Speaker Profile
M.D., Head, Division of Solid Tumor Oncology, MSKCC
Biography
Dr. Diaz is a physician-scientist at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. His teams provided the first definitive evidence for usingcirculating tumor DNA as cancer biomarker for screening, monitoring, anddetection of occult disease; and discovered the therapeutic link betweenimmunotherapy and cancer genetics in patients with mismatch repairdeficient tumors. This research led to the historic first pan-tumor FD Aapproval for any solid tumors with this genetic lesion and the first cancerstudy that resulted in a 100% complete response rate. He is the recipientof numerous recognitions for his work including the Waun Ki Hong Award for Outstanding Achievement in Cancer Research. He is Editor-in-Chief of Cancer Discovery and is an elected member of the Giants of Cancer Care, the AACR Fellows Academy, the American Society of Clinical Investigation, and the American Academy of Physicians. In 2021, Dr. Diaz was appointed by President Joseph Biden to the National Cancer Advisory Board.
Session Abstract – PMWC 2026 Silicon Valley
Track Chair:
Adrian Lee, UPMC
PMWC Award Ceremony
• Dennis J. Slamon, UCLA
• Arul M. Chinnaiyan, University of Michigan
Keynote: Molecular Diversity of Human Malignancies: Diagnostic and Therapeutic Implications
• Dennis J. Slamon, UCLA
Keynote: From Cancer Drivers to Clinical Decisions: Transforming Tumor Genomics
• Arul M. Chinnaiyan, University of Michigan
Serial ctDNA-Guided Therapy Switching (SERENA-6 & Beyond)
• Chair: Adrian Lee, UPMC
• Pedram Razavi, MSK
• Minetta Liu, Natera
• Emre Baser, Astrazeneca
• Christian Rolfo, Ohio State
Neoadjuvant to Adjuvant MRD: How Early Is Early Enough?
• Chair: Angela DeMichele, UPenn
• Halla Nimeiri, Tempus
• Aparna Parikh, Harvard
• Minetta Liu, Natera
• C. Ola Landgren, U Miami
• Christopher Lieu, U Colorado
Rapid MRD to Treatment Decisions: Standardized ctDNA at Scale
• Chair: Luca Quagliata, Thermo Fisher
• Christian Rolfo, Ohio State
Multi-Omics Monitoring Beyond Variants: Methylation, Fragmentomics, EV/ctRNA
• Chair: David T. Miyamoto, Massachusetts General Hospital
• Maximilian Diehn, Stanford
• Daniel De Carvalho, University of Toronto
Improving Care with Every Test: Powering a Continuous Learning Cycle in Molecular Diagnostics
• Phil Febbo, Veracyte
Precision Engineering: Customizing High-Sensitivity ctDNA Assays for Therapy Guidance at Scale
• Siyuan Chen, Twist Bioscience
From Validation to Payment: Coverage Pathways That Work
• Chair: Mark Stewart, Friends of Cancer Research
• Hilary Gee Goeckner, American Cancer Society (ACS)
• Sally Werner, Cancer Support Community
• Gabriel A. Bien-Willner, Palmetto GBA
