Team

Bonnie J. Addario, Founder of ACLMI, Founder and Chair of ACLF, and Lung Cancer Survivor, has been an activist, advocate, educator and change agent empowering patients and giving them a strong voice in the fight against lung cancer since receiving a stage 3B diagnosis more than a decade ago. Although thrust into a role that she had never envisioned for herself, she embraced it and now considers it to be her second career and a personal calling. Recognizing the critical need for education, empowerment, advocacy and research to help patients and families, especially those without resources and support, Bonnie and her family founded the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation (ALCF) in 2006, and then went on to found the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute (ALCMI) with her husband, Tony Addario, in 2008. Bonnie’s business acumen and skills honed in her first career as President of Olympian Oil Company and Commercial Fueling Network (CFN), as Past President of the CA Independent Oil Marketers Association (CIOMA) and as a community activist serving on diverse boards have all contributed to her work at ALCF in developing business strategies and being the Foundation’s patient voice at national/international conferences, on panels and boards, and to industry leaders, clinicians and policy makers. Bonnie’s personal interests include collecting wine, travel, sports (Go SF Giants!) and spending time with family and friends at Lake Tahoe.

Dr. Benjamin Besse is Professor of Medical Oncology at Paris-Sud University, Orsay, France and a full time cancer specialist at Gustave Roussy Cancer Campus, Villejuif, France. Currently, Dr. Besse is Head of the Cancer Medicine Department at Gustave Roussy Cancer Campus. He coordinates the French network for thymic malignancies.

He is also the Chair of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) Lung Group and coordinator of the French network for thymic malignancies. His main research interests include the application of molecular abnormalities to personalize treatment, circulating biomarkers, early drug development in thoracic tumors, and thymic malignancies. He has authored/co-authored more than 250 peer-reviewed papers.

Dr. Trever Bivona is a Professor at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine. He received his undergraduate training at Vanderbilt University, and his MD and PhD degrees from the New York School of Medicine. Dr. Bivona also completed fellowships at Bringham & Womens, Harvard, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

Dr. Bivona is an active researcher in lung cancer basic research and discovery sciences, and has translated 6 laboratory discoveries into oncology patient clinical trials within the past 8 years. He is a member of numerous cancer organizations and associations, such as AMA, Massachusetts Medical Society, ASCO, AACR, IASLC, AAAS, and others.

Dr. Bivona is a Review Committee member for the annual AACR meeting, on the Editorial Board for Nature – Precision Oncology, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Cancers – and a Journal Reviewer for numerous prestigious peer-reviewed publications: Nature, Nature Genetics, Nature Biotechnology, Nature Medicine, Nature Ecology, Nature Communications, Science, Science Signaling, Science Advances, Cell, Cancer Cell, Cell Reports, New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Clinical Investigation, PLOS One, PLOS Biology, Cancer Research, Oncogene, Cancer Discovery, Clinical Cancer Research, Molecular Cell, British Journal of Cancer, Genome Biology, and eLife.

He has over 100 publications in print and is a very active international lecturer in lung cancer, and a recipient of numerous awards, grants, and honors.

Dr. David Carbone is Professor of Internal Medicine, Director of the James Thoracic Center at the OSUMC. He graduated summa cum laude from Amherst College in 1977 and received an MD and a PhD in Molecular Biology and Genetics at Johns Hopkins University in 1985.

After an Internal Medicine internship and residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital he did a Medical Oncology fellowship at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, MD. At Vanderbilt he was Director of the Thoracic/Head and Neck Cancer Program, Director of a SPORE in Lung Cancer for 11 years. He was recruited to the Ohio State University in 2012 to direct the James Thoracic Center.

His research interests have been focused on lung cancer, and specifically proteomic and expression signature development, lung cancer genetics, tumor-associated immunosuppression mechanisms, proteogenomic profiling of lung cancers to guide the development of novel therapeutics, and targeting novel immunosuppression mechanisms. He has over 200 peer-reviewed publications, has served on the Board of Scientific Counselors, and has continuous NCI funding since early in his career. He is currently Chair of the Lung Biology subcommittee for the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group and President of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC).

Dr. David R. Gandara is a Professor of Medicine at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine, and serves as Associate Director of Clinical Research and Director of Thoracic Oncology at the University of California, Davis Cancer Center.

Dr. Gandara received his medical degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, followed by internship and residency at the Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma and a fellowship at the Letterman Army Medical Center Presidio of San Francisco.

Dr. Gandara is a diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine specializing in Medical Oncology. He is currently principal investigator for a number of research projects in lung cancer, pharmacology trials at various phases, and Southwest Oncology Group trials. He is the principal investigator for a National Cancer Institute award to the California Cancer Consortium for Early Therapeutic Trials of New Anti-Cancer Agents.

Dr. Gandara is President of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC) and serves on the board of directors. Dr. Gandara is chair of the Southwest Oncology Group (SWOG) Lung Committee, and co-chair of the NCI-directed Investigational Drug Steering Committee. He has written over 300 articles, book chapters, abstracts and editorials. He is editor-in-chief of Clinical Lung Cancer, serves on the editorial board of four oncology journals, and is a manuscript reviewer for eight additional journals. He served as secretary-treasurer and a member of the board of directors for the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). Dr. Gandara is a member of the Scientific Leadership Council in Lung Cancer.

Dr. David M. Jablons is Professor and Chief of Thoracic Surgery at the University of California, San Francisco, and Ada Distinguished Professor of Thoracic Oncology at the UCSF Helen Diller Comprehensive Cancer Center, where he also serves as Program Leader of Thoracic Oncology.

Dr. Jablons received his undergraduate degree from Yale University and his medical degree from Albany Medical College of Union University. He has also trained at numerous highly-regarded institutions including Tufts-New England Medical Center, Oak Knoll Naval Hospital, the Surgery Branch of NCI, Cornell University Medical Center, New York Hospital/Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, and Brigham & Women’s Hospital.

Dr. Jablons established the UCSF/UC Davis Thoracic Oncology Conference, one of the oldest and longest running didactic conferences in the field. He also helped found the International Pan Pacific Lung Cancer Conference. He is a strong supporter of international efforts to expand lung cancer research, and helped start the China Clinical Trials Consortium (CCTC). He also co-founded the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation and the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute.

Dr. Jablons leads a team of scientists developing molecularly targeted therapies for lung cancer and mesothelioma. Key research areas include the Wnt and Hedgehog (Hh) pathways, and stem cell signaling targets. The Thoracic Oncology Tissue Bank is one of the largest such repositories in the U.S. and serves as a hub for interdisciplinary collaboration. Dr. Jablons is also a principal investigator on two NIH R01 grants and has authored over 100 peer-reviewed research papers. In addition, he serves as a reviewer on several NIH study groups.

Dr. Pasi A. Jänne is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Assistant Physician at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Massachusetts.

After earning his MD and PhD from the School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Dr Jänne completed his internship and residency in Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston. He subsequently completed fellowship training at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Massachusetts General Hospital combined program in medical oncology in 2001. In 2002 he earned a Masters Degree in clinical investigation from Harvard University.

Dr. Jänne’s research interests include investigation of oncogene mutations and how these correlate with clinical response to targeted therapies in lung cancer. He was one of the investigators who initially discovered EGFR mutations in 2004 and has subsequently studied their effect on clinical outcome of patients and on mechanisms of resistance. He has also worked on developing non-sequencing based technology to detect mutations in EGFR and other oncogenes. Dr. Jänne is a member of the Cancer and Leukemia Group B respiratory committee. He is also an active member of ASCO, AACR, ESMO and IASLC. He was elected to the American Society of Clinical Investigation in 2008.

Dr. Ite Laird-Offringa is an Associate Professor of Surgery and of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Southern California (USC), Keck School of Medicine. She is also the Director of the Program in Biomedical and Biological Sciences at USC.

Dr. Laird-Offringa earned her Ph.D. from the University of Leiden, The Netherlands, and conducted postdoctoral work at Harvard Medical School. She joined the USC faculty in 1996. She is a member of many national and international professional and advocate societies, including the American Association for Cancer Research, the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, and the National Lung Cancer Partnership, and she serves as a reviewer on the NIH/NCI Cancer Genetics study section.

Dr. Laird-Offringa is committed to the development of better tools for early lung cancer detection. Her laboratory’s current research in lung cancer focuses on the identification of cancer-specific changes in antibodies and in DNA methylation, a reversible alteration of DNA that can affect gene expression. The obtained information is used for biomarker development and to gain insight into the sequential molecular steps that happen during the development of lung cancer. The Laird-Offringa laboratory is funded by two NIH R01 grants and by generous donations and grants from several private foundations and individuals. In her work, she collaborates with pathologists, oncologists, surgeons, epidemiologists and a variety of other scientists.

Dr. Christine Lovly is Associate Professor of Medicine (Heme-Onc) at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and Co-Leader of the Translational Research Interventional Oncology (TRIO) program.

She received her undergraduate degree from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and her PhD and MD degrees from Washington University, St Louis.

Dr. Lovly is a member of many oncology and scientific organizations and associations, such as AACR, ASCO, IASLC, ASCI, among others – and has received dozens of awards and honors. She serves on several Scientific Advisory Boards, to include for the GO2 Foundation for Lung Cancer.

Dr. Lovly is co-Editor-in-Chief for My Genome, and has been a reviewer for nearly 100 peer-reviewed submissions across numerous prestigious peer-reviewed publications since 2013 alone.

Dr. Harvey I. Pass is Professor of Thoracic Oncology, Vice-Chair Research, Department of Cardiology, and first Division Chief of General Thoracic Surgery at NYU School of Medicine. He joined NYU Medical Center in 2005 to lead the Division of Thoracic Surgery and Thoracic Oncology. His previous positions include Chief, Thoracic Oncology at the Karmanos Cancer Institute, and Head of the Thoracic Oncology Section of the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for the National Institutes of Health.

Dr. Pass received his B.A. from Johns Hopkins University and his M.D. from Duke University. He completed his surgical residency at Duke and the University of Mississippi. He completed his residency in Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Medical University of South Carolina. Dr. Pass also completed a fellowship in Thoracic Oncology at NCI.

Dr. Pass has published over 300 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals, including The New England Journal of Medicine regarding the discovery of osteopontin as a possible early detection biomarker for mesothelioma. He is an editor of Lung Cancer: Principles and Practice, Surgery: Basic Science and Clinical Evidence, Oncology: An Evidence Based Approach, and Malignant Mesothelioma: Advances in Pathogenesis, Diagnosis, and Translational Therapies. Dr. Pass is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Thoracic Oncology, Surgical Editor for Clinical Lung Cancer and a member of the editorial board for Clinical Cancer Research.

Dr. Pass is presently on the Board of Directors for the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer, the International Mesothelioma Interest Group, the Lung Cancer Alliance, and the Mesothelioma Foundation.

Dr. Jonathan Riess is Associate Professor, University of California, Davis (UCD), where he also is Chair of the UCD Comprehensive Cancer Center Quality Assurance, and Chair of the UCD Lung Cancer Working Group. He co-Chairs the UCD Molecular Tumor Board.

Dr. Riess is a graduate of the Stanford University School of Medicine, and completed his residency at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He is widely published, with well over 50 articles and book chapters in the past 7 years alone.

Dr. Riess has received numerous honors and awards, to include the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Clinical Investigator Team Leadership Award, and is a Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) Dream Team awardee.

Dr. Riess is a member of numerous global organizations and associations, among them: the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer (IASLC), ASCO, SWOG, AACR, AAAS, and many others. He is Associate Editor for publications: Cancer Treatment & Research Communications, and Clinical Lung Cancer.

Dr. Giorgio Scagliotti is Full Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the University of Torino. Dr. Scagliotti earned his medical degree and completed the postgraduate training in respiratory medicine, internal medicine, and medical oncology at the University of Torino. He is chief of the Thoracic Oncology Division at the S. Luigi Hospital, Orbassano (Torino) and Head of the Department of Clinical and Biological Sciences at University of Torino. He is also the Chairperson of the Postgraduate School in Respiratory Medicine at the same University.

Over the last 15 years Dr. Scagliotti’s research interests included experimental studies on basic and clinical applied research on lung cancer, including translational research. He has been and currently is the study coordinator of several European and international clinical trials on lung cancer chemotherapy and he has been a key investigator in several Italian studies investigating the role of chemotherapy in early stage non-small cell lung cancer. Dr. Scagliotti is a member of numerous scientific societies, including the Italian Society of Respiratory Medicine, the European Respiratory Society, the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer. From 2002 to 2005 he was member of the International Affair Committee of the American Society of Clinical Oncology and from 2003-07 Executive Board member of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer. He served on the Publication Committee (2005-08) and in Program Committee of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in the period 2005-07. Dr. Scagliotti is a manuscript reviewer for 11 scientific journals. He currently serves on the editorial boards of Critical Review in Oncology and Hematology, and Oncology News. He is Associate Editor for Journal of Thoracic Oncology and International Editor for Clinical Lung Cancer. He is the author or co-author of more than 180 publications in peer-reviewed journals and he is the International Editor of the 4th Edition of the book “Lung Cancer : Principles and practice”