Professor of Medicine
Evelyn and Edwin Tasch Chair in Cancer Research
Director of the Center for Novel Therapeutics
Deputy Director of Research Operations
UC San Diego’s Moores Cancer Center
San Diego, CA

Thomas Kipps, MD, PhD, is a distinguished professor of medicine, director of the Center for Novel Therapeutics, and co-director of the Hematologic Malignancies Program at the University of California, San Diego, Moores Cancer Center. He received his PhD in immunology and medical degree from Harvard University and had his residency and fellowship training in internal medicine, hematology, and genetics at Stanford University.

Dr. Kipps holds the Evelyn and Edwin Tasch Chair in Cancer Research, is a 2-time awardee of a Specialized Center of Research in Leukemia grant from the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, a 2-time awardee of the National Institutes of Health Method to Extend Research in Time Award, and principal investigator of the CLL Research Consortium, which directed interinstitutional research among the leading investigators in CLL from across the country and abroad. He is also an awardee of the Rai/Binet medal for outstanding contributions to the field of leukemia research, and the Michael J. Keating Outstanding Achievement Award from the Society of Hematologic Oncology for advancing knowledge of and treatments for blood cancers. He is chair of the international workshop on CLL, an international, non-profit association, committed to creating progress in the management and outcome of patients with CLL worldwide.

Professor, Tenured
Department of Leukemia,
Division of Cancer Medicine
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center​
Houston, TX

Jan A. Burger, MD, PhD, is a professor of medicine at the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Texas. Dr. Burger received his MD/PhD degree at Albert-Ludwigs-University in Freiburg, Germany, with subsequent clinical training and board certification in internal medicine and hematology/oncology at Freiburg University Hospital, before moving to MD Anderson in 2005. In 2006, Dr. Burger received the “Venia legendi” (Habilitation) for Internal Medicine at Albert-Ludwigs-University in Freiburg. Moreover, from 1996 to 1999, Dr. Burger received postdoctoral research training in hematology and immunology at the University of California, San Diego.

As a clinical and laboratory investigator, Dr. Burger focuses on developing new therapeutic approaches for targeting the microenvironment in CLL, other B-cell malignancies, and acute leukemias. Laboratory research by Dr. Burger’s group characterized B-cell receptor–associated kinases, such as BTK and PI3 kinases, as therapeutic targets. Dr. Burger serves as a principal investigator on clinical trials that explore these targets in CLL and has been leading key trials that supported the approval of the BTK inhibitor ibrutinib (RESONATE-2: ibrutinib for CLL frontline therapy). For his innovative research, Dr. Burger received several awards, among them, the Arthur Pappenheim Award by the DGHO (German Society for Hematology and Medical Oncology), a Kimmel Scholar Award, American Society of Clinical Oncology Young Investigator and Career Development awards, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Scholar award, and the MD Anderson Faculty Scholar Award. Dr. Burger is a regular speaker at European Hematology Association and American Society of Hematology, and has published in the leading journals in his field.

Associate Member
Department of Malignant Hematology
ICE-T Clinical Research Medical Director for Hematologic Malignancies
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute
Tampa, FL

Julio Chavez, MD, MS, is an associate member in the lymphoma section of the Department of Malignant Hematology at the Moffitt Cancer Center. He is the ICE-T Clinical Research Medical Director for hematologic malignancies. Dr. Chavez is board-certified in internal medicine and medical oncology. His focus of clinical and research interests is in lymphoid malignancies, specifically aggressive lymphomas, virally related lymphoid malignancies, and CLL. He also has interest in acute lymphoblastic leukemia in the older patients. He is currently principal investigator in several clinical trials using targeted agents and immunotherapy. He is not only well versed in standard therapies, but he is an active participant in clinical research, and therefore, is able to offer his patients and their families the best treatment options tailored specifically to each patient. Dr. Chavez joined Moffitt Cancer Center in 2013.

Associate Professor of Medicine
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL

Peter Riedell, MD, is an associate professor of medicine and also serves as an associate director of the David and Etta Jonas Center for Cellular Therapy at the University of Chicago. Dr. Riedell specializes in the care of adults with lymphomas and CLL. In particular, he has a special interest in the use of chimeric antigen receptor-T cell therapy along with bispecific antibody therapy in the treatment of these conditions. 

As an active clinical researcher, Dr. Riedell serves as the principal investigator on several national and international clinical trials evaluating the role of targeted therapies, stem cell transplantation, and cellular therapy in the treatment of lymphoma and CLL. He has been heavily involved in the development and implementation of therapies that harness a patient’s own immune system to fight cancer.

Dr. Riedell holds roles on several national committees related to lymphoma and cellular therapy, and he is active in patient and physician education. He also serves on the editorial board for peer-reviewed journals and is a member of the American Society of Hematology, American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the American Society of Transplantation and Cellular Therapy.