Speaker Profile
MBA, Vice President, Global Head, Hematology Franchise and Cell Therapy, AstraZeneca
Biography
Aliya Omer leads the global strategy and execution of the hematology and cell therapy portfolio, across hematology and solid tumors at AstraZeneca. Previously, Aliya served as Vice President, US Franchise Head, Breast Cancer at AstraZeneca. Aliya has over 20 years of experience in the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and consumer healthcare industries, with a strong record of success leading across functions and all stages of the product lifecycle. Before joining AstraZeneca, Aliya served as Vice President, Corporate Development Head of Global Portfolio and Program Strategy at Kite Pharma, a Gilead company, where she played a key leadership role in shaping the future direction of Kite and establishing it as a global leader in cell therapy. Previously, Aliya spent twelve years at Novartis Oncology where she led multiple commercial teams in the US and Latin America. Aliya started her career in research and development at Johnson and Johnson.
Session Abstract – PMWC 2026 Silicon Valley
Track Chair:
Priti Hegde, Kite Pharma
PMWC Award Ceremony
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
• Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
Keynote: Engineering the Future: Innovations in CAR-T Therapy Design
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
CAR-T Cell Therapies: Strategies in Mitigating Challenges in Solid Tumor Delivery
• Chair: David Barrett, Kite Pharma
• Carl June, University of Pennsylvania
• Michel Sadelain, Columbia University
Tumor-Infiltrating Lymphocytes (TILs): Advances and Challenges in Solid Tumors
• Chair: Allison Betof Warner, Stanford University
• George Coukos, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research
• Max Julve, Royal Marsden
• Stephanie Goff, NIH/NCI
Allogeneic & In Vivo Cell Therapies: Manufacturing & Clinical Progress
• Chair: Arie S. Belldegrun, Allogene Therapeutics
• David Chang, Allogene Therapeutics
• Adrian Bot, Capstan Therapeutics
• Aliya Omer, AstraZeneca
• Priti Hegde, Kite Pharma
Designing Automated Platforms for Scalable Cell Therapy Manufacturing
• Fabian Gerlinghaus, Cellares
TCR-Based Cell Therapies: New Targets and Clinical Advances
• Chair: Diwakar Davar, UPMC
• Lauren Harshman, Clasp Therapeutics
• Cassian Yee, MD Anderson Cancer Center
Gene Editing & Synthetic Biology for Therapy
• Chair: Matthew Porteus, Stanford University
• Rachel Haurwitz, Caribou Biosciences
• Kole T. Roybal, Parker Institute
• Ken Drazan, ArsenalBio
In-Vivo Myeloid Programming: Engineering the Innate Immune System for Solid Tumor Therapy
• Daniel Getts, Create Medicines
Synthetic Circuits for Smarter Cell Therapies: Enhancing NK Precision and Persistence
• Gudrun Stengel, Alida Biosciences
