Five outstanding scientists join the LUNGevity Foundation Scientific Advisory Board

WASHINGTON, Aug. 25, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- LUNGevity Foundation, the nation's preeminent lung cancer research foundation, today announced five new members of its Scientific Advisory Board, a group of 18 world-renowned scientists and researchers that guides LUNGevity's research program. The Scientific Advisory Board is integral to the Foundation, overseeing the scientific strategy and ensuring that grants are awarded to the researchers whose proposals demonstrate the greatest potential for finding lung cancer at its earliest, most treatable phase, as well as extending and improving lives for lung cancer survivors. 

LUNGevity is the only lung cancer organization with a programmatic focus on early detection and Career Development Awards. Our researchers are working on finding a better way to detect lung cancer, and to better diagnose, treat, and prevent its recurrence. The research program is a crucial factor in moving the science forward to improve outcomes for people living with lung cancer.

LUNGevity is proud to welcome these exceptional scientists to its Scientific Advisory Board:

Scott J. Antonia, MD, PhD, is Chair, Department of Thoracic Oncology, at the Moffitt Cancer Center, and Professor of Oncologic Sciences at the University of South Florida College of Medicine. His work focuses on translational research, for which he uses his molecular biology and cellular background to develop immunotherapeutic strategies for lung cancer patients. His clinical interests focus on immunotherapy and immunobiology, in particular gene-modified tumor cell vaccine trials. Dr. Antonia also serves at Moffitt as chairman of the Scientific Review Committee and medical director of the Tumor Vaccine Production Facility.

Suzanne E. Dahlberg, PhD, is Senior Research Scientist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard T.H.Chan School of Public Health. Her research focuses on clinical and translational studies in lung cancer as the primary statistician for both the ECOG-ACRIN Thoracic Committee and the Thoracic Oncology Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. She is a member of the NCI Thoracic Malignancy Steering Committee, the NCTN Core Correlative Sciences Committee, and the Nature journals statistical consultants group.

Jessica S. Donington, MD, MSCr, is Associate Professor, Cardiothoracic Surgery, at NYU School of Medicine, Director of the NYU Thoracic Oncology Translational Research Laboratory, and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at Bellevue Hospital. Her interests focus on the early diagnosis and treatment of non-small cell lung cancer. Her areas of expertise include the use of multimodality therapy for thoracic malignancies, treatment options for high-risk patients with early-stage lung cancer, and lung cancer in women. She is the surgical chair for the thoracic malignancy group of NRG Oncology Group and the president of Women in Thoracic Surgery.

Paul K. Paik, MD, is Assistant Attending Physician and Clinical Director, Thoracic Oncology Service, at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Dr. Paik's research focuses on squamous cell lung cancer biology, targeted therapeutics, and translational therapies aimed at the metastatic process. He has served as a member of The Cancer Genome Atlas Squamous Cell Lung Cancer Working Group.

Anil Vachani, MD, is Associate Professor of Medicine in the Pulmonary and Critical Care Division at the University of Pennsylvania, where he serves as Director of the Lung Nodule Program, Co-Director of the Lung Cancer Screening Program, and  Director of Bronchoscopy at the Philadelphia VA Medical Center. His research focuses on the discovery and validation of early detection and treatment prediction biomarkers for lung cancer and mesothelioma. Additional areas of research include studies on the measurement of biomarkers from circulating tumor cells and circulating free DNA. Dr. Vachani serves on various committees for the American Thoracic Society and is the Vice-Chair of the Thoracic Oncology Network of the American College of Chest Physicians.  

"Drs. Antonia, Dahlberg, Donington, Paik, and Vachani bring expertise in critical areas—immunotherapy, statistics, thoracic surgery, squamous cell lung cancer, and early detection—to our Scientific Advisory Board," said Andrea Ferris, President and Chairman of LUNGevity Foundation. "They will help ensure that we fund the best lung cancer science possible, and we are honored to be working with them."

For more information on LUNGevity Foundation, please visit www.LUNGevity.org. 

About Lung Cancer

• 1 in 15 Americans is diagnosed with lung cancer in their lifetime
• More than 224,000 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed with lung cancer this year
• About 60%-65% of all new lung cancer diagnoses are among people who have never smoked or are former smokers
• Lung cancer kills more people than the next three leading cancers (colorectal, breast, and prostate) combined
• Only 18% of all people diagnosed with lung cancer will survive 5 years or more, BUT if it's caught before it spreads, the chance for 5-year survival improves dramatically

SOURCE LUNGevity Foundation

Related Links

http://www.lungevity.org