QIAGEN Oncohematology Summit

Consultant Clinical Scientist, Diagnostic Genomic Division, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar
Assistant Professor of Clinical Pathology & Laboratory Medicine , Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar

Dr. Akiki is a registered consultant clinical scientist who has worked in the field of molecular diagnostics since completing her PhD in Medicine at University College London in 1995. Her diagnostic expertise is currently focused on haemato oncology where the importance of standardised genomic testing to define treatment milestones and aid clinical decision making is well established and presents an opportunity to demonstrate the potential for genomic analysis that can be applied across different cancer types. Before joining the Diagnostic Genomic Division at Hamad Medical corporation Dr. Akiki was Head of Haemato Oncology Genetics at the West Midlands Genetics Laboratory, Birmingham, UK and Deputy Head of the Cancer programme.
Dr. Akiki has published consistently throughout her career with over 33 publications in respected peer-reviewed journals and is an active member of the Science & Publications committee & Genomics Working Group of the British Society of Haematology.

Vice President of Research and Development, NeoGenomics

Dr. Funari is Vice President of Research and Development at NeoGenomics, one of the largest Oncology labs in the US, processing 60,000 samples with NGS a year. His background is in medical genomics and genetics. He is formally trained in bioinformatics and genetics and licensed as a clinical molecular biology and genetics scientist. Previously, he was Director of Genomics Core and Associate professor at UCLA Medical Center with over 45 peer-reviewed co-authored publications in genomics such as Nature Immunology, JAMA, Science, Nature Genetics, AJHG, Genomics, etc. His primary interests are bioinformatics and genomic approaches to precision medicine. After undergraduate research at University of California, Los Angeles, he completed his doctorate in a clinical genetics lab and his post-doctorate at Stanford University in the Department of Surgery.

Munyoro Guvamatanga, Advanced Biomedical Scientist, Princess Elizabeth Hospital, Guernsey, UK Munyoro Guvamatanga was employed as a Senior Specialist Biomedical Scientist in the Haematology Department at the Royal Sussex County Hospital between 2010 and 2020. He successfully set up and validated the molecular hematooncology service for the JAK2 V617F and CALR assays for the Haematology Department and trained colleagues in PCR procedures. He has experience in supervising the successful completion of two MSc research projects. In 2020, Munyoro took a position as an Advanced Biomedical Scientist at the Hospital Services, State of Guernsey, while pursuing his PhD in Biomedical Science at the University of Portsmouth.

Anna Tarasewicz, Senior Specialist Biomedical Scientist in Haematology, UK. Anna Tarasewicz is currently a Senior Specialist Biomedical Scientist in the Haematology at the Royal Sussex County Hospital. While completing her BSc program in Applied Biomedical Science at the University of Brighton, she worked as a biomedical scientist student trainee at BSUH. Moving to a Specialist BMS position, Anna, with Munyoro as her supervisor, completed her MSc in Biomedical Science, with the project focusing on the evaluation and validation of the ipsogen CALR RGQ PCR assay for the detection of CALR exon 9 mutations in suspected BCR-ABL1-negative myeloproliferative neoplasms. In November 2020, Anna took a position as senior BMS in Haematology.

Prof. Dr. Martin C. Müller is CEO of the Institute for Hematology and Oncology (IHO GmbH) and director of the “Labor für Haematologie und Onkologie” in Mannheim, Germany. Besides treating patients his enthusiasm is for integrative hematologic diagnostics combining morphology, immunophenotyping and genetics. He became a specialist in internal medicine (2006), and obtained his habilitation on ‘Standardisation of molecular methods in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia’ in 2008. He is a specialist in hematology and oncology since 2009 and has been heading the scientific laboratory and the CML excellence center of the Medical Clinic III at the University Medical Center in Mannheim between 2010 and 2015. He is author/co-author of more than 130 peer-reviewed publications and has been appointed as extraordinary professor by the Heidelberg University in 2011.

Professor Susan Branford is Head of the Leukaemia Laboratory in the Department of Genetics and Molecular Pathology at SA Pathology and the Centre for Cancer Biology. Her research is focused on understanding the factors that predict for response to tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy and the mechanisms of drug resistance for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). Dr Branford leads the International Chronic Myeloid Leukaemia Genomics Alliance, which aims is to establish a genomically based risk classification system. She has been awarded multiple international prizes, including the 2021 International CML Foundation Rowley Prize for significant contribution to the understanding of the biology of CML.

Professor Dr. Ross L. Levine, is a physician-scientist focused on researching and treating blood and bone marrow cancers. He currently serves as the Laurence Joseph Dineen Chair in Leukemia Research, the Chief of Molecular Cancer Medicine, and an Attending Physician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, as well as Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College. He leads a research lab investigating genetics and targeted therapies in myeloid malignancies and is interested in application of next-generation sequencing technology in the practice of medicine in hematologic cancers. He trained in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital and in hematology-oncology at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, earning board certification in these specialties. He received his M.D. from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and his A.B. degree from Harvard College.

Mr. Volker Franzen studied Biology in Germany with the focus on Microbiology, Immunology and Biochemistry. He has near 30 years of experience in the field of In-vitro Diagnostics. He held various functions and leadership positions throughout his career in different IVD Companies and areas (Product Development, Quality Assurance and International Regulatory Affairs).
Currently he holds the position of Senior Director Regulatory and Governmental Affairs at QIAGEN, a global leader in Molecular Diagnostics, Companion Diagnostics, Oncology, Infectious Diseases and Immune Monitoring.
As Chairman of the MedTech Europe IVD Technical Forum working group, the IVD EU Regulator Affairs Committee in Brussels and Co- Chair of the MedTech Europe Clinical Evidence working group, he is deeply involved in the development process of the new IVD EU Regulation.
He gave several lectures at various IVD conferences e.g. IVD Notified Body TÜV Rheinland, German IVD Industry Association (VDGH), British In Vitro Diagnostics Association (BIVDA), MedTech Europe Forum in Paris and Brussels, Association of Medical Diagnostics Manufacturers US (AMDM), UK Organization for Professionals in Regulatory Affairs (TOPRA) and International Medical Device Conference in Malaysia/Penang.

Krishna Amin completed her undergraduate studies in Biochemistry from the University of Maryland, USA in 2011. She joined QIAGEN in 2011 as a Scientific Associate in the Genomics Services lab.

She received her PMP certification and moved into a project management role in 2018, developing custom NGS solutions and managing strategic alliances. She has worked with various technology development groups concerning qPCR and next-generation sequencing (NGS) technologies. Currently, Krishna is a Global Product Manager for QIAseq Targeted and Enterprise Genomics.