Heinz-Josef Lenz, M.D., FACP, is the Associate Director for Clinical Research and Co-leader of the Translational Science Program at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Lenz is Professor of Medicine and Preventive Medicine, J Terrence Lanni Chair for Cancer Research in the Division of Medical Oncology and Co-Director of the Center for Cancer Drug Development at USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. An active researcher, Dr. Lenz’s National Cancer Institute-funded laboratory is developing novel agents in his preclinical models in GI cancer. Lenz, a transformational clinical investigator and translational scientist, was the first to lead the first prospective randomized Phase II trials using gene expression from FFPE specimens. He also discovered that primary tumor location of colorectal cancer (CRC) is an independent predictive and prognostic marker, now in the NCNN guidelines. His paper on Consensus Molecular Subtyping identified novel subgroups that are predictive and prognostic in CRC, now used globally in drug development. He has been the Co-PI of the UG1 CA 062505 for the last 20 years and leads the NCCC site for the NCI UM1 (CA186717 with City of Hope, (UC Davis), and Stanford. He is Chair of the Translational Medicine Subcommittee in SWOG GI, member of the Investigational Drug Steering Committee. Dr. Lenz accelerates translational and clinical research, and provides training and mentoring in the design and implementation of investigator-initiated trials. He together with Dr. Carpten just received a Moonshot Colon Cancer Research Grant from the NCI. Dr. Lenz earned his M.D. degree at the Johannes-Gutenberg Universität in Mainz, Germany. In 1991, he completed his internship, residency and fellowship training at the Eberhardt Karls Universität in Tübingen, Germany. He obtained special fellowship training at Universität Wien (Austria), George Washington University and Harvard Medical School. In 1991, he received the prestigious Research Fellowship Award from the “Deutsche Krebshilfe” (Bonn, Germany). He completed his research fellowship in biochemistry and molecular biology at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center before joining the faculty of USC in 1994. He was awarded a Career Development Award from STOP CANCER (1994-1997). Based on his research, he also received a Young Investigator Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) in 1994. In 1995, Dr. Lenz was selected for the prestigious ASCO Career Development Award, as well as an NIH Mid-Career Development Award. He has published over 540 peer reviewed manuscripts with an h-index of 113.

Burns C. Blaxall, PhD, is the founding Executive Director of Precision Medicine at The Christ Hospital Health Network (TCHHN). He leads a transition from reactive to proactive healthcare delivery by harnessing the power of personal diagnostic and genomic data. Using approaches ranging from cutting edge hereditary disease risk assessment, genetic counseling and testing to pharmacogenomics and genome-guided clinical care pathways, Precision Medicine at TCHHN aims to provide proactive, individualized care for every patient.

Dr. Cristofanilli was born in Italy and received his medical degree and Medical Oncology Fellowship from the University “La Sapienza” Medical School in Rome. He completed medical residency in NY and Medical Oncology Fellowship at the University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and then joining the Breast Medical Oncology Department for more than a decade. He is the Founder and first Executive Director of the Morgan Welch IBC clinic and research program. He joined the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia as Chairman of Medical Oncology, then he served as Deputy Director of Translational Research at the SKCC before moving to Chicago to build an innovative Precision Medicine Program at the Robert H Lurie Cancer Center, Northwestern University. During his term as Professor of Medicine and the Associate Director of Translational Research and Precision Medicine the Institution underwent a successful Core grant renewal based on excellence in Translational Research and Precision Medicine. More recently, he joined the Weill-Cornell Medicine/NYP as Professor of Medicine, Chief of Breast Medical Oncology and Associate Director of Precision Medicine at the Meyer Cancer Center. He is also the Scientific Director of The Englander Institute of Precision Medicine. He is the past President of the International Society of Liquid Biopsy (ISLB) and The Inflammatory Breast Cancer-International Consortium (IBC-IC). Dr. Cristofanilli is an expert in the management of hormone-receptor positive metastatic breast cancer and inflammatory breast cancer (IBC) serving as co-PI of the PALOMA-3 study. More importantly, he pioneered the clinical testing of CTCs in MBC leading a multicenter study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. The paper was the first to demonstrate the prognostic value of liquid biopsy in solid tumors and it is currently recognized as major Milestone in Cancer Research. He continues to explore and investigate the clinical application of ctDNA and CTCs technologies to implement personalized monitoring and treatment of advanced breast cancer

Dr. Arcila is a molecular genetics pathologist and hematopathologist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Her clinical and academic work concentrates on the development, validation and clinical implementation of molecular assays for routine diagnostics and in support of clinical trials. She has a special interest in the implementation of molecular assays and technology applications that enable the assessment of samples obtained through minimally invasive procedures including assessment of liquid biopsies and cytologic samples.

Dr Natasha Leighl leads the Thoracic Medical Oncology Group at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, and is Professor in the Department of Medicine, and Adjunct Professor in the Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation at the University of Toronto. She holds the OSI Pharmaceuticals Foundation Chair in Cancer New Drug Development through the Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation. She has published over 350 peer-reviewed papers, has held (as principal or co-investigator) over $800 million in peer-reviewed grant funding. She has mentored many trainees that have gone on to leadership roles in oncology around the world, and received the American Society of Clinical Oncology Excellence in Teaching Award in 2019. Dr Leighl’s main interest is in developing new treatments in lung cancer and improving lung cancer diagnostics including liquid biopsy. She is involved in clinical studies of novel agents for the treatment of thoracic cancers, has led several international and cooperative group studies in lung cancer and has served as a member of the Lung Disease Site Group Executive of the Canadian Cancer Clinical Trials Group. She was Co-Chair of the CCTG Committee on Economic Analysis, Congress Co-President of the 2018 World Conference in Lung Cancer, and serves on multiple committees including the ASCO Thoracic Guidelines Advisory Group, is co-section editor of The Oncologist and Current Oncology, an editorial board member of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, British Journal of Cancer, a member of the IASLC Quality and Value Committee, on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Lung Cancer Foundation of America, and was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the Americas Health Foundation. Previously she served as Web Editor of the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, on the editorial board of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, the Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada Medical Oncology Examination Board, and is Past President of Lung Cancer Canada.

Luis E. Raez, MD, FACP, FCCP works as Chief Scientific Officer & Medical Director at Memorial Cancer Institute (MCI)/Memorial Health Care System, he is also Director of the Thoracic Oncology Program. He is Co-Director of the MCI/FAU Florida Cancer Center of Excellence designated by the Florida Department of Health, one of only five cancer centers in Florida. He is also Clinical Professor of Medicine at Florida International University (FIU), Visiting Professor of Medicine at Cayetano Heredia University in Peru and Research Professor at Florida Atlantic University (FAU). He was the President of the Florida Society of Clinical Oncology (FLASCO) 2019-2021.

Simon Heeke received a Bachelor and Master’s degree in Molecular Medicine at the Medical University of Innsbruck in Austria, prior to a PhD from the University Côte d’Azur in Nice, France. In 2020, he became a Postdoctoral Fellow in the laboratory of John V. Heymach in the Department of Thoracic H&N Medical Oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center where he is focusing on innovative biomarker development in lung cancer with a focus on small-cell lung cancer and liquid biopsies. He serves as the current chair of the young committee at the international society for liquid biopsy.

Christian Rolfo, MD, PhD, MBA, Dr.hc. is Professor of Medicine (Hematology and Medical Oncology) and Associate Director for Clinical Research in the Center for Thoracic Oncology at The Tisch Cancer Institute. Dr. Rolfo’s clinical and research focus is on drug development, lung cancer and other thoracic malignancies, biomarkers, resistant mechanisms discovery, and liquid biopsies. Dr. Rolfo has held academic appointments at numerous institutions, including the University of Cordoba, Argentina; University of Antwerp, Belgium; University of Palermo, Italy, and the University of Maryland and Greenbaum Comprehensive Cancer Center where he was Director of Thoracic Medical Oncology and Director of Early Clinical Trials. Dr. Rolfo earned his MD at the University of Cordoba School of Medicine, his PhD and Doctor Europaeus in Clinical and Experimental Oncology Research at University of Palermo, Italy, and an MBA in Hospital and Health Services Management and Organization at Polytechnic University of Valencia, Spain. He completed residency training in Medical Oncology at the National Cancer Institute in Milan (University of Milan, Italy). Dr. Rolfo is President of the International Society of Liquid Biopsy (ISLB) and Chair of the Education Committee at the International Association for Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC). Dr. Rolfo served as member of the Drug Approval & First in Human Commission at the Ministry of Health in Belgium during his time as Phase I Director at Antwerp University. Dr. Rolfo is actively working on drug development and lung cancer and mesothelioma treatment. His research is focused in molecular oncology, targeted therapies and Immunotherapy in thoracic oncology using new techniques in liquid biopsies, specifically in extracellular vesicles and circulating free tumor DNA. His research group identified ALK translocation in exosomes in NSCLC patients, and showed, for the first time, the videos of labeled EVs uptake by living lung cancer cells. He is currently working on the identification of new biomarkers involved in immunotherapy and TKI drug-resistance and early detection of lung cancer with liquid biopsy. Dr. Rolfo has contributed to the development of several compounds including Erlotinib, and the pharmacokinetics of Olaparib, Entrectinib, Selpercatinib, Trastuzumab Duocarmazine, among others. Dr. Rolfo has authored more than 250 scientific articles, has made several contributions to book chapters, and has served as a book editor. He has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals including New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet Oncology, Cancer Discovery, Nature Clinical Reviews in Oncology, Journal of Thoracic Oncology, Nature Nanotechnology, Clinical Cancer Research, Annals of Oncology, and Lung Cancer among others. Dr. Rolfo is Editor in Chief of Critical Review in Oncology Hematology.