Speaker Profile
M.D., Professor, Stanford
Biography
1988-1992, Dr. Weissman and colleagues isolated the first blood-forming stem cells in mice and humans and successfully isolated human Leukemia cancer stem cells in 2000. His laboratories also discovered the human HSC, a human brain-forming stem cell population, mouse skeletal muscle stem cells, and an osteochondral stem cell in mice. His work and discoveries on stem cell aging contributed to the understanding of cancer stem cells and the immune system and are pioneering achievements with far-reaching clinical applications. Recently, Dr. Weissman and his colleagues identified a protein, CD47, that is highly expressed during the late stages of cancer stem cell progression and is currently being studied as a potential cancer therapeutic. Dr. Weissman, a proven leader in the field of cancer stem cell biology, founded three companies focused on bringing stem cell therapies into the clinic. He was also on the founding Scientific Advisory boards of companies Amgen, DNAX, and T Cell Sciences.
Session Abstract – PMWC 2025 Silicon Valley
Track Chair: Maryland Franklin, Labcorp
- Cross-Application of Oncology Drugs in Rare Diseases
- Razelle Kurzrock, Medical College of Wisconsin
- PMWC 2025 Award Ceremony
Luminary Honoree: David R. Liu, Broad Institute & Crystal Mackal, Stanford University
Pioneer Honoree: Drew Weissman, Penn Medicine
- Breakthroughs in Cancer Immunotherapy: mRNA Vaccines and CAR T-Cell Advances (PANEL)
Chair: Ira Mellman, Medici Therapeutics
- Drew Weissman, Penn Medicine
- Crystal Mackal, Stanford University - Next-Generation ADCs: Challenges and Innovations in Immunotherapy Combinations (PANEL)
Chair: Sandhya Girish, Gilead
- Bin Liu, UCSF
- Hanspeter Gerber, Sutro Bioscience
- Amrita Kamath, Genentech
- Stephen Eck, MacroGenics - Strategic IP Management in Cell and Gene Therapy: Navigating Legal and Practical Challenges
- Janet Xiao, Morrison & Foerster LLP
- Keynote: Base Editing, Prime Editing, and Targeted Gene Integration: Precision Therapeutic Genome Editingn
- David R. Liu, Broad Institute
- Advances in Allogeneic Cell Therapies: Overcoming Hurdles and Expanding Applications (PANEL)
Chair: Elliot Norry, Adaptimmune
- Larry Lamb, IN8bio
- Indu Ramachandran, Century Therapeutics - Bottlenecks in Manufacturing of Cell Therapies
- Fabian Gerlinghaus, Cellares
- Transforming Cancer Treatment: Stem Cell and Gene Therapy Breakthroughs
Chair: Catriona Jamieson, UCSD Health
- Irv Weisman, Stanford
- Collaborations Advancing Genetics-based Diagnostic Testing for Cell and Gene Therapy
Chair: Maryland Franklin, Labcorp
- Data-Driven Innovations in Oncology Cell Therapy Trials
- Prabhu Snehit, Stanford
- Advancements and Future Directions in Therapeutic Ultrasound for Precision Medicine
Chair: Masha Stromme, EXACT Therapeutics
- John de Groot, UCSF
- Bhaskar Ramamurthy, Cordance Medical
- Raag Airan, Stanford
