Advisory Committee 2017-2019

Joanne Buzaglo, PhD, is a health researcher and clinical psychologist. She previously was senior vice president of Research & Training at the Cancer Support Community (CSC) Research and Training Institute. In this role, she led the Cancer Experience Registry, a cutting-edge online research initiative tracking patient-reported outcomes to inform and develop innovative programmatic, educational, and policy initiatives.

As a two-time cancer survivor, Dr. Buzaglo has counseled individuals coping with cancer. Prior to joining CSC, she was the Deputy Director of Fox Chase Cancer Center’s NCI-designated Behavioral Research Core Facility.

Helen K. Chew, MD, is professor of Medicine at the University of California Davis and director of the Clinical Breast Cancer Program at the UC Davis Cancer Center.

Dr. Chew’s research interests involve novel treatments for breast cancer, potential tumor markers to detect cancer recurrence, and complications of cancer, including venous thromboembolism and treatment-related cognitive dysfunction. She is an active member of the Breast Committee of SWOG. Her recent publications have appeared in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, Annals of Oncology, and Clinical Breast Cancer. Dr. Chew also serves as the program director for the Hematology/Oncology Fellowship training program at UC Davis.

Dr. Chew earned her bachelor of sciences degree at Stanford University and her medical degree at the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in San Antonio, where she also completed her fellowship in hematology/oncology.

Teresa L. Deshields, PhD, ABPP, FAPOS, is a licensed clinical psychologist and the Director of Supportive Oncology at the Rush University Cancer Center in Chicago, IL. She is a professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Rush University Medical Center. She is a past president of the American Psychosocial Oncology Society.

Dr. Deshields’ clinical practice is devoted to treating cancer patients/ survivors and their family members, throughout the cancer continuum – diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, end of life, bereavement. Her research is focused on issues related to psychological adjustment and quality of life in cancer patients and survivors.

Dr. William J. Gradishar is the Betsy Bramsen Professor of Breast Oncology and Professor of Medicine in the Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Department of Medicine, at the Feinberg School Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois, and a member of the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. He serves as director of the Maggie Daley Center for Women’s Cancer Care. Additionally, he is deputy chief of the Division of Hematology and Medical Oncology and system head for Medical Oncology across Northwestern Medicine. He has been chair of the Annual Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Symposium since its inception 17 years ago. He served as program director of the Hematology Oncology Fellowship Training Program at Northwestern for 20 years. His research focuses on the development of novel therapeutics for the treatment of breast cancer.

A Fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American Society of Clinical Oncology, Dr. Gradishar is also a member of the American Association for Cancer Research, the American Federation for Clinical Research, and the Association of Subspecialty Professors. He is past chair of the Oncology Training Program Committee, chair of the Communications Committee, chair of the Professional Development Committee, and chair of the Nominating Committee of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) as well as a member of ASCO’s Scientific Program Committee. He is a member of the Breast Cancer Core Committee of the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group, past member of the Committee on Cancer of the American College of Surgeons and current chair of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Breast Cancer Guidelines Panel, and the NCCN Breast Cancer Prevention Panel. In addition, he serves as a consultant to the Oncology Drug Advisory Committee of the FDA.

Dr. Gradishar is a member of the editorial board for numerous journals, including Journal of Clinical Oncology, Oncology, Clinical Breast Cancer, European Journal of Clinical and Medical Oncology and Clinical Cancer Research. He is the founding Editor-in Chief of NEJM Journal Watch Hematology/Oncology. He is co-Editor of The Breast, the definitive two-volume textbook on benign and malignant breast disorders. He has published in the area of breast cancer therapeutics, with a focus on new endocrine therapy, chemotherapy and biologic agents.

Dr. Gradishar received his medical degree form the University of Illinois Abraham School of Medicine in Chicago. He completed a residency and chief residency in internal medicine at Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center in Chicago and a clinical research fellowship in medical oncology at the University of Chicago.

Dr. Gralow is the Jill Bennett Endowed Professor of Breast Medical Oncology and Professor of Global Health at the University of Washington School of Medicine and a member of the Clinical Research Division at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. She is director of Breast Medical Oncology at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. Dr. Gralow is actively involved in clinical care, education, and research, and is the PI on numerous local and national clinical trials related to breast cancer treatment, prevention, and survivorship. Her area of research specialization is the relationship between breast cancer and the bone. She serves as SWOG Executive Officer for Breast and Lung Cancer and is a member of SWOG’s International Working Group. Previously, she served for 13 years as Vice Chair of the SWOG Breast Cancer Committee.

Dr. Gralow is current chair of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Academic Global Oncology Task Force and the co-chair of the ASCO Resource Stratified Guideline Advisory Group, and serves as a member of the ASCO Breast Cancer Advisory Guideline Group and Cancer Education Committee in the Global Health track. She received an ASCO Statesman Award in 2008 and will receive the 2018 ASCO Humanitarian Award.

Dr. Gralow is committed to improving the quality of life for breast cancer patients through education, exercise, and diet, and to promoting breast cancer awareness in the community. She is Medical Director and Team Physician for Team Survivor Northwest, aimed at helping female cancer survivors improve their health through fitness and exercise. She is founder of the Women’s Empowerment Cancer Advocacy Network (WE CAN), a group dedicated to empowering women cancer patient advocates in low and middle income countries and Co-Chair of the Secretariat of the Breast Cancer Initiative 2.5 (BCI2.5), a Global Campaign to reduce disparities in breast cancer care globally.

Amanda Holt is the financial navigator for Maury Regional Medical Center. She is a Certified Application Counselor through the Health Insurance Marketplace and has over six years of experience working in admissions, billing and coding, and specialty case management in the Home Infusion Pharmacy/ Durable Medical Equipment industry. She has played a major role in the development of the financial navigation program because of her infusion pharmacy experience, knowledge of government and commercial insurances, and overall passion for patient care. In addition, Holt has accepted a consultant position with the Cancer Support Community as the first ever Financial Counselor. In this role, she will educate staff, and assist with the development of the program.

Shirley A. Mertz, MA, JD, has served as president of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Network since 2006. She also serves as a member of the Patient Advocate Working Group of the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium, representing the University of Chicago, and chairs the Patient Working Group Subcommittee on Metastatic Breast Cancer and is also a member of the HER2+ Resistance Working Group. Ms. Mertz is a founding member of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance, and currently serves on the Steering Committee, the Executive Committee, and as Research Taskforce Co-Chair.

In addition, she serves as a member of the Planning Committee for Breast Cancer Research Grants, University of Chicago Advocacy, and has served as a consumer reviewer for the Congressionally Directed Breast Cancer Medical Research Program.

She has presented nationally and internationally on the issues related to metastatic breast cancer, and made numerous presentations before patient groups and healthcare organizations.

Ms. Mertz is the recipient of the national “Champion of Change in Breast Cancer” award and was honored at the White House in Washington, D.C. (2011), with the “Distinguished Service in Advocacy Award” from the American Cancer Society (2008) in Northwest suburban Illinois.

Ruth M. O’Regan, MD, focuses on identifying mechanisms of resistance to breast-cancer therapies and the development of new therapies with a specific focus on triple negative breast cancer. She has led several trials focused on new therapeutic approaches for breast cancers resistant to standard therapies.

Dr. O'Regan earned her medical degree from University College Dublin. She completed her internal medicine residency at the Medical College of Wisconsin and her hematology/oncology fellowship at Northwestern University.

Lillie D. Shockney is the Johns Hopkins University Distinguished Service Professor of Breast Cancer; Administrative Director, Johns Hopkins Breast Center (since 1997); Director, Johns Hopkins Cancer Survivorship Programs; Professor of Surgery and Oncology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; and co-creator of the Johns Hopkins Managing Cancer at Work Program. A two-time breast cancer survivor, Lillie has worked tirelessly to improve the care of breast cancer patients around the world. She has worked at Johns Hopkins since 1983.

She has written 15 books and more than 250 articles on cancer care, and is a nationally recognized public speaker on the subject of cancer with a focus on cancer survivorship. Lillie is also editor-in-chief of Journal of Oncology Navigation and Survivorship. She is the founder and director of the Academy of Oncology Nurse & Patient Navigators (AONN+). She is the consultant for breast cancer for national ABC News and Good Morning America, and is also consulted regularly by the Today Show and CNN. Currently, she serves on 34 medical advisory boards.

In 2008, the President of The Johns Hopkins University and the Johns Hopkins Board of Trustees appointed her to a chair as a University Distinguished Service Assistant Professor of Breast Cancer. This is the first time in the history of the institution that a hospital nurse has been appointed to a distinguished service designation. She was promoted to a Distinguished Service Associate Professor of Breast Cancer in 2009. In 2016, she was promoted to full professor and is the only nurse at Johns Hopkins to have a primary appointment in the School of Medicine and the only nurse to have reached the highest academic faculty ranking and appointed chair as a University Distinguished Service Professor of Breast Cancer.

She has received numerous awards and has been inducted into the Maryland Women Hall of Fame, and received the Women in Business Healthcare Trailblazer Award, and Johnson & Johnson’s most amazing nurse in America award.