Biographies

Dr Aditya Bardia

Associate Professor, Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Attending Physician, Medical Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital


Dr. Bardia is an internationally renowned breast oncologist known for his innovative clinical and translational research in the field of cancer therapeutics, particularly antibody drug conjugates. He led the development of sacituzumab govitecan, the first ADC approved for patients with metastatic triple negative breast cancer, as well as others including trastuzumab deruxtecan and datapotamab deruxtecan. He also led the clinical development of elacestrant, the first oral SERD approved for patients with metastatic HR+ positive breast cancer. In translational collaboration with various labs at MGH, identified role of ESR1 mutations in mediating endocrine resistance, RB1 mutations in mediating CDK 4/6i resistance and TOP1 mutations in mediating ADC resistance.

Besides pioneering research, Dr. Bardia is highly regarded among peers as an excellent mentor and strong advocate for academic trainees and junior faculty members. Dr. Bardia has received several awards including outstanding award for research excellence at Mayo Clinic, Young Investigator Award from ASCO, Distinguished researcher award from MASCO, Douglas Family Foundation prize for excellence in oncology research, and HMS nomination for excellence in mentorship.

Sarah Barton

Medical Oncologist, Wellington Regional Hospital

Sarah is a medical oncologist with a special interest in treating breast cancer. Following advanced training in Auckland and a clinical fellowship at the Royal Marsden in London, she has been working in Wellington since 2013. Sarah is currently the co-chair of the National Breast Cancer QPI Working Group. She has a keen interest in clinical research, and has served as a principal investigator for several breast cancer clinical trials.

Mihi Blair

Kaiwhakahaere Hauora Māori, Mana Taurite
General Manager, Māori Health and Equity

Ko Mahuhu-ki-te-rangi te waka
Ko Maungakiekie te maunga
Ko Waitemāta te moana
Ko Tuperiri te tangata
Ko Ngā Oho, ko Te Taoū ko Te Uringutu ngā hapū
Ko Ngāti Whātua te iwi

With over 15 years of diverse experience in community, government, and advocacy, Mihi possesses a wealth of expertise that serves as a robust foundation for her role as a leader in advancing positive health and well-being for Māori communities within ProCare.

Mihi's professional journey has seen her take on pivotal advisory positions, including her involvement with the Smokefree Oceania Conference and the Sydney Organizing Committee. Her role as an Indigenous Representative in these committees showcased her commitment to representing the unique needs and perspectives of her community.

Mihi is a passionate advocate for immediate action that benefits future generations, with a specific focus on fostering whānau and community-driven transformation. Her leadership at ProCare is dedicated to aligning the organisation's commitment to the principles of Te Tiriti, ensuring that positive health outcomes for Māori communities remain at the forefront of their mission.

Mihi's dedication to upholding the mana of Te Tiriti o Waitangi ensures that all approaches are crafted with a singular goal: to enhance equity for Māori, Pasifika, and other communities in need. She values collaboration and collective efforts as the means to achieve equitable outcomes.

Prof Fran Boyle

Medical oncologist, Mater Hospital, Sydney
Professor of Medical Oncology, University of Sydney

Fran Boyle is a Medical Oncologist at North Sydney’s Mater Hospital, where she is Director of the Patricia Ritchie Centre for Cancer Care and Research, and Professor of Medical Oncology at the University of Sydney. She is a member of the Scientific Advisory committees of Breast Cancer Trials and International Breast Cancer Study Group and has been involved in all facets of clinical trial research in breast cancer.

Reuben Broom

Medical Oncologist, Auckland City Hospital

Reuben is a medical oncologist specializing in breast cancer. He graduated from the University of Auckland School of Medicine in 1999 and became a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians in 2006. Between 2006 and 2008 he completed a clinical research fellowship at Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto where he focused on breast and renal malignancies.

Reuben returned to New Zealand in 2008 and began working as a consultant at Auckland City and North Shore Hospitals. He is an active researcher in breast cancer and has been an investigator on multiple phase II and III clinical trials.

Dr Alexander Brown

Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon, Wellington Regional Hospital

Dr Alexander Brown is an oncoplastic breast and specialist general surgeon. He is also a member of Breast Surgeons of Australia and New Zealand as well as the Association of Breast Surgery in the UK and is a Fellow of the European Board of Surgery in Breast Surgery. Dr Brown has published several papers on fat grafting, breast reconstruction and patient safety.

Lauren Brown

Medical Oncologist, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, Melbourne

After completing her medical oncology training in Auckland, Lauren Brown undertook a two-year fellowship in breast cancer clinical trials at Peter MacCallum, before commencing a PhD under the primary supervision of Professor Sherene Loi which comprises translational analysis of the pivotal SOFT clinical trial. She was awarded the 2022 BCFNZ Belinda Scott Clinical Fellowship to support her research.

A/Prof Steven David

Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre

A/Prof Steven David is a radiation oncologist at Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and Icon Cancer Centre Melbourne. He specialises in breast cancer and his areas of research include being the lead investigator on clinical trials investigating the use of high dose precision radiation (SABR) alone or in combination with systemic therapy in patients with metastatic disease.

Prof Lesley Fallowfield

Professor of Psycho-oncology, University of Sussex

Dame Lesley is Director of the Sussex Health Outcomes Research & Education in Cancer (SHORE-C) group at Brighton & Sussex Medical School, University of Sussex. She originally trained as a nurse at Guy’s Hospital, London but then did a BSc in Experimental Psychology at Sussex. Research for her doctorate examining the perceptual correlates of optic nerve damage in demyelinating diseases was completed at the Universities of Sussex and Cambridge. In 1991 she became the full-time Director of a Psychosocial Oncology Group and in 1997 was awarded the first European Chair in Psycho-oncology from University College, London.

Her research interests are wide and include the measurement of quality of life in clinical trials of cancer therapy and the training of communication skills for health care professionals in cancer. She has published over 450 papers, many book chapters, 3 textbooks and numerous evidence-based educational materials for the teaching of communication skills. She lectures and runs training workshops throughout the world in psychosocial oncology, quality of life assessment and communication skills. She is a Fellow of the UK Academy of Medical Sciences, an Honorary Fellow of the Association of Cancer Physicians UK and was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2016.

Prof Farshad Foroudi

Director of Radiation Oncology, Olivia Newton-John Cancer & Wellness Centre
Austin Health, Australia

Professor Farshad Foroudi is a Consultant Radiation Oncologist with a particular interest in uro-oncology, breast cancer and palliative radiotherapy. Farshad has over 20 years of experience at a consultant level. Prior to commencement as Director of Radiation Oncology at Austin Health, Farshad was the Chair of the Uro-Oncology Service at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. . Farshad has over 170 peer reviewed publications, the majority as first or senior author. In 2015, Farshad commenced as Director of Radiation Oncology at Austin Health covering Radiation Oncology both at the ONJ Centre and Ballarat Regional Integrated Cancer Centre. He is is a past President of the Trans Tasman Radiation Oncology Group. Under his leadership a MR Simulator and MR Linear Accelerator were installed in his department in 2020-1. His main clinical sites are breast cancer, uro-oncology and palliative radiotherapy. Farshad's maintains a focus in patient care, multi-disciplinary care and new technology implementation.

Prof Prue Francis

Clinical Head of Breast Medical Oncology, Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre
Consultant Medical Oncologist, St Vincent’s Hospital

Professor Prue Francis is a breast cancer clinician researcher who received her medical degree from the University of Melbourne and completed Medical Oncology training at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, before returning to Australia in 1994.

Prue is a member of the Scientific Advisory Committee of Breast Cancer Trials (BCT).

She chairs the international Steering Committee for the SOFT and TEXT premenopausal trials.

Prue is a member of the St. Gallen International Breast Cancer Consensus Panel, the Advanced Breast Cancer (ABC) International Consensus Panel, and the Steering Committee for the Oxford Early Breast Cancer Trialists’ Collaborative Group (EBCTCG).

Dr Sara A Hurvitz

Professor of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine
Professor of Medicine, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center

Dr Hurvitz serves as Division Head of Hematology/Oncology at University of Washington School of Medicine and as Senior Vice President of the Clinical Research Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. Dr Hurvitz earned her MD from the University of Southern California. She served internship/residency at UCLA, was Chief Resident of internal medicine and completed a hematology-oncology fellowship at UCLA in 2006. Dr Hurvitz received board-certification in internal medicine, hematology, and medical oncology. She led the breast cancer clinical trials program at UCLA for 17 years and was Medical Director of the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center until 2023 when she accepted a leadership position at UW/FHCC. Dr Hurvitz has won numerous awards over the past few years, among them the Marni Levine Memorial Breast Cancer Research Award 2008 through 2015 and the European Society of Medical Oncology Breast Cancer Award in 2023. She has an active clinical practice specialising in the treatment of women with breast cancer. She is involved in designing, implementing and leading multiple national and international clinical trials testing new targeted therapies.

Dr Debra Ikeda

Professor of Radiology, Breast Imaging, Emerita
Stanford University School of Medicine

Dr Debra Ikeda is a Professor of Radiology (Breast Imaging), Emerita at Stanford University School of Medicine. A Society of Breast Imaging and American College of Radiology Fellow, she works clinically and on research in the Stanford Breast Imaging Division, leads the California Breast Imaging Information Group (CBIIG), was lead author of the first ACR BI-RADS MRI Lexicon, published >135 original/scientific articles, >180 scientific/educational abstracts, presented >325 USA/international educational presentations. Research includes mammographic positioning/image quality, DBT, MRI/DWI, tattoo/wireless/axillary localizations, MRI/Mammography AI, MRI AI segmentation, breast density, COVID-19 effects on breast imaging/personnel/education/facilities, interval cancer.

Richard Isaacs

Consultant Medical Oncologist

Richard Isaacs trained at Auckland Medical School and then did his physician and medical oncology training in Palmerston North and Oxford, where he completed a D.Phil in Molecular Oncology in 1996.

He returned to Palmerston North, where he has worked as a Medical Oncologist MidCentral RCTS (Head of Dept 2010 -2021). He has been the local principal & co-investigator on >30 clinical trials, most recently developing the PantoCIN trial which was presented at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium in 2022. He is a named author on 45 publications related to those trials.

Richard has been a member of the NZ Breast Cancer Special Interest Group since 2007 and in 2008 was the Medical witness for the BCAC patient advocacy group seeking access to trastuzumab for early breast cancer. He has been on the Advanced Training Committee for Medical Oncology from 2011-2016 and is also on the Senior Examination panel for the RACP exam in both New Zealand and Australia.

Richard was a Board Director, Breast Cancer Trials (previously ANZ Breast Cancer Trials Group) from 2014-2022 and since 2016 has been a member of the Cancer Treatment Advisory Committee to Pharmac. He works part-time in Palliative Care and has a busy private Medical Oncology practice at Crest Hospital in Palmerston North.

Prof Cliona Kirwan

Consultant Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon, Nightingale Breast Centre, Manchester University Hospital Foundation Trust

Cliona is an Oncoplastic Breast Surgeon at the Nightingale Breast Cancer Centre in Manchester, UK. She studied medicine, including a BSc in the History of Medicine, at Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School, London and University College London. Her surgical training was in London, Bristol, Bournemouth, South Africa and Manchester.

She delivers and teaches in all forms of oncoplastic breast surgery including reconstruction. At the University of Manchester, she leads the Cancer and Thrombosis Research Group, performing basic, translational and clinical research, investigating the symbiotic relationship between cancer and thrombosis. She is Chief Investigator on the TIP Trial and CHAMPion Study and surgical lead for LORIS, PRIMETIME and POETIC-A. Cliona leads the Association of Breast Surgery guideline development group for Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis and is a key member of the International Society of Haemostasis and Thrombosis guideline development group for VTE in breast cancer. She is director of the North West Surgical Trials Centre, and mentors the North West Research Collaborative and North West Breast Research Collaborative. She is also scientific advisor for the Prevent Breast Cancer charity.

Marion Kuper

Chair, NZ Breast SIG
Medical oncologist, Waikato Hospital

Marion completed her oncology training in The Netherlands, at the Nijmegen University Medical Centre and qualified as a medical oncologist in 2002. She immigrated to New Zealand in 2005 and works as a consultant medical oncologist at Waikato Hospital. Marion is passionate about improving breast cancer care and promoting access to high quality breast cancer clinical trials in New Zealand.

Marion is a member of Scientific Advisory Committee of Breast Cancer Trials (Australia and New Zealand). She is an active member of the Academic Breast Cancer Steering Group and is an Honorary Senior Lecturer in Medicine at the University of Auckland. She has been, or is, Principal Investigator for multiple international breast cancer clinical trials. Marion is the lead clinical investigator for the ABCpro study, a service offered to women and men with symptoms related to their advanced breast cancer, aiming to improve their symptom management and quality of life.

A/Prof Nick McAndrew

Assistant Professor, Division of Hematology/Oncology
UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine

Dr Nicholas McAndrew is a medical oncologist and clinical researcher. His primary clinical and research interests are in breast cancer. He is board certified in internal medicine and medical oncology. Dr McAndrew received his medical degree from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, and completed his internal medicine residency as well as his hematology/oncology fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. During fellowship, he additionally completed a Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania, with a focus on clinical trials. After completing fellowship at Penn, Dr McAndrew accepted a faculty position at UCLA, returning to his hometown of Los Angeles.

Dr McAndrew has served as the Principal Investigator for numerous breast cancer clinical trials, including both industry-sponsored and investigator-initiated trials. His research interests in breast cancer are broad and include novel applications of CDK 4/6 inhibitors, observational analyses of large databases to answer difficult questions, the role of inflammation in resistance to endocrine and HER2-targeted therapy, and first-in-human phase 1 studies of compounds developed primarily for breast cancer. He and his co-investigators at UCLA were one of the top three enrolling sites world-wide for the phase III NATALEE trial, which showed benefit of ribociclib when added to an adjuvant aromatase inhibitor in high-risk, early-stage ER+/HER2- breast cancer. His analysis of the SEER-Medicare database investigating the long-term cardiotoxicity of adjuvant trastuzumab with or without an anthracycline in curable breast cancer received first place in the UCLA Department of Medicine Research Competition in 2022. Dr McAndrew serves as peer reviewer for multiple medical journals, including Breast Cancer Research, the Journal of Clinical Oncology, npj Breast Cancer, and Therapeutic Advances in Medical Oncology. He also serves on the ASCO Expert Panel for Medical Therapy for Nonmetastatic HR+, HER2-negative Breast Cancer.

A native of Beverly Hills, Dr McAndrew is a second-generation hematologist/oncologist who is strongly committed to patient education and shared decision making. When he is not in the office, Dr McAndrew enjoys listening to music, exploring new types of food and wine (he is a certified sommelier), and loves spending time with his wife (Sarah), son (Charlie), and dogs (Harlan and George).

Dr Jayaram Mohanamurali

Radiation Oncologist, Kathleen Kilgour Centre

Dr Mohanamurali (Murali) is a Radiation Oncologist, at the Kathleen Kilgour Centre in Tauranga. He moved to New Zealand in October 2018, having trained as a Clinical Oncologist in Sheffield, UK. He is a Fellow of the Royal College of Radiologists (UK) and an Educational Affiliate of RANZCR.

He graduated from The University of Madras, India in 1992 before his relocation to the United Kingdom in 1995. Murali was appointed as a Consultant Clinical Oncologist at the Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in May 2004. He moved to Scotland in 2013, before arriving in New Zealand.

His special interests include the non-surgical management of Breast and Thoracic Malignancies. He has extensive experience in systemic therapies for these cancer sites, as well.

He has been a co-investigator and a principal Investigator, for several clinical trials during his time as a Clinical Oncologist in the United Kingdom.

He has a passion for medical education and was the Speciality Module Lead for the undergraduate medical curriculum at Sheffield University between 2010-2013. He was awarded the Clinical Teaching Award by the University of Sheffield in 2012 and 2013, in recognition of his services to Clinical Medical Education.

Christine Mouat

Breast Surgeon, Hutt Hospital

Christine is a breast surgeon working at Hutt hospital, and has worked in the Wellington region for the last 20 years. She is Clinical Leader of Breast Service, Capital Coast and Hutt district.

Her interests include family history and the genetics of breast cancer. She started a dedicated family history clinic in 2006, with a genetics associate in clinic and routine MRI scans for genetic mutation carriers.

Remy Lim

Specialising in Oncology and Genitourinary Imaging, Nuclear Medicine Therapy

Remy is a graduate of Auckland University School of Medicine and completed his radiology training in Auckland. Following a 2-year fellowship at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, Remy returned in Aotearoa New Zealand in 2011 to join Mercy Radiology. He also has part time appointment at Auckland City Hospital, Te Toka Tumai and Waitemata prior to that. His subspecialty interest is in Oncology scans, including the reporting of PET/CT scans of various cancers. Remy has been the Medical Director at Mercy Radiology for the last 8 years and has also taken on the role of lead PET/CT radiologist.

Remy introduced PSMA PET/CT scan for prostate cancer to Aotearoa New Zealand in 2015, which fundamentally changed the way prostate cancer was imaged and treated in this country. In 2018, Remy administered the first dose of Lutetium PSMA therapy in New Zealand and has since treated over 150 men with advanced prostate cancer. Remy is currently evaluating novel PET radiotracers specific for lobular breast cancer and renal cancer and has great interest in the new field of theranostics in oncology.

Remy is also passionate about improving access to PET/CT scans for patients in Aotearoa and plans to introduce a mobile PET/CT service soon to service regional patients in both North and South Islands.

Nirmala Pathmanathan

Senior Breast Pathologist
Service Director, Westmead Breast Cancer Institute, Sydney
Clinical Associate Professor, University of Sydney

Nirmala Pathmanathan is an anatomical pathologist with expertise in breast diseases. She is the Service Director of the Westmead Breast Cancer Institute in Sydney since 2012, and a senior breast pathologist with Douglass Hanly Moir Pathology in Sydney. She is the Director for BreastScreen Program for Sydney West and also chair of the BreastScreen NSW pathology group. She is a Clinical Associate Professor with the University of Sydney, Faculty of Medicine and Health.

Prof Christobel Saunders

Professor, James Stewart Chair of Surgery
Head of the Department of Surgery at the University of Melbourne (Royal Melbourne Hospital precinct)


Christobel Saunders, Director of Medical Research at Melbourne Medical School, and Consultant Surgeon in the Department of General Surgery at Royal Melbourne Hospital and the Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute, is internationally recognised as one of Australia’s most prominent research-orientated cancer surgeons. She has substantially contributed to breast cancer research, including clinical trials of new treatments, and psychosocial, translational and health services research.

She has performed research for >30 years evaluating the efficacy and utility of therapy for early breast cancer. In the past five years, Christobel has published over 200 peer-reviewed journal articles. She sits on the boards of several health and research organisations including as Vice-President for All.Can International and on the boards of All.Can Australia, Breast Cancer Trials, the Australian Centre for Value-Based Health Care and PathWest. Christobel is closely involved in strategic planning and management of health and cancer services in Australia including being a member of the Medicare Review Advisory Committee, panel member of the Medical Services Advisory Committee, past President of the Breast Surgical Society of ANZ, and past Advisory Council member of Cancer Australia. She was the Inaugural Chair of the state Health Service Provider, PathWest Laboratory Medicine.

Dr Paul Samson

Breast Surgeon, Southland Hospital

Dr Paul Samson is a Consultant General, Breast & Endoscopic Surgeon since 2010, working in public and private practice in Invercargill/Queenstown. Paul is a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and a Member of the New Zealand Association of General Surgeons. He is a member of the Breast Section Australasian College of Surgeons, the Australasian Society for Breast Disease, and the Breast Surgeons of Australia & New Zealand. Paul is Senior Lecturer in Clinical Surgery for the University of Otago and has multiple published works in both the surgical and medical literature. Paul is supervisor of General Surgical Training at Southland Hospital and member of the National General Surgical Training Committee. Paul is an invited member of the Breast Quality Audit Committee for Breast Surgeons of Australia and New Zealand, Medical Advisory Committee to Breast Cancer Foundation NZ, South Island Breast Cancer Registry Governance Committee, and Surgeon Representative on the Southern Cross Hospital Clinical Governance Committees Invercargill + Central Lakes (Queenstown).

Andi Shirtcliffe

Breast cancer survivor

Andi Shirtcliffe lives in Wellington, is married and lives with her husband, two grown up children and family dog and is a recent breast cancer survivor. Having been diagnosed late 2022 she has lived experience of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatment and of both the private and public health cancer services. Andi is a Clinical Chief Advisor at Manatū Hauora and a Fulbright Grant Recipient, has worked across many practice areas in health and is an Honorary Associate Professor at the University of Auckland.

Dr Sofia Carrilho Vaz

Nuclear Medicine Physician

Dr Vaz is a nuclear medicine physician working at Champalimaud Clinical Center - Champalimaud Foundation in Lisbon, Portugal. She is a PhD candidate at Leiden University Medical Center, The Netherlands. She is also member of the European Association of Nuclear Medicine Oncology & Theranostics Committee and belongs to the examination committee of the European Union of Medical Specialists - European Board of Nuclear Medicine.

Anna Weiss

Associate Professor, University of Rochester
Director of Breast Cancer Service, Wilmot Cancer Institute

Dr. Anna Weiss completed her undergraduate and medical school training at Case Western Reserve University and her General Surgery Residency at the University of California, San Diego. She then completed her Breast Surgical Oncology Fellowship at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center and started her career as an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School. At Harvard she was a Breast Surgeon at Dana-Farber/Brigham Cancer Center, Director of Breast Surgery Research at Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center South Shore, and an Executive Officer for the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology.

She is now an Associate Professor at University of Rochester, Wilmot Cancer Institute, where she is the Director of the Breast Cancer Service Line, Breast Surgery Lead, Director of the Comprehensive Breast Center at Pluta and Clinical Trials Office Community Outreach liaison. Her current research interests include surgical management of patients at an elevated risk for breast cancer due to an inherited predisposition or other reasons, and subtype-specific surgical management of the axilla, including management after neoadjuvant systemic therapy.

Belinda Yeo

Medical Oncologist in Breast Cancer
Deputy Director of Medical Oncology at Austin Health in Melbourne

(FRACP, MD, MBBS, BA)

Belinda Yeo is a Medical Oncologist in Breast Cancer and Deputy Director of Medical Oncology at Austin Health in Melbourne. She is also a Clinician Scientist at the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute. She trained in Sydney before joining the Breast Unit at The Royal Marsden Hospital, London as a Clinical and Research Fellow. She completed a Master’s Degree at The University of London and The Institute of Cancer Research in novel genomic and non-molecular breast cancer risk assays. She is co-lead of the VCCC Research and Education Stream for Breast Cancer, she is a clinical trial investigator and continues her translational research at the ONJ Centre investigating improving personalization and minimising toxicities for patients with breast cancer.