Session Abstract – PMWC 2025 Silicon Valley
Track Chair:
Kristine Ashcraft, YouScript
Program Theme: Addressing Persistent PGx Myths
- PMWC Award Ceremony:
Luminary Honoree: Philip E. Empey, UPMC
Pioneer Honoree: Collen Masimirembwa, University of the Witwatersrand
- Keynote: Genomic Diversity in Africa: Pharmacogenetics and Clinical Applications
- Collen Masimirembwa, University of the Witwatersrand
- PGx is Expensive and Insurance Coverage is Limited (PANEL)
Chair: Jai Patel, Atrium Health
- Lena Chaihorskym, Alva10
- Mark Fleury, ACS CAN
- Kristin Wiisanen, Rosalind Franklin University
- Alison L. Quinn, Kaiser - Science Backing PGx is Limited (PANEL)
Chair: Sara Rogers, American Society of Pharmacovigilance
- Russ Altman, Stanford
- Philip E. Empey, UPMC
- PGx is Hard to Implement (PANEL)
Chair: Kristine Crews, St Jude
- Suzanne Stevens, Wentworth-Douglass Hospital
- Deepak Voora, VA
- Jason Roos, ARPA-H
- Jennifer Wick, The Christ Hospital Health Network
- What will It Take to Make PGx the Standard of Care? (PANEL)
Chair: Kristine Ashcraft, YouScript
- Alan Venook, UCSF/ NCCN
- Gary Marchant, ASU
- Dan Hertz, University of Michigan
- Deepak Voora, VA
Session Chair Profile
Biography
Kristine Crews is a clinical scientist in the field of pharmacokinetics and pharmacogenomics. She serves as the Residency Director of the Clinical Pharmacogenomics program at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. With degrees from Rutgers University and extensive training including a residency and a fellowship in Clinical Pharmacokinetics Pharmacodynamics and Drug Development, Dr. Crews focuses her research on the clinical implementation of pharmacogenomics to individualize treatment regimens, particularly in pediatric oncology. She is a founding member of the Clinical Pharmacogenetics Implementation Consortium and serves as an author for CPIC guidelines. She is a Fellow of the American College of Clinical Pharmacy and has received numerous awards for her contributions to the clinical pharmacology literature.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Kristine has worked in pharmacogenomics since 2000 and was named one of the 25 leading global voices in precision medicine. She is the Founder and President of YouScript, an award winning clinical decision support tool that has integrated PGx-guided personalized prescribing in the clinical workflow for over a decade. Kristine has 25+ years of experience in various C-level, board, customer success and business development roles. She has authored multiple publications on the clinical and economic benefits of pharmacogenomic testing and serves on numerous PGx advisory groups including the STRIPE Steering Committee, the FDA collaborative community for pharmacogenomics, CPIC, and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network PGx task force.
Talk
PGx as Standard of Care: What Will it Take?
With many barriers to PGx adoption being addressed, and mounting evidence that lack of adoption leads to avoidable patient harm and healthcare spend, join our closing panel discussion on what it will take to make PGx standard of care.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Deepak Voora, MD, is AssociateProfessor of Medicine at the Center for Applied Genomics Precision Medicine at Duke University School of Medicineand a staff cardiologist at theDurham Veterans Affairs Medical Center. His research focusses on the discovery and translation of pharmacogenomic biomarkers to address the hypothesisthat tailoringdrug therapy on the basis of genomic information can improve health outcomes.He has chosen some of the most commonly used medications used worldwide antiplatelet and statin medications for his researchprogram. As Director of the VA Pharmacogenomics testing for Veterans (PHASER)program, he is leading the VAs national implementation of pre-emptive, panel-based, pharmacogenetic testing to up to 250,000 Veterans.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Jennifer Wick received her PharmD and Master of Public Health concurrently from the University of Kentucky. Jennifer then completed two years of postgraduate residency training; the first at West Virginia University with Kroger, and the second at Palm Beach Atlantic University with the West Palm Beach Veterans Administration. She practiced in primary care prior to taking her current administrative role and has overseen the design and implementation of clinical pharmacy services and pharmacogenomics in the outpatient setting for The Christ Hospital Health Network. She now also is responsible for all precision health initiatives for the network, seeking to incorporate advanced genetic practice in multiple specialties.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Dr. Patel received his Doctorate in Pharmacy from the University of North Carolina Eshelman School of Pharmacy and completed an oncology pharmacogenomics postdoctoral fellowship at the UNC Center for Pharmacogenomics and Individualized Therapy. Dr. Patel leads translational and clinical pharmacology research at Levine Cancer Institute, with an emphasis on pharmacogenomics research and implementation. His projects range from gene discovery and translational studies to prospective interventional trials using pharmacogenomics to optimize anticancer and supportive care therapies. Dr. Patel provides guest lectures on pharmacogenomics to Schools of Pharmacy across North Carolina, is the Pharmacology Editor for HemOnc Today, and Deputy Associate Editor for the Journal of Supportive Care in Cancer.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Sara Rogers co founded the American Society of Pharmacovigilance and co-led the formation of the Standardizing Laboratory Practices in Pharmacogenomics (STRIPE) Collaborative Community, a public private multidisciplinary initiative to develop consensus based industry standards for pharmacogenetics testing. She joined Texas AM University in 2021, where she holds joint appointments with Institute of Biosciences and Technology, School of Medicine and Irma Lerma Rangel School of Pharmacy. Rogers co chairs the Pharmacogenomics Access and Reimbursement Coalition and collaboratively develops the Coalition's research agenda to understand the payment and policy landscape for pharmacogenetics testing and its role in disparities in patient access. Rogers is an organizational member of the NIH NHGRI InterSociety Coordinating Committee and develops educational resources to help practitioners navigate coverage for pharmacogenetics testing. Rogers has served as co investigator for a pilot study to identify ethical values and priorities related to pharmacogenomics. Her research focuses extensively on patient access to and reimbursement for pharmacogenetics testing.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Suzanne Stevens oversees the oncology pharmacy and is the pharmacogenomic project lead at her organization. Dr. Stevens worked with a team to implement PGx testing in oncology in January 2022 and lead a team of pharmacists as part of the ASHP Pharmacogenomics Accelerator Program beginning in September, 2023. She is a board certified oncology pharmacist and has been practicing in oncology pharmacy in different roles for the last 25 years. She has also completed certificate programs in Pharmacogenomics as well as Precision Medicine in Oncology Genomics.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Dr. Alan Venook is a medical oncologist at UCSF, holding the title of Madden Family Distinguished Professor of Medical Oncology and Translational Research. He also serves as the Shorenstein Associate Director for Program Development at the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. He was instrumental in founding the NCI's Hepatobiliary Task Force and led the GI Committee of the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology from 2010 to 2016. His research primarily focuses on liver tumor treatments and developing new therapies for colorectal and liver cancers. Notably, his work in the CALGBSWOG 80405 study on advanced colorectal cancer contributed to the understanding of "sidedness" in colon cancers, which refers to the biological differences between cancers arising in the right versus the left colon. Recently, his research interests have expanded to include the interactions between immunotherapy and the microbiome, as well as the increasing incidence of colorectal cancer among young adults.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Gary Marchant is a Regent's Professor of Law and director of the Center for Law, Science and Innovation at ASU. His research focuses on the legal aspects of genomics, personalized medicine, and governance of emerging technologies like AI and biotechnology. He is a frequent speaker at national and international forums, Marchant has authored over 200 publications on emerging technologies. He has contributed to seven National Academy of Sciences committees, led numerous grants, and organized academic conferences on law and science. He is a lifetime member of the American Law Institute and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.Education: J.D., Harvard Law School (1990); M.P.P., Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University (1990); Ph.D. in Genetics, University of British Columbia (1986); B.Sc., University of British Columbia (1980).
Speaker Profile
Biography
Russ Biagio Altman is the Kenneth Fong Professor of Bioengineering, Genetics, Medicine, Biomedical Data Science and (by courtesy) Computer Science) and past chairman of Bioengineering at Stanford University. His research uses computing to understand drug action at molecular, cellular, organism and population levels. He founded the PharmGKB, is an Associate Director of the Stanford Institute for HumanCentered AI, and coleads an FDA Center of Excellence. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine, past president of the International Society for Computational Biology and of the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology Therapeutics. He chaired the FDA Science Board and served on the NIH Directors Advisory Committee. He has received Stanford awards for Teaching and Mentorship. He coorganizes the Pacific Symposium on Biocomputing, and is a founder of Personalis (NASDAQ: PSNL). He is founding editor of the Annual Reviews of Biomedical Data Science, and hosts a podcast entitled "The Future of Everything."
Speaker Profile
Biography
Academic researcher focusing in cancer biomarkers including pharmacogenetics, with particular interest in chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy and clinical uptake of pre-treatment DPYD testing.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Dr. Mark Fleury specializes in research, drug development, and regulatory policies along with other science and technology related projects. He has worked extensively on reform of diagnostic testing oversight, helped lead a coalition authored a landscape report on drug development challenges in pediatric cancer, and led another coalition that created a report and recommendations focused on overcoming cancer clinical trial enrollment barriers. He currently sits on the steering committee of the Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry (TAPUR) Study, which examines the use of targeted anticancer agents used off-label in clinical settings and is the principle investigator on a clinical trial assessing enhanced trial eligibility screening processes. Throughout his work, Mark has striven to incorporate patient perspectives on to inherently science-based issues, advocating for the inclusion of patients as partners throughout the bench to bedside translation of science.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Dr. Philip Empey is the Associate Director of the Institute for Precision Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC and an Associate Professor at the School of Pharmacy. He directs the Pharmacogenomics Center of Excellence and leads the PreCISE-Rx and Test2Learn teams to implement pharmacogenomics clinical, research, and educational initiatives. As a clinician-scientist, Dr. Empey conducts NIH-funded clinical and translational research aimed at understanding the mechanisms of the variability in drug response to improve medication-related outcomes in critically-ill patients.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Dr. Philip Empey is the Associate Director of the Institute for Precision Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC and an Associate Professor at the School of Pharmacy. He directs the Pharmacogenomics Center of Excellence and leads the PreCISE-Rx and Test2Learn teams to implement pharmacogenomics clinical, research, and educational initiatives. As a clinician-scientist, Dr. Empey conducts NIH-funded clinical and translational research aimed at understanding the mechanisms of the variability in drug response to improve medication-related outcomes in critically-ill patients.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Professor Collen Masimirembwa, a distinguished researcher at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, is a pioneer and champion of pharmacogenomics research in Africa. Born in Zimbabwe, he studied at the University of Zimbabwe and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, where he focused on drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics. He worked at AstraZeneca in Sweden before founding the African Institute of Biomedical Science and Technology, in Zimbabwe. His achievements include establishing the African Pharmacogenomics Research Network under which he is conducting the first multinational study on the implementation of pharmacogenomics guided treatment in Africa. His work, which includes over 130 peer-reviewed papers, focuses on understanding the genomic diversity of African populations which is significantly impacting global health, particularly in enhancing drug efficacy and safety. His contributions have earned him the Bill Melinda Gates Foundation Calestous Juma Science Leadership and the African Academy of Sciences fellowships, along with several prestigious awards.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Professor Collen Masimirembwa, a distinguished researcher at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, is a pioneer and champion of pharmacogenomics research in Africa. Born in Zimbabwe, he studied at the University of Zimbabwe and the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, where he focused on drug metabolism and pharmacokinetics. He worked at AstraZeneca in Sweden before founding the African Institute of Biomedical Science and Technology, in Zimbabwe. His achievements include establishing the African Pharmacogenomics Research Network under which he is conducting the first multinational study on the implementation of pharmacogenomics guided treatment in Africa. His work, which includes over 130 peer-reviewed papers, focuses on understanding the genomic diversity of African populations which is significantly impacting global health, particularly in enhancing drug efficacy and safety. His contributions have earned him the Bill Melinda Gates Foundation Calestous Juma Science Leadership and the African Academy of Sciences fellowships, along with several prestigious awards.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Lena Chaihorsky is the Co-Founder and Senior Vice President of Payor Innovation at Alva10, a Precision Medicine company that works to make healthcare more effective and efficient by using patient-specific data to make healthcare decisions. Lenas academic background in mathematics led to a passion for redesigning the financial incentives of the healthcare system, with a focus on the underutilized area of diagnostics. Lena has over 15 years experience in the diagnostics industry, and is a nationally recognized market access and payment expert with a successful track record that spans both private and public companies. Her work around mathematical modeling of diagnostic value led to her appointment as Chairwoman of the World Economic Forums Working Group on Federated Databases in Rare Disease, and to the Study Design Task Force for Pharmacogenomics at the American Society of Pharmacovigilance. She is an Independent Board Member at Cellens, a bladder cancer diagnostics company.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Kristine has worked in pharmacogenomics since 2000 and was named one of the 25 leading global voices in precision medicine. She is the Founder and President of YouScript (an Aranscia company), an award winning clinical decision support tool that has integrated PGx-guided personalized prescribing in the clinical workflow for over a decade. Kristine has 25+ years of experience in various C-level, board, customer success and business development roles. She has authored multiple publications on the clinical and economic benefits of pharmacogenomic testing and serves on numerous PGx advisory groups including the STRIPE Steering Committee, the FDA collaborative community for pharmacogenomics, CPIC, and the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network PGx task force.
Talk
PGx as Standard of Care: What Will it Take?
With many barriers to PGx adoption being addressed, and mounting evidence that lack of adoption leads to avoidable patient harm and healthcare spend, join our closing panel discussion on what it will take to make PGx standard of care.
Speaker Profile
Biography
David R. Liu is a leading figure in the field of genome editing and precision medicine. As a core institute member at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Dr. Liu's groundbreaking research has revolutionized the field of gene editing, paving the way for transformative therapeutic applications.Dr. Liu is renowned for his pioneering work in developing base editing and prime editing, two innovative techniques that enable precise and efficient modifications of DNA without causing double-stranded breaks. Base editing allows for the direct conversion of one DNA base into another, while prime editing enables the precise substitution, insertion, or deletion of DNA sequences with unprecedented accuracy.These revolutionary genome editing technologies hold immense promise for treating a wide range of genetic diseases, including rare disorders, cancer, and inherited disorders. Dr. Liu's research has not only advanced our fundamental understanding of genome editing but has also opened up new avenues for personalized medicine and targeted therapy.In addition to his contributions to genome editing, Dr. Liu has also made significant strides in the evolution of proteins with therapeutic potential using phage-assisted continuous evolution (PACE) and the discovery of bioactive small molecules using DNA-templated organic synthesis and DNA-encoded libraries.Dr. Liu's exceptional achievements have earned him numerous accolades and awards, including election to the US National Academy of Sciences, the US National Academy of Medicine, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 2022, he was honored with the prestigious King Faisal Prize Laureate in Medicine for his outstanding contributions to the field of precision medicine.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Deepak Voora, MD, is Associate Professor of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, a staff cardiologist at the Durham Veterans Affairs Medical Center, and Executive Director for the VA's National Pharmacogenomics Program. His research focusses on the discovery and translation of pharmacogenomic biomarkers to improve health outcomes for some of the most commonly used medications used worldwide. As Director of the VA's National Pharmacogenomics Program, he is leading the VAs clinical implementation of panel-based, pharmacogenomic testing enterprise-wide.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Dr. Kristin Wiisanen is a nationally recognized leader in clinical pharmacogenomics. Dr. Wiisanen joined Rosalind Franklin University as the new dean in October 2023. Dr. Wiisanen envisions a pharmacy profession embracing technology, interprofessional collaboration, and patient-centered care. She earned her Doctor of Pharmacy degree from the University of Florida College of Pharmacy and completed residency training at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Pharmacy. Early in her career, she worked as a clinical pharmacist in both private and community health center settings. Her previous roles include serving as the Associate Dean for Entrepreneurial Programs and Associate Director of UF Healths Precision Medicine Program at the University of Florida, where she also directed Clinical Pharmacogenomics Residency and Fellowship programs and contributed to teaching in ambulatory care, drug information, pharmacogenomics, and medication safety. Dr. Wiisanen has been an investigator on several research grants, including projects funded by the National Institutes of Health, focusing on genomic medicine.
Speaker Profile
Biography
Alison was born and raised in the Greater Boston area, completed her undergraduate and pharmacy degrees at the University of Connecticut, and pursued two years of residency. She joined Kaiser Permanente Colorado in 2016 where she established a PGx consult service, led research and quality improvement projects, and collaborated with genomics partners from across KP. In late 2018, her role was expanded to support the national pharmacy team. She acts as the PGx content expert for the Precision Medicine and Genomics National Program, developing KP's PGx strategic plan including policy development, education, and implementation.