Cancer Moonshot? Blue Ribbon Panel Members

The Blue Ribbon Panel is composed of leading experts from a broad range of scientific areas, including biology, immunology, genomics, diagnostics, bioinformatics, and cancer prevention and treatment. Members also include investigators with expertise in clinical trials and cancer health disparities, as well as representatives of cancer advocacy groups and pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

The members of the Blue Ribbon Panel are:

Tyler Jacks, Ph.D. (Co-Chair)
Chair, National Cancer Advisory Board
Director, Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Elizabeth Jaffee, M.D. (Co-Chair)
Professor and Deputy Director for Translational Research, Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Dinah Singer, Ph.D. (Co-Chair and Designated Federal Official)
Acting Deputy Director, National Cancer Institute
Director, Division of Cancer Biology, National Cancer Institute

Peter Adamson, M.D.
Professor and Director, Experimental Therapeutics in Oncology, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia

James Allison, Ph.D.
Professor and Chair of Immunology, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

David Arons, J.D.
Chief Executive Officer, National Brain Tumor Society

Mary Beckerle, Ph.D.
Chief Executive Officer and Director, Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah

Mitch Berger, M.D.
Professor and Chair, Department of Neurological Surgery, University of California, San Francisco

Jeff Bluestone, Ph.D.
A.W. and Mary Margaret Clausen Distinguished Professor of Metabolism and Endocrinology, University of California, San Francisco

Chi Van Dang, M.D., Ph.D.
Scientific Director, Ludwig Cancer Research

Mikael Dolsten, M.D., Ph.D.
President, Pfizer Worldwide Research and Development
Executive Vice President, Pfizer, Inc.

James Downing, M.D.
President and Chief Executive Officer, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital

Levi Garraway, M.D., Ph.D.
Senior Vice President, Global Development and Medical Affairs, Lilly Oncology, Eli Lilly and Company

Gad Getz, Ph.D.
Director of Cancer Genome Computational Analysis Group and Institute Member, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard
Director, Bioinformatics Program, Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center and Department of Pathology
Associate Professor of Pathology, Harvard Medical School
Paul C. Zamecnik Chair in Oncology, MGH Cancer Center

Laurie Glimcher, M.D.
Professor of Medicine and Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean, Weill Cornell Medical College
Incoming President and Chief Executive Officer, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Lifang Hou, M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Preventive Medicine, Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine

Neal Kassell, M.D.
Chairman, Focused Ultrasound Foundation
Professor of Neurosurgery, University of Virginia

María Elena Martínez, Ph.D.
Sam M. Walton Endowed Chair for Cancer Research, Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health, and Co-director of the Reducing Cancer Disparities Program, UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center

Deborah Mayer, Ph.D., R.N.
Professor of Adult and Geriatric Health, University of North Carolina School of Nursing
Director of Cancer Survivorship, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center

Edith Mitchell, M.D., F.A.C.P
Professor of Medical Oncology and Associate Director for Diversity Services, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University

Augusto Ochoa, M.D.
Professor of Pediatrics and Director, Stanley S. Scott Cancer Center, Louisiana State University

Jennifer Pietenpol, Ph.D.
Benjamin F. Byrd, Jr. Professor of Oncology, Professor of Biochemistry, and Director, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center

Angel Pizarro, M.S.E.
Technical Business Development Manager, Amazon Web Services Scientific Computing and Research Computing

Barbara Rimer, Dr.P.H.
Alumni Distinguished Professor and Dean, University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health

Charles Sawyers, M.D.
Chair, Human Oncology and Pathogenesis Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Ellen Sigal, Ph.D.
Founder and Chair, Friends of Cancer Research

Patrick Soon-Shiong, M.D., FRCS (C), FACS
Founder, Chair, and CEO, NantWorks LLC

Wai-Kwan Alfred Yung, M.D.
Professor of Neuro-Oncology and Chair of Clinical Cancer Care, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

Ex Officio members of the Blue Ribbon Panel are:

David Atkins, M.D., M.P.H.
Acting Chief Research and Development Officer, Department of Veterans Affairs

Robert Califf, M.D.
Commissioner, U.S. Food and Drug Administration

Karen Guice, M.D., M.P.P.
Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, Department of Defense

Jason Paragas, Ph.D.
Director of Innovation, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Lawrence Tabak, D.D.S., Ph.D.
Principal Deputy Director, National Institutes of Health

This content is provided by the National Cancer Institute (www.cancer.gov)