Bob Elliott – Medical Director, Living Cell Technologies

Professor Elliott trained as a Paediatrician at Adelaide University, South Australia and entered academia in 1962.  He undertook research training in Denver and returned as a Senior Lecturer to Adelaide.  He moved to New Zealand in 1970 to become the Foundation Professor, Department of Paediatrics at the University of Auckland, and in 1978 Professor of Child Health Research. During his tenure of that position he discovered a new method of testing newborn children for Cystic Fibrosis that has been adopted internationally, a novel medical method of treating newborn babies with cyanotic heart disease, and some seminal research in the detection of predisposition to diabetes I, and averting its onset. Prof Elliott is an Emeritus Professor of Child Health Research, is on the Board of the New Zealand Child Health Foundation (NZ) and the Wings Trust (a NZ trust for the treatment of alcohol and drug abuse) and is also patron of the NZ Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.   Professor Elliott co-founded Living Cell Technologies Ltd; a company listed on the Australian stock exchange that is aimed at treating disease by live porcine cell transplantation.  Professor Elliott has a publication list of more than 200 scientific reports, across a wide range of topics, but mainly diabetes and cystic fibrosis, and latterly xenotransplantation.  He is also the inventor of 11 patents.

Richard Stubbs

Richard is an Otago graduate who completed surgical training in the UK, and a period of fulltime research in the US, before returning to Wellington in 1986. He spent 5 years in the academic Department of Surgery before entering fulltime private practice at Wakefield Hospital where he established what is now the Wakefield Gastroenterology Centre. His practice is confined to the surgery of the upper GI tract, and he has developed a particular interest and reputation in the management of liver tumours, and the surgery of severe obesity. He is Director of the Wakefield Biomedical Research Unit and runs an active clinical and basic science research programme with a team of some eight scientists. His basic science research programme relates to exploring the fundamental basis of insulin resistance, on which subject he has a particular hypothesis, and the molecular basis of metastasis.  He was appointed a Professor with the Wellington School of Medicine and Health Sciences in January 2008 and has since moved his research Group from Wakefield Hospital to the Medical School in Wellington.

John Denton, General Manager Diabetes NZ Auckland

John has had type 1 diabetes for over 40 years and worked in diabetes related charities for the last 15 years. He is a trained mediator and worked in “change management” for many years.

Katina Sharples – Senior Biostatistician, University of Otago

Dr Katrina Sharples is a senior biostatistician for Cancer Trials New Zealand, and is based at the University of Otago in the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine.  She gained her initial experience in clinical trials at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre in Seattle, while undertaking a PhD in Biostatistics at the University of Washington.  Since returning to New Zealand she has worked as a statistician for trials in variety of areas, predominantly cancer and cardiovascular disease, and has gained wide expertise through serving on Data Monitoring Committees. She is currently the Chair of the Health Research Council of New Zealand Data Monitoring Core Committee.

Linda Bryder

Dr Linda Bryder is an Associate Professor of History at the University of Auckland. She completed her doctorate at the University of Oxford in 1985. Her thesis, on the social history of tuberculosis in twentieth-century Britain, was published by Oxford University Press in 1988. She has published widely in the history of medicine, and teaches courses on the subject in the History Department of the University of Auckland. Since 2004 she has been researching the history of the health of women and their babies with a special emphasis on National Women's Hospital. One facet of that research was the 1988 Cartwright Inquiry, which is the subject of Dr Bryder's most recent book, published in August 2009.

Phil Kerslake

Phil is a well-known, six-time cancer survivor whose education in the art and practice of coping with cancer and its treatments for best outcomes began 30 years ago when he was diagnosed with an incurable lymphoma.  Phil shared his experiences and perspectives in New Zealand’s most popular patient support book, Life, Happiness… & Cancer: survive with action and attitude. He presents his messages pro bono to thousands of patients and health care professionals each year and regularly represents the interests of patient support organisations in the media.

Teresa Cleary Services Coordinator Diabetes NZ Auckland

As a NZ Registered Dietitian, Teresa has had 25 years insight into the patient’s perspective. Over the last 10 years, Teresa has facilitated diabetes self-management education courses and in-service sessions for health professionals working with people with diabetes.

Yvonne Godfrey

Yvonne Godfrey is an acclaimed businesswoman, author and speaker, communicating her leadership messages to audiences as large as 12,000 in 23 countries.  Her international business record is impressive having led thousands of small business owners for over 3 decades in all conditions – growth, turbulent and ‘flat’ times.  She is also an exceptional mentor, helping her clients to gain the professional edge while achieving fulfilment and balance in their personal and work lives.

Nuala Helsby

Nuala Helsby is a Senior Lecturer in Molecular Medicine and Pathology at the University of Auckland. She has a particular interest in pharmacogenetics and the metabolism of anti-cancer drugs.  Genetics, gender, drug-drug interactions and disease may all play a role in the clinical differences in response to and toxicity of drugs. Hence it is important to have an understanding of all these factors to enable development of “personalised medicine”. A number of studies are currently in progress to determine the influence of some of these factors on the clinical variation in the metabolic activation of cyclophosphamide. She has collaborative pharmacogenetics research initiatives with scientists in the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences and clinicians (oncologists, rheumatologists and renal physicians) at Auckland City, Middlemore Christchurch and Wellington hospitals.
Nuala is also the co-ordinator of the Auckland Cancer Research Network which aims to foster collaborative cancer research between basic scientists and clincians.

Christopher Jackson

After graduating from Otago, Chris commenced post-graduate training in Wellington and Dunedin, specialising in Medical Oncology. During this time I was Senior Resident and worked as a Clinical Lecturer in Medicine. I was awarded the Graham Aitken Nuffield Post-Graduate scholarship to complete my training abroad. I initially held a position as a Clinical Research Fellow in the GI Unit at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London, focusing on phase 2 and 3 clinical trials particularly in colorectal and upper GI cancer. I co-authored a number of academic papers and book chapters on the treatment of upper and lower GI cancers, particularly in the area of multi-modality therapies and targeted treatments in Colorectal Cancer (monoclonal anti-bodies and tyrosine kinase inhibitors). A submission to the American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting on Colorectal Liver Metastases received a merit award. Whilst at the Marsden I also worked as a Clinical Fellow in Lymphoma, and also worked in the Academic Urology Unit. On completing my fellowship, I was appointed to a Locum Consultant post at the Marsden and was responsible for leading on the development and opening of a satellite treatment unit. With others in our research group, we commenced a trial of a new drug in colorectal cancer to test its effectiveness, with particular interest in its effectiveness in those with a genetic predisposition to colon cancer. Returning to New Zealand for family and lifestyle regions, I have recently taken up a post as Consultant Medical Oncologist and Senior Lecturer in Medicine with the Southern Blood and Cancer Service and University of Otago. Current research interests include phase 3 clinical trials in colorectal cancer, and translational research in colorectal cancer.

Ed Gane,

Ed Gane, MBChB, MD, FRACP is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Auckland, New Zealand and Director of the New Zealand Liver Transplant Unit at Auckland City Hospital.   Associate Professor Gane has been the Government Clinical Advisor to the National Hepatitis B Screening Programme since its inception in 1998. He was appointed Chairman for the new Ministry of Health Hepatitis C Advisory Board. He is New Zealand’s principal investigator for several current phase I, II, III and IV clinical trials of new antiviral therapies for HBV and HCV before and after liver transplantation.   He is also a member of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, the Transplant Society of Australia and New Zealand, the International Liver Transplant Society, the New Zealand Gastroenterology Society, and the Gastroenterology Society of Australia.

Associate Professor Gane is extensively published, with over 90 first author papers and over 120 oral and poster presentations at a variety of meetings and congresses. He is on the editorial board for Liver Transplantation, Hepatology International and the Journal of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, a regular reviewer of Transplantation and Hepatology, and an invited reviewer for The Lancet.

Sally Poppitt

Sally Poppitt is the director of the University of Auckland Human Nutrition Unit, a nutrition trials facility focused on obesity-related intervention trials, and also is Associate Professor in Nutrition in the School of Biological Sciences and the Department of Medicine. She has been living and working in New Zealand for the past 10 years, where from 2006-08 she was also director of clinical trials development at Protemix Corporation working on therapeutics for obesity-related conditions including insulin resistance and diabetes. Prior to that Sally was a research fellow at the MRC Dunn Nutrition Unit based in Cambridge, UK and at the MRC tropical research facility in The Gambia, West Africa.

Bridget Robson

Bridget Robson (Ngāti Raukawa) is the director of Te Rōpū Rangahau Hauora a Eru Pōmare in the University of Otago, Wellington. Her research interests include the social and economic determinants of health (including unemployment), access to and quality of health care for Māori, and the impact of racism and colonialism on Māori health and disparities.

Bridget is currently involved in projects on disparities in health care for cervical cancer, colon cancer, uterine cancer, breast screening, oral health heart disease, heart disease and maternity care.  She was a co-editor of Hauora: Māori Standards of Health IV (see www.hauora.maori.nz) and an author of Unequal Impact: Māori and non-Māori Cancer Statistics 1996-2001. She is interested in the intersection between epidemiology and kaupapa Māori research.
Biography: Matire is a graduate of the Auckland School of Medicine. She currently works in a number of research and clinical roles including Clinical Director at Tämaki Healthcare, a Mäori-led PHO in Auckland and two Senior Research Fellow roles at Medical Research Institute of New Zealand and Tomaiora, the Maori Health Research Unit at the University of Auckland. A major research interest is ethnic disparities in health outcomes particularly for conditions requiring rehabilitation (stroke, TBI, respiratory conditions and CVD). Matire has contributed to the NZ Guidelines for stroke, TBI, AF, Paediatric Asthma and Mäori Cardiovascular Action

James Fan

Dr James Fan is Associate Medical Director in ICON Clinical Research Ltd, he currently leads a drug safety group in Singapore that monitors and studies the safety of investigational drug in Asia-Pacific for the global clinical trials. He previously held the position of Medical Director in Taiwan-based CRO Protech Pharmaservices Corporation, and American Biotech, Optimer Pharmaceuticals, Inc for 7 years.  As a certified physician of Internal Medicine, he was trained in the Shanghai Medical University Hospital with over 11 years of clinical practice experience. He was awarded  a Master of Business Study from Massey University in New Zealand in 1999.