Board of Trustees 2025 - 2026

Jennifer Bires is an innovative leader in psychosocial oncology with over 15 years of experience building patient-centered supportive care programs. At Inova Schar Cancer Institute, she leads a team of oncology behavioral health therapists, social workers, nurse navigators, and oncology dieticians, ensuring patients and families have access to no-cost psychosocial care and education. She also oversees the Arts and Healing program that utilizes creative expression as a healing modality.

Her clinical specialties include sexual health, young adults with cancer, and end-of-life care. Jennifer is currently a PhD candidate in Palliative Care at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, exploring psychedelics as a behavioral health treatment for people impacted by cancer.

She earned her Master's in Social Work from Washington University in Saint Louis and her Bachelor's from Clemson University. Jennifer was named Oncology Social Worker of the Year in 2017 by the Association of Oncology Social Workers. She sits on the Leadership Council for the Association of Oncology Nurse Navigators+, the Board of Trustees for the Association of Cancer Care Centers, and is a member of the American Cancer Society National Navigation Round Table.

Dr. Michael Cavnar is a surgical oncologist, clinical trialist, and translational researcher at the University of Kentucky's Markey Cancer Center. He earned his medical degree from Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, completed his general surgery residency at New York University School of Medicine, and finished a fellowship in complex general surgical oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC). Following 14 years of medical and surgical training in New York City, Dr. Cavnar joined the University of Kentucky's Markey Cancer Center in 2017, where he now holds the rank of Associate Professor of Surgery with Tenure.

Dr. Cavnar’s clinical focus includes treating cancers of the liver, biliary tract, pancreas, stomach, small intestine, and abdominal sarcomas. His research focuses on the clinical application of hepatic artery infusion (HAI) pump therapy for liver cancer, translational studies on progression factors in gastrointestinal stromal tumors, and the evaluation of biomarkers for detecting pancreatic cancer recurrence. In 2020, he established the state’s only hepatic artery infusion (HAI) program, a specialized liver cancer treatment initiative. His current research aims to expand this therapy to underserved patients in Appalachia via telehealth and home infusion partnerships. 

He is actively involved in the HAI Consortium Research Network (HCRN), a collaboration of over 70 institutions worldwide studying HAI. Dr. Cavnar is also a member of the Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology and serves as site principal investigator for multiple cooperative group trials at the University of Kentucky. 

Sarah Hudson-DiSalle oversees the medication assistance program and reimbursement services for infusion services at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – The James. She has extensive experience in healthcare information technology, hospitals, managed care, pharmaceutical revenue cycle management, patient access to pharmaceuticals, and healthcare management.

Dr. Hudson-DiSalle earned her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy from the University of Toledo and, after practicing pharmacy for seven years, completed her Doctor of Pharmacy at The Ohio State University. She is dedicated to improving patient access and reimbursement services for infusion medications at The James Cancer Hospital.

Dr. Edward Kim serves as Physician-in-Chief of City of Hope Orange County and Vice Physician-in-Chief of City of Hope National Medical Center. His vision focuses on strategic, team-oriented translational research and patient advocacy to increase accessibility and equity in cancer care.

Recognized as a U.S. News & World Report "Top Doctor," Dr. Kim is renowned for his oncology expertise and is positioned to drive innovation in cancer care delivery. He is developing new paradigms for translating research into clinical practice and introducing therapies throughout the Orange County clinical network.

Backed by a distinguished history of pioneering cancer research, Dr. Kim is among the country's foremost experts in molecular prognostication―which advances cancer detection and personalized therapies―for lung, head, and neck cancers. He has served as principal/co-principal investigator on numerous studies and protocols and authored over 200 publications in journals including The Lancet, Journal of Clinical Oncology, and Cancer Discovery.

Before joining City of Hope, Dr. Kim chaired Solid Tumor Oncology and Investigational Therapeutics at Levine Cancer Institute and held the Donald S. Kim Distinguished Chair for Cancer Research. He recently completed his MBA at University of North Carolina Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Dr. Barbara McAneny, a board-certified medical oncologist/hematologist from Albuquerque, became the 173rd president of the American Medical Association (AMA) in June 2018. She served on the AMA Board of Trustees from 2010 to 2020, including as chair in 2015-2016.

Dr. McAneny is a fellow and former board member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, a master of the American College of Physicians, and past president of the New Mexico Medical Society. She has also served on the boards of the Community Oncology Alliance and the Cancer Center Business Summit.

As co-chair of the OnCare Alliance board, Dr. McAneny leads a group of independent practices collaborating to deliver high-quality, high-value cancer care and develop alternative payment models based on data-driven principles. In 2012, she received a $19.8 million grant from CMS Innovation to demonstrate how oncology practices could use triage pathways to lower costs while improving outcomes—a project called COME HOME that was later incorporated into Medicare's Oncology Care Model.

Dr. McAneny co-founded New Mexico Oncology Hematology Consultants Ltd. in 1987 and built the New Mexico Cancer Center as the state's first physician-owned multi-disciplinary cancer center. She graduated magna cum laude from the University of Minnesota and with honors from the University of Iowa College of Medicine.

Dr. Lailea Noel serves as Assistant Professor and the Meadows Foundation Endowed Fellow in Quality of Life in the Rural Environment at the Steve Hicks School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin. At UT Dell Medical School, she holds faculty appointments in the Department of Oncology and the Department of Health Social Work, co-chairs the Health Equity in Research Workgroup, and serves on the Livestrong Cancer Institutes' Clinical and Prevention Research Workgroup.

Dr. Noel was recently appointed Director of the Institute for Collaborative Health Research and Practice at the Steve Hicks School of Social Work. She serves on the Board of Directors for both the Association of Cancer Care Centers and the Association of Oncology Social Workers.

With an extensive background in oncology health administration and non-profit management, her research connects communities most impacted by cancer disparities with cancer care services by exploring how social determinants of health affect psychosocial barriers to care. She specializes in community-based participatory research, engaging communities, social scientists, and medical professionals in collaborative research initiatives.

Anne Marie Rainey serves as Director of Quality and Value-Based Care for the American Oncology Network, managing internal quality, government, and value-based care programs. Her Certified in Healthcare Compliance (CHC) and Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality (CPHQ) credentials highlight her expertise in healthcare regulatory compliance and quality improvement methodologies. She has experience in government quality reporting as a contractor for the Centers for Medicare and Medicare Services and Centers for Disease Control.

After obtaining her MSN in leadership and administration, Anne Marie transitioned to community oncology, where she has spent most of her career. Her professional interests include quality metrics analysis, program implementation, health policy, and community oncology advocacy.

Anne Marie has published on the implementation of value-based care initiatives, including the Oncology Care Model, and regularly speaks at professional engagements to share insights. She serves on numerous boards, committees, and task forces across oncology professional societies to promote best practices and advocate for community oncology.

Leigha Senter-Jamieson is a licensed genetic counselor and clinical professor at The Ohio State University's James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute, specializing in cancer genetics risk assessment for women with gynecologic cancers. She serves as Associate Director of the Division of Human Genetics and is a member of the Cancer Control Program at the OSUCCC – James, where she contributes to research initiatives focused on cancer prevention and early detection strategies.

With over 20 years of research experience in hereditary cancers, primarily focusing on BRCA gene-related projects, Senter has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications. She currently serves as a board member for the Association of Cancer Care Centers.

Senter earned her Bachelor's degree in molecular genetics from The Ohio State University and her Master's degree in genetic counseling from the University of Pittsburgh.

Dr. Afreen Shariff is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Duke University and a nationally recognized endocrinologist specializing in endocrine disease in cancer patients. As a transformational leader, she has created and led numerous successful initiatives throughout her career.

Dr. Shariff is the Founding Director of the Duke Endo Oncology Program, Associate Director for the Duke Cancer Therapy Toxicity Program, host and producer of the medical podcast series Checkpoint NOW, and founding Chair of the Onco-Endocrinology Special Interest Group through The Endocrine Society. She is also Co-founder of Citrus Oncology, a virtual consultative platform for managing side effects in cancer patients.

Her research focuses on optimizing healthcare through value-based, patient-centric programs that improve access and reduce costs while effectively managing complex oncology cases. As Principal Investigator on several studies, she developed a novel machine learning model to predict immunotherapy-related hospitalizations up to two weeks before expected events—research featured in Science magazine

Dr. Shariff received the 2023 Association of Cancer Care Centers Innovator Award, has published in numerous peer-reviewed journals, and speaks at regional and national conferences. Her career focuses on improving timely access, education, care navigation, and using AI to predict and prevent hospital admissions from treatment toxicities.

Dr. Vaddepally is a board-certified medical oncologist and hematologist with Florida Cancer Specialists & Research Institute (FCS) in Naples, Florida. He is committed to providing optimal patient care with compassion, using a holistic approach personalized to each individual's physical, emotional, and spiritual needs while employing state-of-the-art, precision-based cancer diagnostics and treatments.

 Actively involved in community-based cancer research, Dr. Vaddepally specializes in thoracic, head and neck, and skin cancers. He has served as principal and co-investigator on numerous clinical trials, many advancing lung cancer treatment. His research has been published in clinical journals and presented at professional symposiums.

 Dr. Vaddepally received his medical degree from Osmania Medical College in Hyderabad, India, completed his internal medicine residency at Trinity Health Ann Harbor Hospital in Michigan, and finished a fellowship in oncology/hematology at Henry Ford Medical Center in Detroit.

 Prior to joining FCS in 2025, he served as research medical director at Lee Health in Fort Myers and as director of the lung cancer screening program for Yuma Regional Cancer Center in Arizona. Dr. Vaddepally has been actively involved in training oncology physicians through various teaching positions.