Breaking Down Barriers in Support of Patients with Rare Diseases

Bill Hanlon, PhD, President CDCS and Chief Scientific Officer, Labcorp Drug Development

Dr. Bill Hanlon is President CDCS, Clinical Therapeutic and Regulatory Sciences and Chief Scientific Officer of Labcorp Drug Development. He has responsibility for all the scientific, therapeutic, market access & regulatory expertise, patient recruitment, medical device & diagnostics development, cell & gene therapy growth and digital innovation for the clinical trials business.

Dr. Hanlon has over 30 years of scientific, drug development and business leadership experience as well as extensive background in international business. Starting his career at Merck, Inc. (MSD) in 1988, he quickly advanced in responsibility, broadening his expertise in discovery research, global regulatory affairs and driving strategic product development. Starting at Covance in 2012 as Head of Global Regulatory Affairs, he built a regulatory strategy and product development consulting group to support biotech companies in developing their products.

Frederick Derosier, D.O., Vice President and General Manager, Rare Diseases, Advanced Therapies and Pediatrics Team (RAPT) and Clinical Lead, Enterprise Cell and Gene Therapy, Labcorp Drug Development

Dr. Frederick Derosier joined Labcorp Drug Development in 2017 and has over 10 years of private practice experience (internal medicine) and more than 20 years of clinical development experience, primarily in neurosciences and rare diseases, in the pharmaceutical industry with large/mid-sized pharma and biotechs. Dr. Derosier’s experience broadly extends from translational/early phase development through product launch to late phase/post-marketing studies and lifecycle management. He provides medical/scientific leadership for clinical development programs involving rare diseases and/or advanced therapeutics at Labcorp Drug Development.

Yukari Blumenthal, MD, Medical Lead, Astellas Pharmaceuticals

Dr. Blumenthal is a surgical doctor and a researcher by profession, She graduated from St. George’s University in London Medical School, conducted her internship and Clinical Fellowship for Surgery (Urology) at the Cambridge University Hospital, UK.

Apart from her formal job, Dr. Blumenthal is also a founder of the Germany-based NPO Kindness United Neuroscience Org, (K.U.N.O.) aiming to support families and research for Alexander disease and other rare diseases. She writes a column based on the theme “Circle of Kindness” and serves as a consultant member to a government committee advising on guidelines for transitional medical care in Japan.

Dr. Blumenthal is also a mom. After her son, Kuno was diagnosed with Alexander disease, she shifted her research focus to rare diseases and collaborates with Kyoto University CiRA in Japan. As Associate Medical Director for Astellas Pharma International, Yukari promotes patient advocacy and research in rare conditions with high unmet medical needs.

Philip Yeske, PhD, Science & Alliance Officer, United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation

Dr. Philip Yeske is the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation (UMDF)’s Science & Alliance Officer. He received a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Allegheny College and a doctorate in organic chemistry from Emory University. Prior to joining UMDF, he served as President and CEO of Fluorous Technologies, a Pittsburgh-based, early-stage life sciences company. He also worked at Bayer Corporation in positions ranging from basic research to global account management and co-founded the drug discovery company, MS2 Array.

Dr. Yeske has been active in the mitochondrial disease community since 2004, first as a parent of an affected child, then as a trustee of the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation from 2010 to 2012. In 2013, he accepted the position of UMDF Science & Alliance Officer, responsible for leading the foundation’s research mission and managing all scientific and business development efforts related to improved diagnoses, development of treatments and cures and optimized patient care.

Borbála Éva Szepes, MD, Clinical Team Lead, Early Phase Clinical Project Team, Global Clinical Operations, Global Medical Division, Gedeon Richter Plc.

Dr. Borbála Éva Szepes is a clinical operations professional passionate about early phase drug development. Dr. Szepes is well-versed in the management and execution of Phase I-II -studies, globally, in the CNS therapeutic area. She graduated as a medical doctor and then joined Gedeon Richter Plc., where she gained multi-angle insights into the broad spectrum of original compound development with innovative clinical trial programs. With a general solution-oriented, pragmatic attitude, holistic view and creative mindset she has been part of the team that drove the early scientific networking activities of Gedeon Richter Plc. in its first rare disease study.

Gina Calarco Smith, MPH, RN, CCRC, Scientific Director, Critical Path Institute

Gina Calarco Smith is a Scientific Director of Pediatrics at the Critical Path Institute, a non-profit organization working in a collaborative manner to assess the needs and develop solutions to expedite rare disease drug development. Gina is a pediatric nurse with a master’s in public health that she earned from the University of Kansas. Nearly her entire career has been focused within pediatrics beginning as a neonatal ICU nurse and moving into study coordination at a large pediatric academic center and most recently working within the CRO setting as a Senior Director of Strategy and Planning developing proposals and supporting delivery of complex and rare indication pediatric clinical trials.

Margaret Dean, MBA, Senior Director, Portfolio Oversight, Rare Disease and Pediatric Team, Labcorp Drug Development

Margaret Dean has 18 years of experience in the healthcare industry across pharmaceutical, healthcare IT and CRO industries within rare disease, cardiovascular and oncology fields. Her broad functional experience spans strategic planning, business development, deal negotiation, marketing, sales and program management.