Signal Genetics Announces Establishment of Scientific Advisory Board

NEW YORK, Oct. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Signal Genetics, the parent company of Myeloma Health, a privately held predictive genetic testing company focused on oncology, today announced the formation of their Scientific Advisory Board. They include:

Kenneth Anderson, M.D.

Director, Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Kraft Family Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Dr. Anderson of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School holds the title of Kraft Family Professor of Medicine. Dr. Anderson graduated from John Hopkins Medical School, trained in internal medicine at Johns Hopkins hospital, and completed hematology and medical oncology training at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Focusing on myeloma, Dr. Anderson is also the director of the Lebow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.  Dr. Anderson is internationally known for his studies on myeloma and received the Waldenstrom's Award, the Robert A. Kyle Lifetime Achievement Award, the AACR Joseph A. Burchenal Award, and the ASH William Dameshek Prize for his pioneering work in myeloma biology and therapeutics, and  is a member of the Institute of Medicine.

Keith Stewart, M.B. Ch.B., MBA

Professor of Medicine, Mayo Clinic

Dr. Stewart of the Department of Internal Medicine at the Mayo Clinic holds the rank of professor of medicine while being awarded the Vasek and Anna Maria Polak Professorship in Cancer Research. Having earned his medical degree at the Aberdeen University Medical School in the United Kingdom and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Western Ontario in Canada, Dr. Stewart's research focuses on the fundamental biological aspects and treatment of multiple myeloma.

Dr. Stewart is also a member of the Royal College of Physicians in London, a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in Canada, specialist in hematology at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, and serves as the Dean of Research at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona. Dr. Stewart is one of the world's leading oncologists specializing in myeloma.

David Gelfand, Ph.D.

Collaborateur International Expert Etranger. Commissariat a l'Energie Atomique et Centre National de Genotypage, and Chief Scientific Officer at WaferGen Biosystems, Inc.

Dr. Gelfand graduated from the University of California, San Diego with a Ph.D. in Biology. Dr Gelfand currently holds over 50 patents and has amassed a wide breadth of industry knowledge through his over 30 years of industry experience, which included posts at Roche Molecular Systems where he played a leading role in developing Designer DNA Polymerases for molecular diagnostics and in the emergence and evolution of DNA sequencing, and at Cetus Corporation where he helped pioneer one of the cornerstones of modern day molecular biology, the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). In addition to these aforementioned accomplishments, Dr. Gelfand also received the United States Distinguished Inventor Award in 1990 for Taq DNA Polymerase.

Currently, Dr. Gelfand serves as the Chief Scientific Officer at WaferGen Biosystems, Inc., a company that develops Real-time PCR based microarrays for target discovery and validation. Dr. Gelfand also collaborates with the Centre National de Genotypage as an international expert.

Cynthia French, Ph.D., MBA

Chief Scientific Officer at Exiqon, Inc.

Dr. French graduated from the University of California, Irvine with her Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Biochemistry along with an MBA. Dr. French possesses over 25 years of industry experience in the fields of R&D, technical operations, regulatory affairs, marketing, and business administration with positions at Affymetrix and Quest.

Dr. French most recently served as the Chief Scientific Officer for Exiqon, Inc., a company focusing on searching for microRNA biomarkers for various cancers and applying biomarkers to the development of companion diagnostics.

Dr. Craig Keyes, M.D., MBA

Dr. Keyes is formerly an executive with United Health Group, holding such positions as President and CEO of UnitedHealthcare of Colorado, CEO of UnitedHealthcare of New York Tri-State, National SVP of Sales, and Chief Medical Officer, Northern Division. Having earned his medical degree at the University of Wisconsin and MBA from Columbia University School of Business, Dr. Keyes is Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Geriatric Medicine. He is a member of the American College of Physicians. Dr. Keyes served on the Managed Care Advisory Board at Quest Diagnostics where he advised the Company on the reimbursement profile of new, innovative diagnostic tests being considered for launch in the physician market.

"We are honored to have such an impactful and well respected group of scientists and medical practitioners assisting us as we commercialize important tools in cancer genetics," said CEO, Joe Hernandez. "The advisors assembled are thought leaders in their respective industries, with their insight and guidance, Signal Genetics is poised to become a front runner in the ever evolving and growing arena of predictive genetic testing and companion diagnostics."

About Signal Genetics.

Signal Genetics, the parent company of Myeloma Health, is a privately held predictive genetic testing company directed towards cancer patients. The goal of Signal Genetics is to supply cancer patients with their correlated predictive outcome of disease stage, odds of relapse, and guide physicians to the optimal treatment regimen based on their specific genetic expression profile. Additional information available at www.signalgenetics.com.

SOURCE Signal Genetics