Morie Gertz, MD, MACP, is the Roland Seidler, Jr. Professor of the Art of Medicine and Chair of the Department of Medicine at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology. Dr. Gertz has also served as Treasurer of the International Myeloma Society and President of Mayo Staff Officers and Councilors. He was the Chair of the Mayo Personnel Committee. Currently he serves on the American Society of Hematology Training Program Committee and the American Board of Internal Medicine Hematology Board Exam Committee. Dr. Gertz has been recognized with the 2014 Jan Waldenström Medal for Medical and Scientific Achievements in Waldenström Macroglobulinemia and is a Mayo Distinguished Clinician. He has been recognized for his contributions in amyloidosis and Waldenström macroglobulinemia, has authored more than five hundred peer-reviewed publications, and is a master of the America College of Physicians. He graduated from Northwestern University with highest distinction as a Phi Beta Kappa and received his medical degree cum laude from Loyola Medical School and was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha, the medical honor society. He completed a three-year medical residency at Rush Presbyterian St. Luke’s Hospital in Chicago and was twice voted Resident of the Year.

Dr. Suvannasankha is a graduate of Chulalongkorn University in Thailand. She completed her residency at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia and a fellowship at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo, New York. She joined the Indiana University School of Medicine in 2003 and currently serves as an associate professor at the IU School of Medicine and researcher at the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Suvannasankha’s research interests are in the molecular mechanism of drug resistance in hematologic malignancy and precision medicine. Her clinical expertise includes hematology-oncology and bone marrow transplant.

Dr. Chukwuemeka (‘Emeka) Uzoka, MD practices in the Division of Hematology & Oncology at UI Health. Dr. Uzoka specializes in blood cancers, bone marrow transplantation, and CAR-T cell therapy. His research interest include improving patient outcomes following bone marrow transplantation and cellular therapies.

Tulio Rodriguez, M.D., joined City of Hope® Cancer Center Chicago in September 2023 as a hematologic oncologist and the director of the Hematology, Bone Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program. Dr. Rodriguez cares for patients at City of Hope Cancer Care Downtown Chicago and its Chicago-area hospital in Zion, Illinois. He specializes in the treatment of blood cancers such as lymphoma, leukemia and myeloma . Board certified in hematology by the American Board of Internal Medicine and bilingual in English and Spanish, Dr. Rodriguez brings with him over 20 years of experience in hematologic malignancies and bone marrow transplantation and has performed over 2,500 transplant procedures during his career. After earning his medical degree from Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra School of Medicine in Santiago, Dominican Republic, Dr. Rodriguez did his internal medicine residency at San Juan Veterans Affairs Medical Center in San Juan, Puerto Rico, then completed fellowships in hematology/oncology and bone marrow transplantation at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, Texas. At City of Hope, Dr. Rodriguez serves as the Clinical Professor for the Department of Hematology & Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation and is also a professor of medicine at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in Chicago. He is passionate about working with local Latino populations to advocate for awareness of and screening for blood cancers. Dr. Rodriguez has an extensive research background. He has regularly served as a guest lecturer on innovations in hematology and has earned numerous awards for his research, including the Leukemia Research Foundation’s Hero of Hope Award and the American Cancer Society’s Clinical Oncology Fellowship Award. In 2024, he was named one of Crain’s Notable Leaders in Healthcare for expanding City of Hope Chicago’s bone marrow transplantation and hematology programs to bring innovative treatment options such as CAR T cell therapy to more patients across the state and beyond.

Karen Sweiss, PharmD, is Clinical Assistant Professor at the Retzky College of Pharmacy at UIC. She has been involved in both direct patient care and clinical and translational research involving both retrospective and prospective clinical trials. Her clinical training and interests have focused primarily in malignant hematology, with a specific interest in investigation of drug safety and clinical outcomes in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Specifically, her research has focused on the clinical application of drug pharmacokinetics to individualize dosing for patients and optimize efficacy and minimize toxicities. Another line of inquiry in her research program is improving clinical outcomes in patients with multiple myeloma.

Dr. Mohan completed her fellowship in Hematology Oncology training at the University of Arkansas for Medical Science. She has also worked and trained with some of the leading myeloma experts at the prestigious Myeloma Institute of Research and Therapeutics with in the University of Arkansas. She has authored and co-authored several peer reviewed publication and presented at various national and international conferences. During her fellowship she was awarded the Fellow’s Career Development Grant, Conquer Cancer American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual meeting merit award and Journal of Oncology Practice American Society of Oncology (ASCO) Editorial Fellowship. She received her Master’s in clinical and translational medicine (MS) from the University of Arkansas and served as a chief fellow. Her primary focus is to design and conduct clinical trials geared towards improving outcomes in Multiple Myeloma.

Myeloma survivor, patient advocate, wife, mom of 6. Believer that patients can help accelerate a cure by weighing in and participating in clinical research. Founder of the HealthTree Foundation.