Medical Advisory Board
Medical Advisory Board Chairman
Gary Schwartz, MD
Division Chief, Hematology and Oncology; Deputy Director, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbia Vagelos School of Medicine
Dr. Schwartz is a recognized leader in the field of translational research and clinical research who in his work has been able to bridge the clinical and basic science elements of drug development. The lab he directs focuses on the identification of new targeted agents for cancer therapy, especially in the treatment of sarcoma and melanoma. These laboratory studies allow for a bridge between the laboratory and the clinic, and many of these drugs that originated in the lab are now being evaluated in clinical trials.
Medical Advisory Board Members
Julia Glade Bender, MD
Vice Chair for Clinical Research in Pediatrics, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK Kids)
After nearly 20 years at Columbia University leading the pediatric early drug development program focused on the use of novel biologically targeted agents in relapsed pediatric solid tumors, Dr. Glade Bender joined MSK in 2018 as a Full Member to concentrate on clinical trials, sarcoma, rare tumors and the development of a specialized adolescent/young adult program. She has an international reputation for expertise in precision medicine and targeted therapies and serves as a pediatric consultant to the FDA.
Alan Ho, MD, PhD
Geoffrey Beene Junior Faculty Chair, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
A translational clinical researcher on the head/neck medical oncology service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), Dr. Ho focuses on the discovery of novel therapeutics for rare cancers of the head and neck. As an MD/PhD, he has extensive clinical and laboratory science training that enables him to translate complex scientific findings into clinical investigations and has built translational research programs in head and neck squamous cell carcinomas, thyroid cancers and salivary gland cancers.
Jordan Orange, MD
Chair of Pediatrics, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons; Physician-in-Chief, NewYork-Presbyterian/ Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital
Dr. Orange is an international leader in pediatric primary immunodeficiency and immunobiology of human natural killer cells. In his research, he combines novel disease discovery with basic cell research to translate underlying biological mechanisms of disease into clinical applications. He has an extensive background in pediatric immunology and pediatric primary immunodeficiency, spending much of his career identifying a class of diseases called natural killer cell deficiencies.
Alan M. Jacobson, MD
Chief Research Officer, NYU Winthrop University Hospital; Professor, Foundations of Medicine and Associate Dean for Research at NYU Long Island School of Medicine
Dr. Jacobson’s research focuses on the psychological, social, and central nervous system effects of diabetes across the lifespan, using neuro-imaging techniques to examine the effects of diabetes and metabolism on the brain and identify the causes of these alterations. He is studying interacting effects of aging and type 1 diabetes including use of artificial intelligence/machine learning techniques to identify patterns of brain alterations predictive of variations in cognitive decline.
Pamela Taxel, MD
Professor of Medicine and Fellowship Director, Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, UConn Musculoskeletal Institute
Dr. Taxel’s clinical area of focus is the treatment of patients with osteoporosis, and she has established a health clinic with a focus on men and women receiving cancer therapies that impact bone health. She collaborates with School of Dental Medicine colleagues on multiple studies assessing the impact of bone healthy on implant success or failure and another that identifies risk factors for osteonecrosis of the jaws in patients receiving bone-modifying therapies for advanced cancers.
Michael Weiner, MD
Hettinger Professor and Vice Chair of Pediatrics, Columbia University Herbert Irving Medical Center
A pediatric oncologist and philanthropist, Dr. Weiner has made major significant contributions in the diagnosis and treatment of children and adolescents He is author of “Living Cancer: Stories of an Oncologist, Father and Survivor” and among his numerous charitable endeavors, he is also founder of the Hope & Heroes Children’s Cancer Fund a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization he began 25 years ago to support patients, families, special programs, and research at Columbia.
Jedd Wolchok, MD
Meyer Director, Sandra and Edward Meyer Cancer Center and Professor of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medicine
Dr. Wolchok is a clinician-scientist exploring innovative immunotherapeutic strategies in laboratory models, and a principal investigator in numerous pivotal clinical trials. He supervises an NIH R01-funded basic science laboratory focused on investigating novel immunotherapeutic agents in pre-clinical laboratory models. His translational research laboratory investigates innovative means to modulate the immune response to cancer to better understand the mechanistic basis for sensitivity/resistance to currently available immunotherapies.