Who We Are

---

Dr. Richard Pestell is a clinician scientist who trained in Oncology. He has >700 published works and holds patents in cancer diagnostics and treatment including light-activated gene therapy. He founded companies (ProstaGene, LightSeed), Departments and Institutes, led cancer not–for-profits and directed two USA Cancer Centers (Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, and the Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Pestell. 

He was most recently Executive Vice President Thomas Jefferson University (TJU), Philadelphia, USA. TJU has an annual budget of $5.6B, eleven hospitals and 30,000 employees in the Philadelphia region, with more than 160 undergraduate and graduate programs.

He has previously successfully founded, developed and exited a biotechnology company.

Professor Rick Kitsis, MD., PhD., is Director, Wilf Family Cardiovascular Research Institute Dr. Gerald and Myra Dorros Professor of Cardiovascular Disease  at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. Dr. Kitsis is one of the worlds leading expert in the mechanisms governing cardiac death.

The Scientific Advisory Board is led by Dr. Chris Albanese, Executive Director, Founder, Center for Translational Imaging, Georgetown Medical Center. At the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Dr. Albanese conducts development of novel preclinical models of human diseases, and the development of high-energy imaging technologies. 

 Dr. Pestell will present the plenary lecture April 16 th 2020 “8h International Meet on Cancer”, Miami Florida, USA, “Cancer Stem Cells. Genetic Drivers and therapeutic targeting". 

Dr Pestell will present an invited  plenary lecture at the 45 th annual Federation of the European Biochemical Societies meeting July 8th 2020.

Dr Pestell will present an invited  plenary lecture at the Susan Komen Annual Breast cancer meeting in Philadelphia, November 16th 2019.