2025 Speakers

Dr. Abbasi recently served as Senior Policy Advisor to Commissioner Robert Califf MD of the US Food and Drug Administration. In this role, he led efforts to streamline evidence generation across the healthcare system and improve our ability to learn from routinely generated health data. He previously served as data science advisor to the directors of the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Maine Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Currently, Dr. Abbasi is finishing his surgical training at the University of California, San Francisco.

Chad Adams has more than 25 years working in healthcare operational management of which 20 years have been in research. His experience includes a broad background of operational management in healthcare administration, with specific training and experience in integrating technology that address gaps for barriers to successful portfolio performance of clinical trials. Mr. Adams actively participates in advisory boards for multiple industry organizations and actively helps build research organizations. Mr. Adams brings a high level of analytical skills, combined with novel approaches, to his current role as AVP of Research within HonorHealth and as COO of the HonorHealth Research Institute.

Dr Nadir Ammour brings more than 20 years’ experience in managing global projects in clinical development. He is working to bring eHealth/Digital innovation in clinical development to deliver new medicines to patients faster. He led several projects in that space such as the Verkko remote trial, wearables trials, use of electronic health records for research and is now leading efforts at bridging care and research. Dr Ammour was a member of the Executive Committee of the EHR4CR consortium project and led the EHR2EDC consortia. He is presently working on several consortia projects to advance the concept of clinical trials as a treatment option.

Christina Brennan, MD has devoted her career to clinical research and currently serves as Northwell Health’s Vice President of Clinical Research. Committed to the advancement of science and medicine, Dr Brennan has more than 22 years of extensive clinical research experience, including over 17 years in clinical research management roles. She is on the board of trustees for the Association of Clinical Research Professionals. She is the immediate past president of the NY Metropolitan Chapter of the Association of Clinical Research Professionals. She is on the steering committee of the Clinical Trial Transformation Initiative (CTTI), with Duke University and the FDA. She is on the leadership council for Society for Clinical Research Sites (SCRS), where she also sits on the oncology advisory board and technology site advocacy group. She is an adjunct professor for a Masters of Science program with Yeshiva University. She is also an active member of the Women in Bio and the American College of Healthcare Executives. Dr Brennan also has authored chapters in textbooks, coauthored many manuscripts and abstracts, and has presented at numerous scientific and research meetings.

Dr Quincy J. Byrdsong is the Vice President for Research Operations at Ballad Health in Johnson City, Tennessee. He earned his Bachelor and Master of Science Degrees in Biology from Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), a Master of Arts in Biblical Exposition from Liberty University. and his Doctor of Education degree from Tennessee State University (TSU). In his current role, Dr Byrdsong is charged with the development and implementation of Ballad’s strategic research plan, Vision for Superior Discovery, oversees research directors, partners with regional academic institutions, leads all research administration and compliance functions of Ballad Health including the Institutional Review Board and Human Research Protection Program, Research Informatics, Medical Library, and collaborates regularly with Ballad Health executive leadership, Corporate Compliance, Legal, and Medical Affairs. Dr Byrdsong has served in several capacities in both the academic and healthcare system sectors with over twenty-three years of direct clinical research executive management experience at Meharry Medical College, Morehouse School of Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center and Wellstar Health System. Dr Byrdsong is an avid public speaker and frequently speaks to audiences around the world on the topics of clinical trial administration, research ethics, and human research protections including the history of human experimentation in the U.S.

Dr Byrdsong is a Certified Institutional Review Board (IRB) Professional (CIP) and a Certified Clinical Research Professional (CCRP) as well as past President of the Society of Clinical Research Associates (SOCRA) and past Board Member of the Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP).

A nationally recognized leader and champion of the Clinical Research as a Care Option (CRAACO) movement, Jennifer Byrne’s career has been devoted to building teams and driving change in pursuit of a more efficient, more impactful approach to clinical research. In 2018, she founded Javara with a vision to revolutionize the industry by accelerating access to clinical trials for patients, sponsors, and healthcare systems alike. By bridging the gap between clinical research and clinical care, Javara enables more patients to participate through trusted point-of-care access and support. Prior to Javara, Jennifer served as CEO of PMG Research and founded Greater Gift (501(c)3). She has been recognized as a PM360 ELITE, CenterWatch Top 20 Innovator, PharmaVOICE Woman of Influence, TBJ Outstanding Woman in Business and two-time TBJ Power Player, among others. Jennifer is a graduate of Texas A&M University.

As an epidemiologist at COPPER (Cancer Outcomes, Public Policy and Effectiveness Research) Center within the Department of General Medicine at the Yale School of Medicine, my research is focused on examining health outcomes and quality care for patients with cancer. I have a sub-focus to gain a better understanding of end-of-life care and the role of systemic anti-cancer therapy. Serving under the Smilow Chief Quality Officer I have researched this topic both within our institution, providing an evidence-based approach and critical statistical analysis to our quality improvement projects, and at the national level using secondary data analysis. I have worked extensively with the National Cancer Database (NCDB), SEER-Medicare data, Flatiron Health LLC US based real word cancer databases, and multi-site analysis of the Oncology Care Model (OCM) data. Prior to my work at COPPER, I was a member of the Global Health Leadership Institute (GHLI) team at Yale and conducted qualitative and quantitative data analysis of GHLI studies in countries including Ghana, Ethiopia and China.

Laura Esserman, MD, MBA is the director of the UCSF Breast Care Center, and is recognized as a

thought leader in cancer screening and over-diagnosis, as well as innovative clinical trial design. She led

the creation of the University of California-wide Athena Breast Health Network, a learning system

designed to integrate clinical care and research as it follows 150,000 women from screening through

treatment and outcomes. The Athena Network launched the PCORI-funded WISDOM Study, which tests

a personalized approach to breast cancer screening in 100,000 women. She is also a leader of the

innovative I-SPY TRIAL model, designed to accelerate the identification and approval of effective new

agents for women with high risk breast cancers.

TBA

Elizabeth is an Assistant Professor (tenure track) at Montana State University- Mark & Robyn Jones College of Nursing in Bozeman, Montana. She teaches Design of Healthcare Delivery Systems, which is an interprofessional graduate course offering with College of Nursing (Clinical Nurse Leader and DNP students) and College of Engineering students (industrial, mechanical, healthcare systems engineering students) to evaluate quality and efficiency in the delivery of patient care. Her research includes technology innovation and digital health device development for clinical trial participant safety management, with funding awarded from the Montana State University/U.S. Economic Development Administration, American Nurses Association, NIH, Genentech Innovation Fund, and via the National Science Foundation- National Innovation Corps program. She is part of the Blueprint Engine- Tough Tech Program at MIT. Her service includes Chair for the Research Committee of the International Association of Clinical Research Nurses, President-Elect for the Nursing Institute of Healthcare Design, Coalition for Health AI Health System Advisory Board, and a member of the American Nurses Association Innovation Advisory Committee for Technology + Medical Devices. Prior to her current role at Montana State University, Elizabeth was a clinical research nurse, clinical trial manager, and global early clinical development manager spanning hospital and industry roles supporting pediatric diabetology/endocrinology and adult oncology.

Adam Kinsey is currently Associate Vice President and Regional Head of North America for Global Clinical Trial Operations (GCTO) at Merck Research Laboratories. Mr Kinsey has over 26 years of clinical research experience, with the last 8.5 years at Merck. He has been a key leader within GCTO, most recently serving as Executive Director, Clinical Sciences & Study Management and Therapeutic Area Section Head for Melanoma, Hepatobiliary Cancers, and Innovative Strategies. Previously, Mr Kinsey was Clinical Research Director in Oncology where he led country operations activities in the United States for Merck’s oncology pipeline. He started his career as a Clinical Research Associate (CRA) and has traversed through various roles in clinical operations of increasing responsibility and scope. Mr Kinsey also has experience across a wide array of therapeutic areas with companies of different sizes and operating models. He holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Rice University and completed post-baccalaureate coursework at Houston Baptist University as well as coursework towards a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree at the University of Texas School of Public Health in Houston.

Karen E. Knudsen, MBA, PhD is the Chief Executive Officer of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI). A globally recognized cancer scientist and executive leader, she brings deep expertise in healthcare innovation, strategic partnerships and organizational growth. At PICI, she is driving efforts to advance bold science, catalyze cross-institutional partnerships and accelerate breakthrough therapies, with the mission of turning all cancers into curable diseases.

Chris Komelasky is the CEO and co-founder of SiteBridge Research. Chris has extensive experience as a management consultant and healthcare executive in the areas of strategy, operations, data analytics, commercialization and business transformation in Pharmaceutical and CRO organizations. Chris holds a B.S. in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business.

Joe Lengfellner brings over 20 years of experience in healthcare IT and clinical research, with a career focused on driving innovation at the intersection of technology and clinical trial operations. A recognized pioneer in EHR-to-EDC integration, Joe has authored multiple publications and case studies highlighting real-world implementations that improve data quality, streamline workflows, and reduce site burden. As the leader of a large clinical research technology team at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, Joe has advocated for forward-thinking strategies such as decentralized clinical trials, FHIR-based interoperability, and eSource adoption, initiatives that have significantly improved the experience for patients, clinicians, and research staff alike. Joe also co-founded and leads the Clinical Research Innovation Consortium (CRIC), a collaborative network of leading academic research sites, sponsors, and technology partners focused on accelerating the evaluation, validation, and scaling of digital solutions in clinical trials. Under his leadership, CRIC has become a trusted model for de-risking emerging technologies and aligning the ecosystem around standards and outcomes-focused innovation. His expertise spans digitized trial design, clinical operations, advanced analytics, and the deployment of eClinical tools that support more efficient and higher quality clinical trials.

Todd McGrath has over 19 years’ experience in the clinical trial and life science industry across pharmaceutical and biotech companies.

Today, Todd is Chief Operating Officer and General Manager for MRN’s Home Trial Support solution. In this role he oversees all global operations for the company. Todd’s leadership has been instrumental to MRN’s pharma clients, guiding them through operational challenges to finding hybrid trial success and opportunities to maximize their return on investment. Todd’s passion for making trials more accessible and less burdensome for patients and their families, continues to drive MRN’s vision of allowing more people to participate in trials and getting drugs to the market and patients, faster.

Dr Kaitlin Morrison is responsible for the leadership and oversight of the LCCC clinical research infrastructure, and co-leads strategic planning driving clinical research infrastructure optimization, process improvements, recruitment/retention of employees and alignment of LCCC and UNC Healthcare system goals. Dr Morrison’s primary research interest is translation of basic and translational findings and discoveries from the bench into early phase clinical trials. She leads the office responsible for the oversight of LCCC’s clinical development program that includes investigator-initiated trials using investigational drugs/biologics provided by pharmaceutical partners, and UNC developed and/or manufactured investigational products. Her research interests focus on regulatory strategy, FDA interactions, clinical protocol development and patient education with a focus on developing clinical trials that are operationally feasible, data driven and patient friendly. She completed her understudies at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and PhD at Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University.

Donna M. O’Brien, MHA, is a National Advisor with Manatt Health providing strategy development and program implementation advice to healthcare providers and research institutes. Prior to this, Donna served as Consultant to the Director of the NCI for nine years to support the development and implementation of a new program model for cancer care delivery and research expansion in 30 hospitals in 22 states. She was a member of the team that designed the NCI Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP). She was also an executive at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and Executive Vice President of the Catholic Health Long Island.

Colleen Purcell Tenan, MD is a board-certified internal and obesity medicine physician with a unique background in healthcare economics, clinical research, and virtual care innovation. She currently serves at Javara, following roles at Westmed Medical Group and SUMMUS. Dr. Tenan began her career in investment banking at Morgan Stanley and later contributed to lung cancer research at UCLA Health. She earned her MD from NYU Grossman School of Medicine and completed residency at New York Presbyterian-Weill Cornell. She holds a BA in Economics from Yale and is passionate about advancing patient-centered care through operational excellence and research integration.

TBA

Nancy Reilly, RN, MS, works as the Executive Director for the Rutgers Health - Clinical Trials Office. In this capacity, she oversees contract and budget negotiation, as well as feasibility assessment and coverage analysis for non-oncology clinical trials and is responsible for the development of streamlined and efficient workflows for non-oncology clinical research across the Rutgers Health enterprise. Ms. Reilly held prior roles in clinical research administration and also as a research nurse and research manager in HIV/Infectious Disease.

Sebastien leads both the strategy and operations functions at Triomics. He focuses on identifying and validating strategic use cases for their OncoLLM powered cancer data platform across the provider, payor, and life science value chains and bridging the gap between AI, product, and Triomics' key strategic collaborators to safely implement and deploy these solutions at scale. Previously, Sebastien was a chief of staff, strategist, and leading venture investor focused on advancements in digital health and health technology.

Michael V. Seiden, M.D., Ph.D., is a physician and healthcare executive with a broad collection of leadership positions across the healthcare ecosystem, Dr. Seiden serves as the Chief Medical Officer of N Power Medicine, an innovative platform company that empowers community oncology practices to strengthen their culture of research. Dr. Seiden is responsible for growing and supporting a national network of community oncology sites.

Prior to joining N Power Medicine, he held numerous roles included serving as the president of The US Oncology Network, a McKesson owned company that includes the largest collection of community-based oncology care practices in the US. Prior to serving as President of the network, Seiden served as the senior vice president and Chief Medical Officer of US Oncology and McKesson Specialty Health. Before joining McKesson, he served as CEO and President of Fox Chase Cancer Center, a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, research facility and hospital in Philadelphia. Prior to his time at Fox Chase Cancer Center he held a variety of leadership roles at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Dana Farber Cancer Institute including the Director of the Clinical and Translational Research Programs at MGH Cancer Center and the leader of the Gynecologic Oncology Program awarded by the NCI to the Dana Farber/Harvard Cancer Center.

Nick Slack, MBE, is the Chairman and CEO of The START Center for Cancer Research, bringing nearly two decades of leadership experience to the clinical research industry. He is a transformative healthcare executive with a proven track record of driving growth and innovation, all while focusing on the mission, vision, and values an organization delivers to the broader research community.

Most recently, Mr Slack served as an Executive in Residence at Warburg Pincus. During this time, he was a member of Warburg's Healthcare Team, where he worked on life sciences and pharma services strategy. In this role, he supported Warburg's portfolio companies as an advisor, contributing his extensive knowledge and experience to enhance their strategic initiatives and operational efficiencies.

Before joining Warburg Pincus, Mr Slack was the President of WCG Clinical. During his decade-long tenure, Mr Slack was responsible for developing and growing WCG’s relationships with the industry’s leading sponsors, CROs, and hospital systems. Mr Slack worked with partner-clients to design and implement solutions that accelerate the activation of clinical trials, eliminate the duplication of efforts in research, and promote the highest standards of safety for research subjects.

Throughout his career, Mr Slack has provided guidance to more than 150 sponsors, CROs, and sites. He was previously the director of consulting services for HRP Consulting Group and the Associate Director of Accreditation for AAHRPP. A trained ethicist, Mr Slack earned a master’s degree in bioethics from the University of Pennsylvania.

TBA

Kent Thoelke is a pioneering healthcare executive with over 30 years of clinical research experience. As CEO of Paradigm Health, he leads the company's mission to create equitable access to superior healthcare for patients worldwide. Prior to joining Paradigm Health, Kent served as Chief Innovation Officer at ICON plc following its acquisition of PRA Health Sciences, where he was Chief Scientific Officer. Throughout his career at these organizations, he has driven digital transformation in clinical trials and championed data-driven approaches to make drug development more efficient and equitable across multiple therapeutic areas and geographic regions.