Join us at our 2023 patient summit!
Cathy Eng, M.D., FACP, FASCO
Cathy Eng, MD, FACP, FASCO, Professor of Medicine, Hematology and Oncology, is the Co-Director of GI Oncology and Co-Leader of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Research Program. She joined the faculty at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in July 2019.
Her primary clinical research interests include clinical trials involving innovative drugs for the treatment of colorectal, anal, and appendiceal cancers. She has a specific interest in young colorectal cancer patients as well as the role of immunotherapy in HPV-associated cancers. She has published multiple publications on these GI malignancies.
Nationally, Dr. Eng has served in multiple leadership roles for ASCO, ASCO GI, ECOG, and the NCI Rectal/Anal Task Force. She has most recently been chosen to serve as the Vice-Chair for the SWOG GI Committee and the NCI GI Steering Committee. She is a member of the Anal Cancer Foundation Scientific Advisory Board.
Emma Holliday, M.d.
Emma Holliday is an associate professor of gastrointestinal radiation oncology at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. She has clinical and research focus in the treatment of patients with anal squamous cell carcinoma. She is interested in expanding methods for reducing radiation toxicities and improving quality of life for patients in survivorship.
Michael C. LaSala, Ph.D., LCSW
Michael C. LaSala, PhD, LCSW is a professor at Rutgers University and has practiced psychotherapy for over 35 years. He is also an openly gay man. Professor LaSala’s first book entitled: Coming Out, Coming Home (Columbia University Press) describes the findings and family therapy implications of a study of 65 gay and lesbian youth and their families. He is also the author of the newly released: Clinical Social Work with Individuals, Families, and Groups: The Power of Healing Relationships (Routledge) which is a textbook for new psychotherapists. Identifying and accessing his own and his client strengths is a lifelong commitment of Dr. LaSala, and is what helped him get through his anal cancer experience. He uses these skills to assist others in his role as a mentor for the HPV and Anal Cancer Foundation.
Joel Palefsky, M.D., C.M., F.R.C.P.(C).
Professor of Medicine and Infectious Diseases at the University of California San Francisco School of Medicine. Joel is an internationally recognized expert on the molecular biology, treatment, pathogenesis and natural history of anogenital human papillomavirus infections, particularly in the setting of HIV infection.
He is the director of the world's first clinic devoted to prevention of anal cancer, the Anal Neoplasia Clinic Research and Education Center at the UCSF Cancer Center. He is the vice-chair of the National Cancer Institute (NCI)-supported AIDS Malignancy Consortium.
He is the chair of the Anal Cancer /HSIL Outcomes Research (ANCHOR) Study, a national multi-site NIH study designed to determine whether treatment of anal cancer precursor lesions prevents the development of anal cancer and to identify biomarkers of progression.
He is founder and past president of the International Anal Neoplasia Society and is past president of the International Papillomavirus Society. He is the founder and chairperson of the IPVS International HPV Awareness Day Campaign and is a member of the scientific advisory board of the Anal Cancer Foundation.
