Moving Medicine Forward: Highlighting Humanity and Patient Experience in Clinical Trials

Dan has spent the majority of his life engaged in making the healthcare system more responsive to the needs of patients. Dan holds a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree with distinction in research from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. He recently moved back to Rochester after having spent the last 10 years in Boston as a resident in neurology and as a consultant to biotech, pharma, and industry. Dan has extensive experience in the immuno-oncology space, having also served as the Executive Director, Medical Strategy and Development, for Advaxis Immunotherapies. He is passionate about improving the prevention and treatment of cancer, educating and advocating for patients, and reshaping healthcare to be effective, efficient, and equitable.

Rachel Byrd has been serving as a scientific researcher for the last five years between her academic training and professional experience. She received her Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience from Central Michigan University and her Master of Science in Health Science with an emphasis in Molecular Medicine from Montana State University. 

Rachel finds her passion for improving the patient experience from her own personal experiences with the healthcare system. Her youngest sister is a survivor of Stage IV Wilm’s Tumor, which shaped much of their family life during Rachel’s childhood. During her undergraduate degree, Rachel lost her paternal aunt and uncle to aggressive cancer diagnoses. Seeing the successes and failures of the healthcare system led her to consider how she could use her career to make a difference in healthcare. Her early professional career was spent in antiviral claims testing, and she soon transitioned her focus to patient experience research with Gryt Health’s research team, where she serves currently as a Senior Research Coordinator.

In addition to her professional experience, Rachel personally identifies as a mental health advocate. She strongly believes in using her personal experiences to help break the stigma surrounding the pursuit of mental health treatment. In everything that she does, she seeks to elevate ALL voices to improve the healthcare system today. Rachel is currently located in Bozeman, Montana, with her cat, Milo, where she spends her free time enjoying all that Big Sky Country has to offer. 

Brian McMahon is a four-time cancer caregiver, a recipient of the 40 Under 40 in Cancer award and the founder of SparkCures. Over the past 6 years, SparkCures has worked with thousands of myeloma patients around the country to help them better understand their clinical trial options.

Cara Stabile is the Associate Director of Patient Engagement Capabilities at  (BMS). She oversees BMS Study Connect, a website dedicated to helping patients and caregivers learn about clinical trials. Prior to BMS, Cara worked at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), where she specialized in quality of life and patient-reported outcomes (PRO) research in oncology. She has also worked with patients and caregivers to develop digital platforms to operationalize patient engagement and clinical trial recruitment and retention initiatives. Cara earned a bachelor’s degree in Biobehavioral Health at Pennsylvania State University and her MPH in Epidemiology at Columbia University.

Karriem Watson, D.H.Sc., M.S., M.P.H., is the Chief Engagement Officer of the All of Us Research Program at the National Institutes of Health. In this role, he leads the Division of Engagement and Outreach, overseeing the program’s efforts to foster relationships with participants, community partners, researchers, and providers across the United States. His focus will be on engaging people and populations who have been left out of medical research in the past and inviting them to help drive new biomedical discoveries.  

Karriem comes to All of Us from his role as associate executive director of the Mile Square Health Center, a group of Federally Qualified Health Centers in Chicago affiliated with the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System. He also served as the associate director of community outreach and engagement for the University of Illinois Cancer Center and as a research assistant professor in the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) School of Public Health. Beyond his work with UIC, he has served as co-lead of the All of Us Engagement Core at the Meharry-Vanderbilt Alliance, cultivating positive relationships with the program’s participant ambassadors. 

Karriem holds a Doctorate in Health Science (Global Health), a Master of Science in Basic Medical Research, and a Master’s in Public Health (Community Health Sciences). He has served as a principal investigator on multiple projects including those funded by the National Cancer Institute, the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, and the All of Us Research Program. His expertise in community-academic partnerships is also supported in his role as board chair of the Community Campus Partnerships for Health. His contributions have earned him recognition by the Chicago Urban League, American Heart Association, LUNGevity Foundation, and others.