and Gabriella in marine biology. Dr Petrelli continues to enjoy Delaware beach time with his family and the rich history of the Delaware Valley. He has family in the New York City area with makes it convenient for spur of the moment visits. He also has two nephews, Doug and Justin, who keep him young at heart with visits to mid town Manhattan.

Education

Amherst College – 1967
Cornell University Medical Center
New York, NY – 1971

Bio

In 1984, Dr. Bunn was recruited to the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center as a Professor of Medicine in Medical Oncology and Head of the Division of Medical Oncology. In 1986 Dr. Bunn became the Director of the University of Colorado Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Bunn has been President of ASCO, IASLC, and AACI, chairman of the FDA Oncology Drug Advisory Committee, and is currently the Executive Director of the IASLC.

Research

Dr. Bunn’s research interests focus on novel therapies for lung cancer. He has published more than 300 articles in peer-reviewed journals, 122 reviews and 90 book chapters on lung cancer. Bunn’s studies have set standards for the treatment of lung cancer, have identified issues of natural history and have identified biomarkers of prognosis and therapy selection. Dr. Bunn is the principal investigator on numerous national and local therapeutic trials and is also the principal investigator for the SPORE grant in lung cancer that is designed to conduct translational research.

Publications

Hirsch FR, Varella-Garcia M, Cappuzzo F, McCoy J, Bemis L, Xavier AC, Dziadziuszko R, Gumerlock P, Chansky K, West H, Gazdar AF, Crino L, Gandara DR, Franklin WA, Bunn PA, Jr. Combination of EGFR gene copy number and protein expression predicts outcome for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer patients treated with gefitinib. Ann Oncol 18(4), 752-60, 2007.

Frederick B., Helfrich B., Coldren C.,. Zheng D., Chan D., Bunn P.A., Jr, Raben D. Epithelial to mesenchymal transition predicts gefitinib resistance in cell lines of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma and non-small-cell lung cancer. Mol Cancer Ther 6:(6), 2007.

Funding

University of Colorado Cancer Center Support Grant: NIH/NCI 4/4/97-1/31/11. $2,832,858 - 45% effort. The major goals are to contribute, through a coordinated research, clinical treatment, control and education effort to the eventual elimination of cancer as a human health problem and provide the citizens of the State of Colorado and the Rocky Mountain Region with state-of-the-art cancer therapy, research, control and education programs.

SPORE In Lung Cancer: NIH/NCI 09/30/1992 to 04/30/2013. $1,600,999 - 25% effort combined
The major goal of the overall project is to establish a Specialized Program in Research Excellence (SPORE) in Lung Cancer to expand our understanding of the biology of lung cancer, to find new methods of diagnosis, prevention and treatment and to serve as a regional, national and international resource for the study of lung cancer.

Dr. Raphael Pollock, MD, PhD was born in Chicago, IL where he received his primary and secondary school education. Dr. Pollock graduated from Oberlin College in 1972 with a BA in History (high honors). He received his MD degree from St. Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri and then completed residency training in General Surgery at the University of Chicago and Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke’s Medical Center, Chicago, IL. This was followed by a fellowship in Surgical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX. Upon completion of fellowship training in 1984, Dr. Pollock joined the faculty in the Department of Surgical Oncology at The University of Texas. He completed PhD training at the Graduate School of the Biological Sciences, University of Texas Health Sciences Center / Houston in 1990, and was promoted to Associate Professor the following year. Dr. Pollock became Chairman of the Department of Surgical Oncology in 1993, was promoted to Professor in 1995, and became Head of the Division of Surgery at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in 1997.

Dr. Pollock has a lifetime professional dedication to patient care and research in soft tissue sarcoma. His clinical practice focuses exclusively on this disease entity, and he has pursued clinical and laboratory research interests in soft tissue sarcoma during the entire time that he has been a member of the faculty of the Department of Surgical Oncology. Currently Dr. Pollock provides leadership for the Sarcoma Research Center at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. His laboratory research interests include molecular-oriented tissue- and cell line-based investigations focusing on the role of the p53 tumor suppressor gene in soft tissue sarcoma, modulation of angiogenesis in soft tissue sarcoma, mechanisms of soft tissue sarcoma chemoresistance, as well as the development of novel therapeutics for this disease. Dr. Pollock is the incumbent in the Senator A.M. Aiken, Jr., Distinguished Chair, and holds joint appointments in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer and the Department of Surgery at The University of Texas Health Sciences Center/ Houston.

Frederick L. Greene, MD, FACS, received his medical school training at the University of Virginia where he was elected to membership into AOA. He completed a residency in surgery at Yale University School of Medicine. Dr. Greene was also an American Cancer Society Clinical Research Fellow at Yale. He was on active duty with the United States Navy and was surgeon on the USS Nimitz. He is currently the Chairman of the Department of General Surgery at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, Director of the Surgical Residency Program at that institution and Clinical Professor of Surgery at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.

Dr. Greene is an active clinician in the area of surgical oncology and has been involved in organizational work pertaining to cancer for a number of years. Dr. Greene is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and has served on the Board of Governors of that organization. Dr. Greene serves on the Commission on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons and served as the Chair of the Commission from 2004-2008. He has represented the American College of Surgeons on the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) and served as Chair of the AJCC from 2000-2006. Dr. Greene is the Editor of the 6th Edition of the AJCC Cancer Staging Manual.

Dr. Greene belongs to numerous surgical organizations including the Society of Surgical Oncology, the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES), the Southern Surgical Association and the American Surgical Association. Dr. Greene was a founding member of SAGES and served as its president in 1992-93.

Dr. Greene's publications have included approximately 160 papers, 30 book chapters, and two textbooks relating to cancer surgery and, specifically, the use of laparoscopic surgery in the management of cancer patients. Dr. Greene serves as the Associate Editor of the Annals of Surgical Oncology and on numerous editorial boards including Surgical Endoscopy, Journal of Surgical Education, Journal of Surgical Oncology, World Journal of Surgery , American Surgeon, Journal of Clinical Oncology, Surgical Endoscopy, Laparoscopy and Percutaneous Techniques and is Editor of General Surgery News.

Richard Reiling is a native of Dayton, Ohio and received his undergraduate education at the University of Dayton. In the interim between undergraduate studies and medical school, he was a high school teacher, the beginning of a life-long avocation for teaching. After graduating from Harvard Medical School he completed training in surgery at Harvard and an oncology Fellowship at the Lahey Clinic.. He served in the USAF during the Vietnam conflict era. Dr. Reiling entered private practice in his hometown at the same time that a new medical school was being formed in Dayton. He became a charter faculty member at Wright State University School of Medicine and remains on that faculty throughout his career. Currently, Richard is a Clinical Professor of Surgery at Wright State.

Dr Reiling’s personal interest has always been in the care of patients with cancer, especially those with breast cancer. He was instrumental in developing a cancer program at his main hospital, Kettering Medical Center, named after the inventor Charles F. Kettering and located on the lawns of the former Kettering estate. The hospital was shortly thereafter recognized by US News and World Report as one of the nation’s top 50 hospitals for cancer care. During this time he continued a very active practice as well as a busy teaching schedule.

In the summer of 2000, he was recruited by Ohio Health’s flagship hospitals in Columbus, Ohio as the VP for Cancer Services. During the next several years, Dr. Reiling provided the support and leadership to bring that institution’s cancer program to a high level of recognition in a community that already had a major cancer hospital as part of Ohio State University.

He found an offer to a similar position as the Medical Director of the Presbyterian Cancer Center too good to not accept. The position at Presbyterian and the beauty of the city was enough for the Reilings to give their Ohio roots and move to the Carolinas.

Dr. Reiling has worked diligently to develop programs that improve the care of patients with cancer. In addition to breast cancer, he is especially active in lung cancer. It is in this situation that he has a very strong interest in the prevention of lung cancer and other respiratory diseases related to cigarette smoke. He has served with SmokeFree Mecklenburg for several years and often speaks and writes about the hazards of second-hand smoke.

Dr. Reiling has served on many professional society boards and committees, including the President of the Ohio Chapter of the American College of Surgeons and a Governor of the American College of Surgeons. Currently, he is the Second VP-Elect of the American College of Surgeons. In addition, he has served on many community and church organizations including the United Way, and the Dayton Opera Association. In his spare time, he was able to be a Boy Scout Master for a troop in Kettering Ohio, and proudly lists many young men who became Eagle Scouts during his tenure. Currently he serves on the Mecklenburg Council of the Boys Scouts of America, along with other civic boards. He is a member of the Charlotte Rotary Club.

Dr. Reiling is married to his childhood sweetheart, Liz, and celebrated their 44th anniversary this June. The Reilings have two grown children, Maureen DeBlois, a senior hospital executive in Atlanta, and Richard B. Reiling Jr., an attorney in Boston. The Reiling’s have 3 grandchildren. Richard enjoys golf, skiing, and just being involved.

Dr. Harris is Professor and Chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Brigham and Women's Hospital at Harvard Medical School. He also serves as Residency Program Director for the Harvard Radiation Oncology Residency Program.

Dr. Harris' main research interest has been in the area of breast cancer, with a focus on establishing the most effective and safe radiation treatment for these patients. He helped pioneer the use of breast-conserving therapy for patients with early-stage breast cancer.

Dr. Harris has been an active member of several professional medical societies, including ASTRO where he served as president and chairman of the board of directors and the American Board of Radiology where he served as trustee.

Dr. Harris has published 100 articles and 150 peer-reviewed publications. He is the senior editor of Diseases of the Breast, now in its fourth edition.

Thomas R. Russell, MD, FACS, a native of San Francisco, CA, is the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the American College of Surgeons Foundation (ACSF) and past Executive Director of the American College of Surgeons (ACS). A former private practice general surgeon who specialized in colon and rectal surgery, he held the position of Executive Director of the ACS from 2000 – 2009 and the position as Chairman of the Board of Directors of the ACSF since October of 2009. The College has more than 75,000 members and it is the largest organization of surgeons in the world. As Executive Director, he was in charge of all matters of the College under the direction of the Board of Regents–the College’s policy-making body. Dr. Russell received a Bachelor of Arts degree in zoology from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1962 and an MD degree from Creighton University Medical School, Omaha, NE, in 1966. He took a rotating internship at San Francisco General Hospital from 1966 to 1967 and began his residency training in general surgery at the University of California, San Francisco, in 1967. Dr. Russell’s residency training was interrupted by military service in Vietnam from 1968 to 1970, during which he was a Lieutenant Commander and US Navy Flight Surgeon. Dr. Russell resumed his residency training in general surgery at the University of California, San Francisco, in 1971, and completed it in 1975. During those same years, he undertook a research project on gastrointestinal hormones physiology at the Veterans Hospital-Fort Miley in San Francisco and a fellowship in pancreatic surgery at the American Hospital, the Hospital de la Pitie, and the Hospitaux de Paris in Paris, France. From 1975 to 1977, Dr. Russell did a preceptorship in colon and rectal surgery in San Francisco. Dr. Russell was affiliated with the California Pacific Medical Center from 1975 to 1999, and he served as chairman of its department of surgery from 1980 to 1999. He was also affiliated with several hospitals in the San Francisco area and served as a teacher and leader in various activities at the University of California. Dr. Russell became a Fellow of the College in 1979 and has been an active participant in its activities since that time. He was elected to the Board of Governors in 1990 and served in that role until 1993, when he was elected a Regent of the College. He completed his second term on the Board of Regents just prior to becoming ACS Executive Director. Dr. Russell has been an active participant in the work of the American Board of Surgery, the American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, and the Residency Review Committee for Colon and Rectal Surgery. In addition to the College, he holds membership in and has been active in the affairs of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, the Society of American Gastrointestinal Endoscopic Surgeons, the International Society of Surgery, the San Francisco Surgical Society, the Naffziger Surgical Society, the Pacific Coast Surgical Association, the American Surgical Association and the Southern Surgical Association. Dr. Russell has published extensively on scientific and educational topics related to colon and rectal surgery, general surgery, and health policy. Dr. Russell and his wife Dr. Nona Chiampi Russell have been married since 1979 and have two children.

Jimmie C. Holland, M.D., recognized internationally as the founder of the subspecialty of psycho-oncology, is Attending Psychiatrist and holds the first endowed chair in Psychiatric Oncology, the Wayne E. Chapman Chair at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. She is Professor of Psychiatry at Weill Medical College of Cornell University. She began the first fulltime psychiatric service in a cancer hospital in 1977 at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. From this base, the concept of psycho-oncology evolved to become a nationally recognized subspecialty of oncology. The Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences has trained over 300 psychologists and psychiatrists. Dr. Holland was PI of the first research grant in psycho-oncology which has continued uninterrupted for 26 years. Several key figures in psycho-oncology trained in the program: David Cella, Paul Jacobsen, Julia Rowland, Jamie Ostroff, Bill Redd, Bill Breitbart, as well as several in Europe.

Dr. Holland studied the prevalence and nature of psychological problems in patients with cancer in the 1970s and established the first committee studying psychological issues in a cooperative group, the Cancer Leukemia Group B. In the 1980s she became the Founding President of the International Psycho-oncology Society (1984) and of the American Psychosocial Oncology Society (1986). Dr. Holland has been senior editor of the Oxford University Press textbooks in psycho-oncology, first The Handbook of Psychooncology, (1989); Psycho-Oncology, (1998); and the 2nd Edition (2010). In 1992, she started the first international journal in the field, Psycho-Oncology, and continues as co-editor. Dr. Holland and Sheldon Lewis co-authored a book to help patients and their families cope with cancer, The Human Side of Cancer, (HarperCollins, 2000). Dr. Holland has chaired the National Comprehensive Cancer Network’s (NCCN) Panel on Management of Distress since its beginning in 1997. She served on the Institute of Medicine Multidisciplinary Committee which reported in 2007 that there is a new standard of quality cancer care today which demands that psychosocial interventions must be integrated into routine cancer care and clinical practice guidelines. Dr. Holland has received awards from the American Cancer Society, ASCO, AACR and the American Psychiatric Association. She was elected Member of the Institute of Medicine in 1995. She is married to Dr. James Holland, pioneer medical oncologist and Editor of the Holland-Frei textbook, Cancer Medicine. They have 6 children and 10 grandchildren.

Waun Ki Hong, M.D., is a leading authority on head, neck and lung cancers and one of the founders of cancer chemoprevention. Dr. Hong is Head of the Division of Cancer Medicine and Professor of Medicine at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He is an American Cancer Society Professor and holds the Samsung Distinguished University Chair in Cancer Medicine.

Beginning in the early 1980’s, Dr. Hong’s organ preservation research established new treatment standards that have enormously improved the quality of life for advanced laryngeal cancer patients. His seminal chemoprevention research has clearly shown that high-dose retinoids can reverse oral carcinogenesis—a proof of principle that has led to a new paradigm for cancer chemoprevention. He continues an active research program in chemoprevention with multiple clinical trials, and his molecularly-targeted approaches have the potential to significant improve the morbidity and mortality of head/neck cancer and lung cancers. Dr. Hong’s research offers the possibility that cancer can be indefinitely delayed and possibly prevented, thus offering patients many more healthy years of life.

Dr. Hong is the recipient of numerous national and international awards including AACR’s Joseph A. Burchenal and Rosenthal Foundation Awards, ASCO’s David Karnofsky Award, and a prestigious American Cancer Society Clinical Research Professorship. He also served as president of AACR in 2001. More recently, he received the AACR/Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation Award for Excellence in Cancer Prevention Research and is currently an elected member of the ASCO Board of Directors.

In addition to his research and clinical work, Dr. Hong has played a pivotal role in shaping public policy. He was a member of the Advisory Committee to the Director of the NCI from 1997-2002 and chaired the Prevention, Clinical, and Therapeutic Subcommittee for the Extramural Board of Scientific Advisors (BSA) of the NCI from 1996-2002, and has served as an advisor for numerous other national organizations. He has trained and nurtured hundreds of young physicians and scientists from around the world, and has played an active role in increasing international collaborations in cancer research.

President George W. Bush appointed Dr. Hong to the National Cancer Advisory Board (NCAB) in 2008. Dr. Hong will serve a six-year term through March 9, 2014. The function of the NCAB is to advise, assist and make recommendations to the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and the director of the National Cancer Institute. The NCAB may also make recommendations regarding support grants and cooperative agreements, technical and scientific peer review, and functions pertaining to the NCI.

Dr. Donald L. Trump was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of Roswell Park Cancer Institute (RPCI) on April 1, 2007. Since coming to RPCI in January 2002, Dr. Trump has served as Senior Vice President for Clinical Research; Chair, Department of Medicine; and Co-Principal Investigator of the Cancer Center Support Grant (CCSG) funded by the National Cancer Institute. In the fall of 2006, he was appointed Associate Institute Director.

As RPCI President & CEO and Principal Investigator of the CCSG, Dr. Trump has direct authority over day-to-day operations, philanthropic and operating budgets, capital improvements, research priorities and clinical and scientific strategic planning for the Institute. He is responsible for establishing a culture of excellence throughout RPCI’s key mission areas: research, clinical care, education and cancer prevention.

In addition to his role as President and CEO, Dr. Trump continues his work as a researcher and clinician, leading the Institute’s active clinical research in vitamin D-based cancer prevention and treatment, and caring for patients with prostate cancer and other urologic cancers. He also will continue as principal investigator or co-principal investigator on several grants funded by the National Cancer Institute and Department of Defense. He holds European and U.S. patents for the use of vitamin D and vitamin D analogs in combination with high-dose chemotherapy.

Dr. Trump earned his medical degree from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, in 1970. From 1970 to 1975, he completed an internship and residency training in Medicine and a fellowship in Oncology and served as Chief Resident in Internal Medicine at The Johns Hopkins Hospital. Dr. Trump is a Diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine, with Subspecialty Boards in Medical Oncology, and a Fellow of the American College of Physicians. Dr. Trump is past Secretary/Treasurer of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, and is a member of many professional and scientific societies. He is a reviewer and/or member of the editorial board of prestigious journals, such as the New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of National Cancer Institute, Cance, Journal of Urologic Oncology, Clinical Cancer Research, Cure, Oncology, American Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cancer Chemotherapy and Pharmacology, Cancer Research, and Journal of Clinical Oncology. Dr. Trump has authored or co-authored more than 200 journal publications, book chapters and abstracts.

Education
Universidad Nat’l of Columbia, MD Degree in Medicine, 1970.
St. Luke’s Hospital, Cleveland, OH, Resident Internal Medicine, 1971-74
U.T. MD Anderson Hospital, Houston, TX, Fellow Medical Oncology, 1976A. Positions and Honors Positions and Employment

Other Experience and Professional Memberships

B. Selected peer-reviewed publications (in chronological order).
(Publications selected from over 500 peer-reviewed publications)

Hortobagyi GN, Buzdar AU, Theriault RL, Valero V, Frye D, Booser DJ, Holmes FA, Giralt S, Khouri I, Andersson B, Gajewski JL, Rondon G, Smith TL, Singletary SE, Ames FC, Sneige N, Strom EA, McNeese MD, Deisseroth AB, and Champlin RE: Randomized Trial of High-Dose Chemotherapy and Blood Cell Autografts for High-Risk Primary Breast Carcinoma. J Natl Cancer Inst 92(3):225-233, 2000.

Hortobagyi GN, Ueno NT, Xia W, Zhang S, Wolf JK, Putnam JB, Weiden PL, Willey JS, Carey M, Warner DL, Payne JY, Tucker SD, Bartolomeusz C, Kilbourn RG, De Jager RL, Sneige N, Katz RL, Ibrahim NK, Murray JL, Theriault RL, Valero V, Gershenson DM, Bevers MW, Huang L, Lopez-Berestein G, Hung MC: Cationic Liposome-Mediated Adenovirus Type 5 E1A Gene Transfer to Human Breast and Ovarian Cancer Cells and Its Biological Effects: A Phase I Clinical Trial. J Clin Oncol 19:3422-3433, 2001.

Cristofanilli M, Gonzalez-Angulo A, Sneige N, Kau SW, Broglio K, Theriault RL, Valero V, Buzdar AU, Kuerer HM, Buchholz TA, and Hortobagyi GN: Invasive Lobular Carcinoma Classic Type: Response to Primary Chemotherapy and Survival Outcomes. J Clin Oncol 23(1):41-48, 2004.

Buzdar AU, Ibrahim NK, Francis D, Booser DJ, Thomas ES, Theriault RL, Pusztai L, Green MC, Arun BK, Giordano SH, Cristofanilli M, Frye DK, Smith TL, Hunt KK, Singletary SE, Sahin AA, Ewer MS, Buchholz TA, Berry D, Hortobagyi GN: Significantly Higher Pathological Complete Remission Rate After Neoadjuvant Therapy with Trastuzumab, Paclitaxel and Epirubicin Chemotherapy: Results of a Randomized Trial in Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive Operable Breast Cancer. J Clin Oncol 23(16):3676-3685, 2005

Gonzalez-Angulo AM, Sahin A, Krishnamurthy S, Yang Y, Kau SW, Hortobagyi GN, Cristofanilli M: Biologic Markers in Axillary Node-Negative Breast Cancer: Differential Expression in Invasive Ductal Carcinoma versus Invasive Lobular Carcinoma. Clin Breast Cancer 7(5):396-400, 2006.

Buzdar AU, Valero V, Ibrahim NK, Francis D, Broglio KR, Theriault RL, Pusztai L, Green MC, Singletary SE, Hunt KK, Sahin AA, Esteva F, Symmans WF, Ewer MS, Buchholz TA, and Hortobagyi GN: Neoadjuvant Therapy with Paclitaxel Followed by 5-Fuorouracil, Epirubicin, and Cyclophosphamide Chemotherapy and Concurrent Trastuzumab in Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive Operable Breast Cancer: An Update of the Initial Randomized Study Population and Data of Additional Patients Treated with the Same Regimen. Clin Cancer Res 13(1):228-233, 2007.

Mazouni C, Hall A, Broglio K, Fritsche H, Andre F, Esteva FJ, Hortobagyi GN, Buzdar AU, Pusztai L, Cristofanilli M: Kinetics of Serum HER-2/neu Changes in Patients with HER-2-Positive Primary Breast Cancer After Initiation of Primary Chemotherapy. Cancer 109(3):496-501, 2007. [Epub ahead of print on December 5, 2006].

Perez EA, Lerzo G, Pivot X, Thomas E, Vahdat L, Bosserman L, Viens P, Cai C, Mullaney B, Peck R, Hortobagyi GN: Efficacy and Safety of Ixabepilone (BMS-247550) in a Phase II Study of Patients with Advanced Breast Cancer Resistant to an Anthracycline, a Taxane, and Capecitabine. J Clin Oncol 2007. [Epub ahead of print on July 2, 2007].

Badgwell BD, Giordano SH, Duan ZZ, Fang S, Bedrosian I, Kuerer HM, Singletary SE, Hunt KK, Hortobagyi GN, Babiera G: Mammography Before Diagnosis Among Women Age 80 and Older with Breast Cancer. J Clin Oncol 2008. [Epub ahead of print on April 21, 2008] PMID: 18427152

Giordano SH, Kuo YF, Duan Z, Hortobagyi GN, Freeman J, Goodwin JS: Limits of Observational Data in Determining Outcomes from Cancer Therapy. Cancer 2008. [Epub ahead of print on April 21, 2008] PMID: 18428196

Hoff AO, Toth BB, Altundag K, Johnson MM, Warneke CL, Hu M, Nooka A, Sayegh G, Guarneri V, Desrouleaux K, Cui J, Adamus A, Gagel RF and Hortobagyi GN: The Frequency and Risk Factors Associated with Osteonecrosis of the Jaw in Cancer Patients Treated with Intravenous Bisphosphonates. J Bone Min Res 2008. [Epub ahead of print on February 5, 2008] PMID: 18435574

Bristol IJ, Woodward WA, Strom EA, Cristofanilli M, Domain D, Singletary SE, Perkins GH, Oh JL, Yu TK, Terrefe W, Sahin AA, Hunt KK, Hortobagyi GN, Buchholz TA: Locoregional Treatment Outcomes After Multimodality Management of Inflammatory Breast Cancer. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys 2008. [Epub ahead of print on April 24, 2008] PMID: 18439768

Srokowski TP, Fang S, Duan Z, Buchholz TA, Hortobagyi GN, Goodwin JS, Giordano SH: Completion of Adjuvant Radiation Therapy Among Women With Breast Cancer. Cancer 2008. [Epub ahead of print on April 28, 2008] PMID: 18442124

Tordai A, Wang J, Andre F, Liedtke C, Yan K, Sotiriou C, Hortobagyi GN, Symmans FW and Pusztai L: Evaluation of Biological Pathways Involved in Chemotherapy Response in Breast Cancer. Breast Cancer Res 2008. [Epub ahead of print on April 29, 2008] PMID: 18445275

Dawood S, Broglio K, Gong Y, Yang WT, Cristofanilli M, Kau SW, Meric-Bernstam F, Buchholz TA, Hortobagyi GN, Gonzalez-Angulo AM; for the Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research Group: Prognostic Significance of HER-2 Status in Women with Inflammatory Breast Cancer. Cancer 112(9):1905-1911, 2008. [Epub ahead of print February 25, 2008]. PMID: 18300243

C. Research Support

1 P50 CA116199-01 Hortobagyi (PI)
9/23/2005 – 8/31/2010
NIH/NCI - UTMDACC SPORE in Breast Cancer
The goal of this project is to foster interactive, multi-specialty translational research in breast cancer diagnosis, prevention and treatment.
Role: PI

2P30 CA016672 28(PP-4) Hortobagyi (PI)
7/1/2003-6/30/2013
DHHS-NIH-NCI
Cancer Center Support (Core) Grant-Project 4-Breast Cancer Program
The major goal of this project is to establish the research infrastructure and organization for the Breast Cancer Research Program at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.
Role: PI

Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation
7/1/2002 – 6/30/2010
Interdisciplinary Breast Cancer Fellowship Program
Hortobagyi (Program Director)
The major goal of this grant is to provide interdisciplinary training to physicians specializing in all aspects of the management of breast diseases.
Role: Program Director

ASCO Career Development Award Gonzalez-Angulo (PI)
7/1/2006 - 6/30/2009
The PI3K/PTEN/AKT Signal Transduction Cascade as a Predictor for Response to Therapy and Therapeutic Target in Breast Cancer
Goal: To study the role of the PI3K/PTEN/AKT Signal Transduction Cascade in breast cancer as a classifier, predictor of response, and target for preoperative therapy.
Role: Mentor

NCI: 1 U10 CA105409 Lippman (PI)
U10 Full Member Application Affiliated with SWOG
7/26/04-12/31/09
Goal: Development of Studies
Role: Co-Investigator

NCI: DHHS-NIH: 1 K23 CA12199401 (Gonzalez-Angulo (PI)
The PI3K/PTEN/AKT Signal Transduction Cascade in Breast Cancer
7/1/06-6/30/11
Goal: To study the relationship of P13K, PTEN, and SKT signal transduction in breast cancer.
Role: Consultant

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation: Breast Cancer-Targeted Therapy by Endostatin-Cytosine Deaminase Fusion Protein. (G.N. Hortobagyi, PI)
10/1/2008 – 9/30/2009
Role: PI

Past Support

DHHS–NIH-National Cancer Institute: 3 P50 CA116199-02S1 Bondy (Project PI)
(SPORE Supplement)
9/28/06 – 8/31/2008
Comparative Study of Breast Cancers and their Risk Factors Among Mexican Women in Mexico and the U.S.
Goal: Study the difference of risk factors between Mexican American women in the US and Mexico.
Role: SPORE PI

Entertainment Industry Foundation: EIF/WCRF Breast Cancer Biomarker Discovery Project.
P.I.: Leyland Hartwell
10/5/07 – 10/4/08
Role: Steering Committee Member: October 5, 2007 through October 4, 2008.

NCI: DHHS-NIH (1 K01 CA118174 01) Nahta (PI)
HER-2/IGF-1R Crosstalk and Herceptin Resistance
8/1/06 – 2/15/08
Goal: Study the relationship of HER-2/IGF-1R and Herceptin Resistance.
Role: Investigator

DAMD17-02-1-0694 01 Hortobagyi (PI)
9/1/2002 – 8/31/2007
USAMRMC-DOD Breast Cancer Research Program
Breast Cancer Center of Excellence: Development of Targeted Therapy Strategies for Breast Cancer.
The major goals of this project are to develop an interactive, multidisciplinary center that will combine expertise in molecular biology, novel animal models and clinical trials expertise to expedite the discovery and development of novel targeted therapies.
Role: PI

DAMD17-02-1-0456 1 Pusztai (PI)
4/012002 –4/31/2006
USAMRMC “The Role of Sigma Receptor in Breast Cancer”
The major role of this grant is to study and discover the role of sigma receptors in breast cancer.
Role: Co-Investigator

1RO1CA89608-O1A1 Bondy (PI)
7/1/2000 – 6/30/2006
NCI
Epidemiologic and Genetic Determinants of Breast Cancer Survival
The major goals of this project are to understand the influence of genetic and environmental influences on survival of patients with breast cancer.
Role: Co-Investigator

Dr. Terry T. Tsue is currently physician-in-chief of the University of Kansas Cancer Center. He specializes in head and neck cancer, thyroid cancer and skull base surgery. He is also the senior examiner for the American Board of Otolaryngology in Houston and member of the ACGME Otolaryngology Residency Review Committee. He serves as chair of the RRC Milestones Committee.

Dr. Lacouture is a board-certified dermatologist with special interest in dermatologic conditions that result from cancer treatments. His clinical career has been focused on the recognition and management of side effects affecting the skin, hair and nails of cancer patients and survivors, which can occur as a consequence of chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and therapeutic transplants.

To ensure that dermatologic side effects do not affect quality of life and the consistent administration of anticancer therapies, Lacouture has founded the SERIES (Skin and Eye Reactions to Inhibitors of EGFR and kinaseS) Clinic, an interdisciplinary effort comprising patient care, education and research. This unique clinical program provides pretreatment counseling and preventive efforts to minimize the development of side effects as well as rapid attention to those patients who develop them. Close communication with treating oncologists ensures that interventions against side effects do not affect the effectiveness of cancer treatments to ensure the best dermatology-related quality of life and benefit from anticancer treatments.

Lacouture’s research focuses on major components of dermatologic side effects: the accurate description and severity grading; the effects on quality of life; the identification of factors that place individuals at higher risk; and the development of treatments. A basic tenet of this research is in exploring new skin treatments that do not affect the effectiveness of anticancer drugs. For example, topical medicines in the face or regional cooling of hands or feet are used to prevent or treat drug-induced side effects in these areas. Currently, dermatologic effects of cancer therapies in long-term cancer survivors are being investigated, the first step towards ensuring long-term skin health after cancer therapies.

In addition to his role in the treatment of dermatologic conditions in cancer patients and survivors, he is co-chair of the Skin Toxicity Study Group of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, an international organization devoted to the understanding of side effects in cancer patients.

________________________________________

Dr. Winchester graduated from Northwestern University and received his general surgical training at Northwestern. He completed his surgical oncology fellowship at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. He is currently Professor of Surgery at Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine and the immediate past Chairman of the Department of Surgery of Evanston Northwestern Healthcare. He is the Medical Director of the National Cancer Programs of the American College of Surgeons and Principal Investigator of the National Cancer Database (NCDB) with a focus on tracking outcomes in cancer patients and promoting continuous quality improvement of cancer care. Dr. Winchester has authored 184 peer-reviewed journal articles, serves on 10 editorial boards and has edited/co-edited 5 books. He is a past-president of the Society of Surgical Oncology and currently serves as the Executive Director of the American Joint Committee on Cancer. He is the Chairman of the National Accreditation Program of Breast Centers (NAPBC) for the American College of Surgeons. He is an honorary member of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology and an honorary fellow of the American College of Radiology.

Dr. Buzaid is an internist and medical oncologist in São Paulo, Brazil. He has served as the general director of the Oncology Center Hospital Sirio- Libanes in São Paulo as well as the medical director of the Melanoma and Skin Center at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center. He has also served as the medical director of the Melanoma Unit and co-director of the Lung Cancer Unit at Yale Comprehensive Cancer Center in New Haven, Conn. Buzaid is co-editor of the Manual de Oncologia do Brasil (10th edition), which has been translated into Spanish and English with more than 45,000 copies sold.

• BORN in Monterrey, N.L.Mexico, December 12, 1934.
• STUDIES: Medical Doctor, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León-Monterrey,Mexico, 1952-1958;
• Postgraduate in Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology in South Texas Medicine School; at San Antonio Texas. USA, 1959-1964;
• Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, 1965-1966.

DISTINCTIONS:

• Educational Council For Foreign Medical Graduate Evanston Illinois, USA. 1962;
• Senior Researcher "F" in the Institutos Nacionales de Salud,
• Level II National Researcher of the Sistema Nacional de Investigadores of the CONACYT,
• Doctor Honoris Causa granted by the Universidad Autónoma de Puebla,
• Doctor in Medicine-Honoris Causa., Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León.(Monterrey N.L.)
• First representative of Latin America in the "Reunion Mundial de la Guerra contra el Cancer 2000" held in the Versailles Palace (Paris, France).
• "11th.Cino del Duca Award,Achievement in Cancer Research" 14th. International Congress Anti-Cancer, feb. 4,2003. Versailles Palace (Paris, France).

PREVIOUS POSITIONS:

• Former President of the Mexican Oncology Society(1980-81) and Founder and president of the Mexican Oncology Board(1998-2000),
• Former General Director of the Instituto Nacional de Cancerología-Mexico(1993-2003),

CURRENT POSITIONS:

• Executive Secretary Science Advisory Council for the Presidency of the Mexican Republic
• Clinical Research Investigator at the Instituto Nacional de Cancerología-Mexico,
• Member of the Academic Committee of the ICAT-PARIS Courses(1989-2008),
• Advisor of the Consejo Mexicano de Oncología,
• Member of the H. Administration Council of the Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León,
• Editorial Board of the Journal of the Instituto Nacional de Cancerología
• Academic Reviewer of the Research Program of the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología, CONACYT,
• Senior Researcher "F" in the Institutos Nacionales de Salud,
• Level II National Researcher of the "Sistema Nacional de Investigadores of the CONACYT",
• Reviewer Member of more than 10 International Journals,
• Member of the International Affairs Committee of ASCO. 2004-2007. (Chair elect 2005) American Society of Clinical Oncology.(ASCO )
• Member and founder of "Sociedad Lationamericana y del Caribe de Oncologia Medica" (SLACOM)
• Miembro de ESMO Developing Countries Task Force. 2005.

SCIENTIFIC PRODUCTION:

• Author of more than 160 works in national and international arbitrated journals, chapters in book;
• Lecturer of more than 1000 national and international lectures, among others.

MEDICAL SOCIETIES:

• Academia Nacional de Medicina,Mexico,
• Academia Mexicana de Cirugía,
• Academia Mexicana de Ciencias
• American Society of Clinical Oncology;(ASCO)
• Alumni Association Mayo Graduate School of Medicine, University of Minnesota, USA
• Soc.Latinoamericana y del Caribe de Oncologia Medica(SLACOM)
• European Society Medical Oncology(ESMO) among others.

Eduardo Cazap MD, PhD is the founder and first President of the Latin American & Caribbean Society of Medical Oncology (SLACOM) since 2004 and in 2008 was elected by the General Assembly of the International Union against Cancer (UICC-Geneva) as President for the 2010-2012 period. In 2009 he was elected Board Member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO-Alexandria), representing the international members. In September 2010 was nominated by the Argentinean government member of the Board of Directors of the newly created National Cancer Institute of Argentina.

After graduating in 1972 as a medical doctor from the University of Buenos Aires in his native city, Buenos Aires, Dr. Cazap was resident in Internal Medicine and then specialist in medical oncology at the Military Central Hospital and the Universidad del Salvador. He also completed fellowships at Strong Memorial Hospital, Rochester, New York and the Lombardi Cancer Center at Georgetown University, Washington, D.C. He was also fellow of the American Cancer Society in 1985.

Following his role as Principal Investigator of the Collaborative Cancer Research Treatment Program (PAHO-NCI) in 1984, he became Professor of Clinical Oncology at the Universidad del Salvador (1984-98) and then Professor of Medical Oncology at the Universidad Católica Argentina (1988-2000).

As well as having published over 170 papers, he has held many prominent positions in the medical arena, including Medical Director of the Instituto Dr. Estevez, Buenos Aires (1985-99) and representing Latin America at the European Society of Medical Oncology (ESMO), Lugano, Switzerland. He was President of the Argentine Association of Clinical Oncology (AAOC) in 1996-98 and 2000-02. In 2000, he was signatory of the Charter of Paris against Cancer. He is also a member of the Developing Countries Task Force for ESMO since 2002. Dr. Cazap was a member of the 2006 and 2008 UICC World Congress Program Planning Executive Committee and he is also an active member of ASCO, was Chairman of the International Affairs Committee, is member of the Cancer Prevention Committee and is member of the Board of Directors.

Dr. Cazap’s main areas of research and interest are cancer prevention, breast and cervical cancer, independent clinical research and global cancer control.

He has also performed several collaborative and advisory programs with World Health Organization (WHO-Geneva) and Pan American Health Organization (PAHO-Washington).

Dr. Cazap also serves as Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Breast Health Global Initiative (BHGI) which is co-sponsored by the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center and Susan G. Komen for the Cure®. BHGI strives to develop and implement Guidelines for International Breast Health and Cancer Control for low- and middle-income countries.

One of Dr. Cazap’s most relevant ongoing projects is as Chair of the International Clinical Trials Working Group (ICTWG), a joint effort of ASCO and NCI-US, for the improvement of independent clinical cancer research at the international level.

He is also leading the International Cancer Prevention Stakeholders Group, under the umbrella of UICC and the support of ASCO. This initiative has been developed for international activities in cancer prevention gathering various organizations (UICC, ASCO, ESMO, AACR, ACS, WHO and others) in a common and coordinate strategy for the improvement of global cancer control.

Recently, he was elected as President of the UICC World Cancer Congress to be held in Montreal, Canada, in 2012.

Dr John Thompson is Executive Director of Melanoma Institute Australia (formerly the Sydney Melanoma Unit), one of the largest melanoma treatment and research centres in the world. He is involved in many aspects of translational and clinical melanoma research, and has published widely on melanoma-related topics. He was chairman of the working party that produced the Australian and New Zealand Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Cutaneous Melanoma. He is Chairman of the Australian and New Zealand Melanoma Trials Group and the Past-President of the International Sentinel Node Society.

A melanoma specialist, Dr. Alexander Eggermont is the current president of the European Academy of Cancer Sciences and is past president of the European CanCer Organisation (ECCO) and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC). He is also a past member of the board of directors for the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Eggermont was a professor of surgical oncology at Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, Netherlands, and is the author or coauthor of more than 600 peer-reviewed publications, book chapters and monographs.

Dr. Umberto Veronesi is one of the leading surgeon and oncologist in Europe. Among his many research accomplishments is seminal work regarding the treatment of breast cancer as well as melanoma. Veronesi founded the European School of Oncology and the European Society of Surgical Oncology and was President of the International Union Against Cancer, the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer, and the Federation of European Cancer Societies. He was also founder and first President of the European Cancer Societies of Mastology. Veronesi has served as Scientific Director of the European Institute of Oncology-Milan, Italy (a position he resumed in 2001), and as Minister of Health in the Italian Government. Since 2008, has been a Senator of the 16th Italian Parliament. Veronesi is the author of more than 766 scientific publications and 12 oncological treatises.

Dr. Alan Balch is Vice President of the Preventive Health Partnership, a collaboration between the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association, and the American Heart Association. He is the past Executive Director of Friends of Cancer Research. Balch volunteers as a member of the Board of Directors for the Center for a New American Dream, the Colorectal Cancer Coalition, and the Patient Advocate Foundation. He holds a doctorate in Environmental Studies and a master’s in Environmental Sciences.

Lisa Greaves is the Director of Integrated Media & Technology at the American Society of Clinical Oncology. She is a long-term survivor of breast cancer who connects with newly diagnosed patients through community organizations and speaking at cancer awareness events. Greaves is a graduate of the National Breast Cancer Coalition Fund’s Project LEAD Institute. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Breast Cancer Care Foundation, a DC-based nonprofit that supports residents who are underserved, uninsured, or otherwise have insufficient financial resources for breast health care. Greaves has explored her own cancer journey through photography and poetry.

Diane S. Blum is chief executive officer of the Lymphoma Research Foundation, the nation's largest voluntary health organization devoted exclusively to funding lymphoma research and providing patients and health care professionals with critical information on the disease. She also served for twenty years as the Executive Director of CancerCare and continues to serve as Editor-in-Chief of ASCO’s cancer.net. Blum is a founder of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Co founder of the National Alliance of Breast Cancer Organizations. Most recently, she received ASCO's 2009 Partners in Progress award which honors patient advocates whose work has increased public awareness about cancer and its causes, cures and treatment.

Linda House joined the Cancer Support Community in February 2012 as Executive Vice President of External Affairs where she oversees the development, communications, and public policy efforts of the national organization. Linda joined CSC with around 30 years of experience working in the cancer care environment, 17 years being direct patient care in the acute and hospice care setting.

Immediately prior to joining CSC, Linda served as Executive Director of St. Vincent Cancer Care in Indianapolis where she led a team of individuals to provide care across the cancer continuum. Prior to that, Linda was Senior Director of Advocacy and Professional Relations for Lilly Oncology working with patient and professional organizations on programs and broad issues related to cancer care.

Linda has served in a variety of roles in the national cancer community including Board Chair for Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization, C-Change Together's Value of Cancer Care and Workforce panels, the National Cancer Institute Director's Consumer Liaison Group, the Education Network to Advance Cancer Clinical Trials Collaborative expert panel, and the patient advisory board for the Patent Resource Cancer Guide to name a few. Linda is also an active volunteer with a number of organizations in her local community.

Rosalie Canosa is a licensed social worker specializing in psychosocial oncology and has devoted her career to helping patients and families cope with life-threatening illnesses in medical settings. She is currently the program division director at CancerCare,a national nonprofit organization that provides free counseling, education and support services to help those affected better cope with and manage the emotional and practical challenges arising from cancer. Prior to joining CancerCare, Canosa served in a variety of leadership positions at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center, St. Mary’s Hospital for Children, the William F. Ryan Community Health Center and South Nassau Communities Hospital, all in New York. Canosa holds a master’s degree in social work from New York University and a master’s in public administration from the City University of New York, Baruch College.

Lillie D. Shockney, is an active clinical researcher with a focus on quality of life issues for survivors. She has written eight books and many articles on the subject of breast cancer. She is the co-founder and vice president of "Mothers Supporting Daughters with Breast Cancer." She serves as Ask an Expert for several breast cancer websites including Yahoo.com and the Johns Hopkins Breast Center's website, and she chairs the National Consortium of Breast Centers QI Task Force.

As president and chief executive officer of The Advertising Council, Peggy Conlon mobilizes the creative services of over 50 major advertising agencies and related financial support from hundreds of corporations to produce $2 billion a year in Public Service Announcements. Conlon serves on the Board of Trustees of the United Way of America, and on the LPGA Commissioner's Advisory Council. Ms. Conlon has also been appointed by former President George H. W. Bush and Barbara Bush to lead the national media initiative for C-Change, formerly the National Dialogue on Cancer.

Doug Ulman is a three-time cancer survivor and national cancer survivorship advocate. In 1997 he founded the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults, a non-profit organization to provide support, education and resources to young adults, their families and friends who are affected by cancer. In addition to his work as president and chief executive officer the Lance Armstrong Foundation, Ulman serves as chairman of the National Cancer Institute Director’s Consumer Liaison Group and sits on the Google Health Advisory Board. He is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and co-founder of the LIVESTRONG™ Young Adult Alliance.

Nancy Davenport-Ennis, cancer survivor, is the founder and chief executive officer of National Patient Advocate Foundation and the Patient Advocate Foundation. She was appointed by the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services as a Commissioner on the American Health Information Community. Most recently, Ms. Davenport-Ennis was elected by the membership of the National eHealth Collaborative (NeHC) in 2010 to serve as designated consumer representative on the NeHC Board of Directors. She has received numerous awards, among them the U.S. Oncology Medal of Honor Award and the 2005 Women in Business Achievement Award presented by Anthem and Business Week. In 2008, she was selected by Yoplait and Susan G. Komen for the Cure as a Yoplait Champion for selflessly fighting breast cancer.

Louise Villejo is executive director of the Patient Education Office at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. She has been responsible for the development, implementation and evaluation of strategic, financial and operational plans for hospital and clinic-based patient education services for more than 27 years. These services include development of relevant educational programs in each clinical area including a comprehensive array of electronic, print, audiovisual and computer-based educational resources and Patient/Family Learning Centers. Ms. Villejo provides leadership to assure the integral role of patient/family education programs within institutional strategic initiatives and meeting accreditation standards.

Sam Donaldson is an internationally known broadcast journalist and a 42-year veteran of ABC News for whom he served two appointments as chief White House correspondent covering Presidents Carter, Reagan and Clinton. In 1998 Mr. Donaldson received the prestigious Broadcaster of the Year Award from the National Press Foundation. The Washington Journalism Review named him the Best Television Correspondent in the Business in 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989. Mr. Donaldson has won many other awards, among them four Emmy Awards and three Peabody Awards. His 1987 autobiography, "Hold On, Mr. President," was an international bestseller. Currently, Donaldson is appearing on ABC News Now, the ABC News digital network.

Dr. Weinberg is CEO of Life Beyond Cancer Foundation and Clinical Professor of Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. The Life Beyond Cancer Foundation, a 501(c)(3) public foundation dedicated to improving the lives of cancer patients and their families on their journey to a life beyond cancer through it’s national Providers for Survivors Network.  He was the Principal Investigator of the Eliminating Disparities in Clinical Trials Project (EDICT), a research study designed to address the problems and find workable solutions to recruiting and retaining populations that are underrepresented in clinical trials such as low income, elderly, racial-ethnic minorities or those who live in rural areas.  Dr. Weinberg began his career at Baylor in 1975 as Director of the Education Division of the DeBakey Heart Center.  Recognizing that the community models he had developed could be applied to other chronic diseases, Dr. Weinberg established the Chronic Disease Research Center (CDRC) in 1987. By broadening his work to include other chronic diseases including cancer Dr. Weinberg’s efforts focused on translating our discovers in prevention, screening, and control activities to state and national initiatives.  Relatedly, Dr. Weinberg has spearheaded effort international partnerships with Kiev – Ukraine, Semipalatinsk - Kazakhstan, Baku – Azerbaijan, Sakhalin - Russia, sponsored by the American International Health Alliance.  He was also a founding member of the International Consortium for Research on the Health Effects of Radiation, founded in response to the Chernobyl nuclear accident.Dr. Weinberg currently serves as Chair of the Cancer Alliance of Texas (CAT), member of the Physician Oncology Program at the Texas Medical Association, Redes En Acción National Center Steering Committee (NCSC), Executive Committee of the National Hispanic Life Science Society, board member of Texas Life Science Foundation, The Schull Institute and Volunteer Houston, past member of the board of C-Change: Collaborating to Conquer Cancer, The National Association of Social Worker Foundation, The Texas Hadassah Medical Research Foundation and was the co-founding Chair of the Intercultural Cancer Council (ICC). This national consortium was an outgrowth of the Biennial Symposia on Minorities, the Medically Underserved & Cancer.

Brian Garofalo has over twenty years of management experience with three major pharmaceutical and bio-pharmaceutical companies. He has been an effective liaison for his industry and patient communities in the disease areas of Cancer, HIV/AIDS, Diabetes and Cardiovascular. Garofalo's advocacy career has focused mainly on ensuring patients and physicians have the ability to maintain access to innovative therapies. He himself is a cancer survivor and is widely sought for his experience and passion for the patient – understanding that whatever the issue may be, solutions are more plausible if a patient-centric approach is maintained. He has started his own consulting company, Patient Alliances, LLC - providing strategic healthcare alliances and solutions for a number of diversified clients.