Expert Advisers

Dr Jenkins’ research focuses on the mechanism by which injury leads to scarring in the lung. Lung scarring is the central process leading to disability and death in people with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis, and also occurs in diseases such as chronic asthma where it promotes airway remodelling and impaired lung function. Following injury to the lung various cells activate TGFb via integrins in a spatially restricted manner. The activated TGFb then leads to cellular changes that promote the development of scarring. Much of the work is focused on two integrins in two cell types within the lung.

Professor, Deputy Department Chair, Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX

Dr. Kopetz joined MD Anderson Cancer Center in 2006 and is Professor and Deputy Chair in the Department of Gastrointestinal Medical Oncology. Dr. Kopetz is board-certified in internal medicine and in medical oncology. He has authored over 350 peer-reviewed articles in respected scientific journals such as New England Journal of Medicine, Journal of Clinical Oncology, Lancet, Lancet Oncology, JAMA, Cancer Discovery, and Nature Medicine. He is the principal investigator of several practice changing clinical trials, including trials for patients with BRAF mutated colorectal cancer that led to new standards of care. Dr. Kopetz leads the MD Anderson Gastrointestinal Cancer Center Program and is chair of the NCI Colon Cancer Task Force.

Senior Clinical Lecturer in Experimental Cancer Medicine and Honorary Consultant, Christie Hospital, Manchester, England

Dr Cook’s research focuses on development of early phase clinical trials of experimental anti-cancer therapies, translational assay development and early phase trials for gastrointestinal cancers.

Dr Cook attended medical school at the University of Sheffield, gained MRCP and was accepted into the specialist training program in Medical Oncology at Cambridge University Teaching Hospitals Trust. She completed a PhD at the University of Cambridge, funded by a CRUK Clinical Training fellowship, and investigated the role of the Notch pathway in pancreatic cancer.

In 2012 she was awarded the Rothwell Jackson Postgraduate Travelling Fellowship and travelled to Canada to undertake a 2 year drug development research fellowship, based at the University of Toronto and Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. She is now based at the Clinical Trials Unit, Oak Road Treatment Centre, Manchester and will be working with the Experimental Cancer Medicine Team delivering early phase trials to patients, whilst developing her research interests in translational assay design and gastrointestinal oncology.

Professor and Honorary Consultant in Medical Oncology, University of Manchester & The Christie NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester

Professor Valle’s outpatient clinics include a weekly research clinic, a chemotherapy and review clinic and a dedicated neuroendocrine clinic which also includes clinical trials. Multidisciplinary team meetings include attendance at the specialist hepato-pancreato-biliary (HPB) multi-disciplinary team (MDT), held at Central Manchester Foundation Trust; the specialist neuroendocrine MDT and a gastrointestinal radiology meeting (on the alternate weeks). Under his clinical leadership, The Christie was awarded recognition as a Centre of Excellence bythe European Neuroendocrine Tumour Society (ENETS) for neuroendocrine tumours.

Professor Valle was previously the Chair of the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) neuroendocrine tumour sub-group; he is a member of the NCRI upper gastrointestinal clinical studies group; member of the NCRI pancreatic sub-group; and member of the NCRI hepatobiliary sub-group.

Professor Valle was appointed as a Consultant in Medical Oncology at The Christie having completed his training in Medical Oncology in Manchester in 2000. He works within the gastrointestinal disease group and has developed a specialist interest in HPB and NETs.

Major achievements include international recognition for research in the field of biliary tract cancers, particularly through establishing the reference treatment for patients with advanced disease [ABC-02 study, published in the prestigious New Engl J Med in 2010]. This has provided a platform for follow-on studies as well as studies in other stages of the disease [adjuvant capecitabine in the BILCAP study (Lancet Oncology 2019) and FOLFOX in second-line from the ABC-06 study (Lancet Oncol 2021)]. He has also been involved in practice changing studies in NETs [also published in New Engl J Med in 2011].

Professor of Clinical Medicine at Keck Medicine of USC.

Professor Maher is currently a Professor of Clinical Medicine and Director of the ILD program at Keck Medicine of USC, one of only two university-based medical systems in the Los Angeles area. Encompassing academic excellence, world-class research and state-of-the-art clinical care.

Prior to this Professor Maher previously worked as Consultant Respiratory Physician on the Interstitial Lung Disease Unit at the Royal Brompton Hospital. He remains a Professor of Interstitial Lung Disease at Imperial College, London.

Asthma+Lung UK Chair of Respiratory Research and director of the NIHR Cardiorespiratory Clinical Research Facility at the Royal Brompton Hospital.

Dr Philip Molyneaux qualified at Guy’s, King’s and St Thomas’ School of Medicine in 2004, where he completed an intercalated BSc. in Molecular Genetics. He undertook his senior house officer training at Guy’s and St Thomas’ followed by a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Academic Clinical Fellow position in respiratory medicine at Imperial College, London.

He completed a PhD studying the role of infection in the pathogenesis of Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) at Imperial College. He was subsequently awarded the  Action for Pulmonary Fibrosis Mike Bray Fellowship which enabled him to establish an active clinical and translational research program that oversees a team of basic scientists and clinical trial research staff.

Vice Chair and Co-Section Head of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Cleveland Clinic, OH.

Dr. Rieder is an investigator at the Department of Inflammation and Immunity and a Full Staff at the Department of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition at the Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland. His clinical focus is patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) with a special emphasis on the field of pathogenesis, prediction and therapy of IBD.

Dr. Rieder has published more than 150 articles and book chapters and has been recognized for his expertise as indicated through invitations to the steering committee of the 2nd European Crohn’s and Colitis Organization (ECCO) scientific workshop on ‘Intestinal healing’, group leader of the 4th ECCO scientific workshop on ‘Intestinal fibrosis’, invitations as a full member of the consensus panel of the ECCO guidelines on Crohn’s disease, lead author of the ECCO guidelines on Ulcerative colitis and lead author of the first ECCO clinical consensus on ‘Diagnosis and Management of Intestinal Fibrosis’ as well as multiple international invitations as a speaker, session chair or conference faculty.

Dr. Rieder serves as an abstract reviewer for all major GI conferences, he is/was an associate editor (Clinical and Translational Gastroenterology) and on several editorial boards of medical journals (Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases, Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Fibrogenesis and Tissue Repair, American Journal of Physiology Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology). He is proud of his significant ties to the ECCO, which he served as the chair of Y-ECCO, member of the ECCO operational board and member of the scientific committee. He was chair of REACH-IBD and is currently co-chair of the Professional Education Committee of the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation.