2024 Award

Dean for Genetics and Genomic Medicine, Professor and Chairman Emeritus of the Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA

Robert J. Desnick is Dean for Genetic and Genomic Medicine and Professor and Chairman Emeritus of the Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
In 1977, he joined the Mount Sinai faculty as the Arthur J. and Nellie Z. Cohen Professor of Pediatrics and Genetics, and Chief of Medical and Molecular Genetics. From 1993-2011, he was the first Chairman of the Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences at Mount Sinai. In 2011 he became the Dean for Genetics and Genomic Medicine.

Dr. Desnick’s research interests include lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) and the inborn errors of heme biosynthesis, the porphyrias, and in particular, their treatment. His
research efforts led to the Federal Drugs Administration (FDA) - and European Medicine Agency (EMA) - approval of enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) for Fabry disease (Fabrazyme) and on-going ERT clinical trials (FDA “Breakthrough” status) for Niemann- Pick B disease, both in partnership with Genzyme. In addition, he was a scientific founder of Amicus Therapeutics (NASDAQ; FOLD), which is developing oral pharmacologic chaperone therapy for Fabry disease (EMA-approved in 2016), Pompe disease, and other disorders. Currently, his laboratory is using gene editing technology to engineer gene therapy in the mouse model of Fabry disease with Sangamo Therapeutics.

 Prof. Robert J. Desnick

Retired Cancer Research UK Professor of Paediatric Oncology, Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Trust, Sutton, UK
Prof Andy Pearson is formerly a Cancer Research UK Professor of Paediatric Oncology, at the Institute of Cancer Research and the Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Trust. In May 2014 he retired due to ill health from The Institute of Cancer Research and Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust. Prior to 2005, he had been a Professor of Paediatric Oncology, at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne and Dean of Postgraduate Studies, Faculty of Medical Sciences, at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. Professor Pearson trained at Newcastle upon Tyne and was Lilly International/Medical Research Council Travelling Fellow at the University of Minnesota, USA.

Professor Andy Pearson expertise is in the fields of drug development and neuroblastoma and has over 45 years’ experience in clinical paediatric oncology. He was the first Chair of the United Kingdom Children Cancer Study Group (UKCCSG) Neuroblastoma Group, Chair of the European Neuroblastoma Group, and was the founding chair of the International Society of Paediatric Oncology Europe Neuroblastoma Group (SIOPEN). He is on the Advisory Board of SIOPEN. He and Professor Sue Cohn of Chicago created and chair the International Neuroblastoma Risk Group Consortium (INRG). He was President of the Advances in Neuroblastoma Research Association from 2012 - 2014 and was on the ANRA Advisory Board for Europe and Russia since 2006. He was Chairman of the UKCCSG from 2003 - 2006. Professor Pearson was the Chief Investigator of the clinical trial ENSG 5 which changed the standard practice for the therapy of high-risk neuroblastoma in Europe. He was the first Chief Investigator of the BEACON Trial; the first randomized European study for refractory/relapsed neuroblastoma. He has published over 400 scientific manuscripts. Professor Pearson led the first paediatric phase I study in the UK. He has been involved in the pre-clinical and early clinical development of many anticancer agents in children. He is a member of the Executive of the Innovative Therapy for Children with Cancer Consortium (ITCC). He is a Chair of ACCELERATE, EMA, and FDA Paediatric Strategy Forum Oversight Committee, Senior Advisor, and member of the Steering Committee of the ACCELERATE to improve drug development for children and adolescents with cancer. He was Chair of the National Cancer Research Institute Children’s Cancer and Leukaemia Clinical Studies Group Novel Agents Subgroup and a member of the New Agents Committee of Cancer Research UK. He led a comprehensive paediatric drug development program, with one of the largest portfolios of early phase, first in child, biomarker rich studies in Europe at The Institute of Cancer Research and Royal Marsden focusing on neuroblastoma. He has published over 400 scientific
manuscripts.

Professor Pearson is chair of Solving Kids Cancer Scientific Advisory Board and Patron and Trustee of Neuroblastoma UK and a member of the Programme Committee of
Fight Kids Cancer. He was awarded a Life Time Achievement Award from Advances in Neuroblastoma Research in 2016.

 Prof. Andrew Pearson

Cancer Center Director for the School of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Lubbock, USA, Director of the South Plains Oncology Consortium, and the ALSF/COG Childhood Cancer Repository

Dr. Reynolds grew up in El Paso, TX, received his BA in Biology from The University of Texas at Austin, his MD from UT Southwestern Medical School in Dallas, TX, his PhD (Cell Biology) from UT Austin, and his pediatrics training at the National Naval Medical Center. His postdoctoral fellowship was in cancer immunology at UT Southwestern Medical School, Dallas, TX. He holds the rank of Commander, US Navy (retired). He is currently the Cancer Center Director for the School of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (http://cancer.ttuhsc.edu), and is Director of the South Plains Oncology Consortium (SPOC: www.SPONC.org) and the ALSF/COG Childhood Cancer Repository (www.CCcells.org).

Dr Reynolds’ research focuses cancer developmental therapeutics and he pioneered the development of the differentiating agent isotretinoin for treating the childhood cancer neuroblastoma. His most recent research focuses on two areas: 1) Use of telomere maintenance mechanisms as cancer biomarkers for neuroblastoma and other cancers and developing agents to specifically target alternate telomere lengthening (ALT) cancers. 2) Assessing GD2 expression on neuroblastoma cells as a mechanism of resistance to chemoimmunotherapy and developing novel non-GD2 anti-neuroblastoma antibodies. Other research interests include mechanisms of resistance to drugs and antibody therapy in childhood and adult cancers, biobanking of human cancers, and development of novel preclinical testing systems for cancer drug development.

Dr. Reynolds is a member of the neuroblastoma steering committee for the Children’s Oncology Group (COG). He was a special government employee with the FDA for 20 years and a founding member of the Pediatric Subcommittee of the Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee for the FDA. He is a founding member of the Advisory Committee on Childhood Cancer and the Clinical Trials Committee and the Clinical Trials Advisory
Committee for the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT). He has served on multiple NIH study sections. He is a member of the BPCA Pediatric Oncology Working Group for the National Institute for Child Health and Development. Honors received include the 2004 Eurand Prize, 2008 Advances in Neuroblastoma Research Best Clinical Paper, the most cited paper in Clinical Cancer Research in 2009, The Texas Tech Chancellor’s research award, the Covenant Health Systems David R. Close, MD Endowed Chair in Oncology, and TTUHSC Distinguished University Professor.

Dr. Reynolds has sponsored multiple investigational New Drug (IND) applications with the FDA and receives grant funding from the NIH, DOD, and CPRIT. Dr. Reynolds is an author or co-author of over 250 peer-reviewed scientific papers with > 30,000 citations (H Index = 86) and he is a co-inventor on multiple issued and pending patents. He serves on the editorial boards of Clinical Cancer Research and Molecular Cancer Therapeutics. His avocations include film making and special effects, playing guitar, and writing music. He also enjoys competitive shooting and he was the team physician for the 1992 USA Olympic shooting team in Barcelona.

 Prof. Charles Patrick Reynolds