Christian G. Downs, JD, MHA, is the executive director of ACCC. With more than 15 years of expertise in guiding associations on national policy and educational programming, he has been instrumental in working with healthcare providers, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), and Congress on association-specific issues. Christian has led ACCC's efforts on such critical issues as easing implementation of new regulations, ensuring patient access to new cancer therapies, and refining physician office payments for delivery of services.

Previously, Christian administered a large tertiary care hospital, managed a physician multispecialty practice, and worked for the Education and Health Committee of the Virginia State Senate. Christian is a board member of the Patient Advocate Foundation and C-Change, a large coordinating organization for cancer groups.

Dr. Cary Presant is a hematologist and medical oncologist in Southern California. He is currently Clinical Professor of Medical Oncology and Developmental Therapeutics at City of Hope National Medical Center.

A nationally recognized leader in medicine, Dr. Presant has been president of the national Association of Community Cancer Centers (ACCC) and a director of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO). He was founding president of the Medical Oncology Society of Southern California (MOASC) and is emeritus chairman of the board.

As a member of the American Cancer Society for over 40 years, Dr. Presant was president of the American Cancer Society California Division from 1993 to 1994. He has served on the Board of Directors of National ACS, California ACS, and regional boards in Los Angeles, San Gabriel Valley and St. Louis. He is a national and regional spokesperson for the society.

Dr. Presant has authored the book “Surviving American Medicine” with a foreword by Fran Drescher, a book which enables patients to get the right doctors, right hospitals and right treatments. It received the 2013 International Book Award for best book in health.

As a grant-awarded scientific researcher, Dr. Presant has written over 400 scientific articles on healthcare, cancer treatment, personalized medicine, and quality of life in cancer patients.

Dr. Presant lectures on improving health care and new research advances throughout the country.

Teri Bedard, BA, RT(R)(T), CPC is the Executive Director, Client & Corporate Resources with Revenue Cycle Coding Strategies. Teri’s expertise includes over 20 years of medical experience. Teri advises and leads clients in the areas of billing and reimbursement for technology, monitoring government regulatory information and seeking new business opportunities. Her work with longstanding clients performing interim management, electronic medical record conversions and operational consulting, benefits her nationwide client base. Ms. Bedard’s vast clinical knowledge brings a valued level of expertise when determining reimbursement trends for technologies in the modern cancer center. Her dedication to research assists both providers and corporate clients in determining how the changes in healthcare will affect oncology practices nationwide.

Teri earned her bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Northern Iowa and continued her education with a Certificate of Radiography from the Mayo School for Health Related Sciences in Rochester, Minnesota. She also attained a Certificate of Radiation Therapy from the Fairview University Medical Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Teri's active in educational programs for ASRT, SROA, AAPC and AAMD, often speaking at local, state and national levels. Teri is committed to the research and development of compliance-based best practice models for oncology practices. Teri is an active member of the American Society of Radiologic Technologists (ASRT), The Society for Radiation Oncology Administrators (SROA) and also a member of the American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC). She earned her certification as a Certified Professional Coder (CPC) through AAPC.

Allison Hirschorn is the Senior Coding and Reimbursement Specialist at the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Since 2012, she has served as the ASCO staff liaison to the American Medical Association’s CPT Editorial Panel and the RVS Update Committee (RUC). Allison is currently leading ASCO’s educational efforts regarding the 2021 Evaluation and Management changes, which includes developing resources and conducting presentations.

Motivational Humorist and Author, Kay Frances MBA BS CSP has shared her message to “lighten up, stress less and take care of ourselves” in 49 states and Canada for over 30 years. She holds a Master's Degree in Business Administration, a degree in Health and Education and a 4th degree black belt in karate. She is also a Certified Speaking Professional. Kay was her mother's caregiver for 7 years and holds great respect for people in healthcare.

Kay is the author of “The Funny Thing about Stress; A Seriously Humorous Guide to a Happier Life.”

When it comes to humor, Kay is the "real deal" having performed as a professional standup comedian for many years and appearing on a number of national television and radio programs including Lifetime Cable’s “Girls Night Out” and NBC’s “America’s Funniest People”. She also lived and performed in New York City where she appeared at the nation’s top comedy clubs such as “The Improvisation” and “Catch a Rising Star.”

Kay Frances combines her years of standup comedy, her education and her passion for her message to offer a unique skill set not often found in one speaker. When it comes to managing stress, Kay learned the hard way by engaging in every unhealthy habit known to man. It was a long, winding, hilarious road back to sanity and good health and Kay generously shares what she learned along the way. It’s clean, relatable humor-with-a-message at its funniest! Your stress level will thank you!

Jithma Prasad Abeykoon, M.D. is currently a fellow under the clinician investigator program in Hematology and Medical Oncology fellowship at the Mayo Clinic, MN. His research focus is on clinical and translational research in hematology, especially in lymphoma. He is also interested in clinical research with special emphasis on evaluating outcomes of patients with lymphoma, Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia, and multiple myeloma. Conducting clinical research provides understanding of patients’ outcomes based on treatments and biomarkers of these malignancies, and this understanding is fundamental to bring the correct questions to the lab to find the answers. His ultimate goal is to expand the field of medicine through the contribution of new knowledge while delivering passionate care for patients.

Dr. Isaac Chambers is a recent graduate of the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics Hematology and Oncology Fellowship program. During his tenure at Iowa, he served as Chief Fellow from 2018 to 2020 and participated in research and clinical trials. He joined Dreiling Schmidt Cancer Intitute, a community cancer center in Kansas, in August 2020.

Dr. Pedro Barata earned his medical degree from the New University of Lisbon in 2009 and completed his medical oncology fellowship in 2016. During his training, he spent one year in the USA rotating at the Phase I Department at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, and at Taussig Cancer Center, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland.

After completion of his fellowship, he was invited to join the genitourinary group at Taussig Cancer Center, where he had been working as the clinical experimental therapeutics fellow for the previous two years. During this time, he developed a productive collaboration with his mentors Dr. Brian Rini and Dr. Jorge Garcia, world-renowned experts in the management of patients with prostate and kidney cancer. 

As a result of his clinical and research work, Dr. Barata authored and co-authored more than 50 research publications in high-quality journals, such as Cancer, Annals of Oncology, and British Journal of Cancer, among others, which have been cited more than 650 times by peers. In addition, he has presented dozens of research abstracts at important national and international meetings, and has authored textbook chapters and clinical reviews. He has also served as a reviewer for prestigious peer-reviewed journals such as JAMA Oncology, ASCO, and Journal Global Oncology, among many others.

At Tulane University, Dr. Barata continues his clinical and research work in the GU field and works to expand the program offered at Tulane Cancer Center.

Dr. Holle completed her Bachelor of Science in Pharmacy and post-baccalaureate Doctor of Pharmacy from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. She completed a specialized oncology residency at UT M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, and is a board-certified oncology pharmacist. Dr. Holle has worked as an oncology pharmacist for over 20 years in a variety of settings including private hospitals, academic medical centers, and medical communications. Currently, Dr. Holle is an Associate Clinical Professor at the UConn School of Pharmacy and Associate Professor at the UConn School of Medicine. Her practice site is at the UConn Health Carole and Ray Neag Comprehensive Cancer Center, where she works in a team-based ambulatory care clinic focusing on genitourinary and gastrointestinal cancers and in another team based-clinic focusing on hematologic malignancies.

Dr. Holle is a Past President of HOPA and a past Secretariat member and Treasurer of the International Society of Oncology Pharmacy Practitioners (ISOPP). She is also an active member in many other professional oncology and pharmacy organizations. Dr. Holle’s clinical research program focuses on numeracy and patient decision-making, oncology quality improvement initiatives, medical marijuana, and oral anticancer therapy management. She has authored numerous articles and chapters on oncology and teaching-related topics.

Vivian Pan, MS, LCGC, is the director of genetic counseling services and manager of the cancer genetics program at Cook County Health and Hospitals System in Illinois. Prior to joining Cook County Health and Hospitals System, Ms. Pan led the Translational Research Core at Kaiser Permanente Research Bank. She is an active member of the Illinois Society for Genetic Professionals, Midwest Genetics Network, National Society of Genetic Counselors, and the Accreditation Council for Genetic Counseling. Ms. Pan is also a faculty member, a clinical supervisor, and co-coordinator of the Research Methods course for the Graduate Program in Genetic Counseling at Northwestern University. Her professional and research interests include implementation of genomic medicine in clinical care, access/delivery of genetic counseling services, and health equity. She received her master’s degree in genetic counseling from Northwestern University.