Nancy Roach, Chair
A cancer survivor and advocate, Nancy knows how to make a difference. Nancy has been involved with the colorectal cancer community since 1996 when her mother-in-law was diagnosed with rectal cancer, and was a co-founder of the Colon Cancer Alliance in 1999. She works with the gastrointestinal research community, government agencies, elected officials and corporations, always pushing on behalf of people touched by colorectal cancer. She is affiliated with the National Cancer Institute Clinical Trials Working Group GI Steering Committee and SPORE program, serves on the Scientific Advisory Board for StandUp To Cancer along with the editorial board of the American Association of Cancer Research’s consumer magazine. She founded Fight Colorectal Cancer in 2005 in order to provide focus, infrastructure and support to the growing colorectal cancer advocacy movement.
Alan Balch, PhD, Vice Chair/Acting Treasurer
Alan is the newly appointed CEO of the Patient Advocate Foundation and National Patient Advocate Foundation, national non-profit organizations providing the patient voice in improving access to, and reimbursement for, high-quality healthcare through regulatory and legislative reform at the state and federal levels. Prior to this, Alan was the Vice President of the Preventive Health Partnership, a coalition effort of the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association and the American Heart Association
Alan became involved with public health advocacy after losing his grandmother to colorectal cancer in 2003.
Gordon Cole, Secretary
Gordon was a healthy 54-year-old with no symptoms when he was diagnosed with stage IV colorectal cancer in 2003. The Greensboro, NC commercial real estate appraiser (semi-retired) puts a large portion of his time into helping newly diagnosed patients navigate through the maze of difficulties and roadblocks often found when fighting this disease. He is also involved in fundraising for colorectal cancer research.
Gordon has been involved in Fight Colorectal Cancer’s Call-on Congress since 2007, and is also active with the North Carolina Comprehensive Cancer Program’s Survivorship Workgroup and other local survivor-related organizations.
Hélène Byrnes
Hélène Byrnes became involved with Fight Colorectal Cancer after her dearest friend Andrea Kramer was diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Hélène wanted to support her efforts in raising money for research through the Lisa Fund. She enjoys volunteering with organizations that directly impact her friends, family and community. Whether it be through the Rye (NY) Youth Council, sports clubs or schools, she tries to make a difference and raise money too.
Hélène also is involved with the American Cancer Society through their Diamond Luncheon. She serves on the board of the Woman’s Club of Rye, NY.
Sally Church, MBA, PhD
Sally is at heart a science geek with an uncanny ability to condense and distill vast amounts of information into simple, easily understood insights quickly and efficiently. Her particular interests are in oncology, hematology, immunology and respiratory medicine, with a particular focus on targeted therapies based on rational drug design based upon a deeper understanding of the science and biology behind the disease. She is recognized as an industry expert and has appeared on CNBC and NPR and has been widely quoted in the media. She was ranked one of the Top 50 Women of Twitter in 2011 (@maverickny).
Sally is the Executive Vice President at Icarus Consultants, a marketing consultancy for pharma and biotech companies. Much of her work involves new product development for novel cancer drugs in company pipelines from baby biotechs to big pharma.
Andrea Kramer
Diagnosed with stage III colorectal cancer in 2007 at the age of 47, Andrea became involved with Fight Colorectal Cancer through her interest in supporting research for late stage disease and is committed to growing Fight CRC’s Lisa Fund. Additionally, Andrea volunteers as an American Cancer Society patient navigator and a Road to Recovery driver.
Andrea also serves on the board of directors of the Cleveland Clinic’s Digestive Disease Institute. Andrea lives in Rye, NY with her husband Rob and children, Drew and Randi.
Indran Krishnan, MD, FRCP (London), FRCP(C), FACP, FACG
Dr. Indran Krishnan is a board certified gastroenterologist practicing in Lawrenceville, Georgia and a clinical professor of medicine at Emory University Medical School in Atlanta. He developed a special passion for colorectal cancer prevention after becoming close with some of his patients. He is a founding member of the Georgia Colon Cancer Coalition which focused on raising awareness for colorectal cancer prevention. He also had been part of the Colorectal Cancer Prevention Task Force for the Georgia Department of Community Health. He is the Past President & currently on the board of directors of the Georgia Gastroenterological and Endoscopic Society.
Indran is an active member of Medical Association of Georgia and has served on several committees, including the Colorectal Cancer Physician Advisory Committee, the House of Delegates, the Council on Legislation and Georgia Physicians Leadership Academy. He is a questions author and relevance reviewer for the Gastroenterology Examination Board of the American Board of Internal Medicine.
Dana Rye
Dana, a college athlete with no family history of the disease, was diagnosed with stage II colon cancer at age 24 in 2009. Since then, Dana has led fundraising and advocacy efforts for Fight Colorectal Cancer and attended Call-on Congress.
She is especially interested in the increasing rate of colon cancer diagnoses in younger patients. Dana lives in Manhattan and works as a high yield bond analyst at Credit Suisse, covering the healthcare and utility industries.
David Wicks
Since 1999, David Wicks has served a variety of increased roles and responsibilities in NASDAQ’s Global Corporate Client Group based in N.Y. David currently is Vice President of the NASDAQ MarketSite, Global programs and events – and products and strategy.
In this role, David manages all aspects of NASDAQ’s Times Square facility – including the NASDAQ Tower – one of the largest stationary video screens in the world. He also oversees all global events for the Global Corporate Client Group and manages the Market Intelligence Desk “MID”, and NASDAQ affinity program. He has spent over 20 years in the securities industry in a variety of analytical, marketing and sales roles. In 2012, David lost his father to colorectal cancer.
Fight Colorectal Cancer Staff
You may contact any staff member by sending an email to FirstName@FightColorectalCancer.org.
Carlea Bauman, President: Carlea brings 20 years of experience in communications, politics and advocacy to Fight Colorectal Cancer. As the National Director of Grassroots Advocacy for the American Diabetes Association (ADA), she directed ADA’s “Call to Congress: Conquer Diabetes,” which brought hundreds of diabetes advocates to Capitol Hill each election year. Prior to that, she was the Press Secretary for the groundbreaking Florida “Truth” Campaign, an initiative that resulted in a 10 percent drop in teen smoking within a single year. Her passion for health advocacy is personal: she lost her mother to diabetes and her father to cancer. Carlea got her start in politics working for the late Florida Governor Lawton Chiles and later at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in Washington, DC. She sits on the Advocacy Board for the Ruesch Center for Gastrointestinal Cancers at the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center and on the Editorial Board for the American Association for Cancer Research publication Cancer Today. Carlea is a graduate of Florida State University and resides in Northern Virginia with her husband and daughter.
Michael Sola, Vice President of Operations: Michael, a graduate of the State University of New York at Delhi, is a more-than-20-year technology and operations veteran. He has a mix of for- and nonprofit experience, spending the past decade in the environmental arena supporting the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the National Wildlife Federation. There, Michael introduced technical improvements and established collaborative relationships while implementing and building upon the concepts of social networking. He is an active blogger and contributing writer for Internet Management for Nonprofits: Strategies, Tools & Trade Secrets. He has spoken about nonprofit technology at the Nonprofit Technology Network’s (NTEN) workshops, the Chesapeake Bay Program and the Potomac River Keepers. He is a member of various NTEN work groups along with the national CIO 4 Good, a group dedicated to addressing technology initiatives, projects and challenges in the not-for-profit world. He joined Fight Colorectal Cancer in October 2011.
Anjee Davis, Vice President of Programs: Anjelica (“Anjee”) Davis joined Fight Colorectal Cancer in December 2011. She came from the University of South Carolina’s Center for Colon Cancer Research, managing the development and implementation of community-based colorectal cancer programs supporting screening, education, and awareness activities. Prior to that, in 2002, she was hired by a private oncology clinic to oversee clinical trials and recruitment. Ms. Davis brings a unique understanding of cancer research as well as clinical systems. She has a bachelor’s degree from Southwest Missouri State and a Master of Public Policy Administration from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Ms. Davis is a steering committee member for the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NCCRT), and a member of the South Carolina Cancer Alliance and the South Carolina Gastroenterology Association. Her awareness activities have been recognized by the Printing Industry of the Carolinas, Inc. for graphic communication excellence. In 2011, her work was recognized by the NCCRT’s Blue Star Challenge for “Originality” and “Education”.
Kim Ryan, Director of Patient Information Services: Kim’s 15 plus years of experience within the pharmaceutical industry makes her an incredible asset to the Fight Colorectal Cancer team and to the development and management of Answer Line at 877-4CRC-111 (877-427-2111). Her expertise ranges from patient advocacy to sales and marketing to product distribution and communications – primarily within the oncology arena. Fight Colorectal Cancer welcomes her breadth of knowledge regarding colorectal cancer as well as her personal passion for helping patients gain valuable information about their diagnoses and treatment options. Her commitment to fighting colorectal cancer stems from not only her previous work experience, but from personal loss: Kim’s father, Lt. General Martin J. Ryan, Jr. (USAF, Ret), died from colon cancer in 2005.
Kerranna Williamson, Program Coordinator: From Charleston, SC Kerranna joins the team with a background in colon cancer prevention/epidemiological research and community health, as well as in teaching and education. After dabbling in medical school, Kerranna chose to pursue preventive health in a research and public health capacity. She worked with Dr. Kristin Wallace at Hollings Cancer Center in Charleston, SC to develop and implement a community colon cancer screening program with a research component focused on health disparities and polyp incidence. As well, Kerranna has tutored high school and college students in a variety of subjects (mostly math, science, and French) for over 10 years and loves the process of helping a student realize their own learning potential. In 2011, to celebrate her victory of paying off all of her school debt, Kerranna moved to France to teach high school English and to indulge in all things wonderful about France (the language, the people, the culture, and the surroundings). Most recently, Kerranna co-managed and taught at a six-week summer intensive MCAT immersion program at UCSD for future medical students. After teaching for a year in France and a summer in San Diego, Kerranna has now returned to Charleston as a member of the Fight Colorectal Cancer team. She is thrilled to be back in the community, bringing tremendous energy and marvelous ideas to the cause.
Emily White, Program Coordinator: Emily joins Fight Colorectal Cancer as a recent graduate from the College of Charleston with a Bachelor’s degree in Communication and a focus in Political Communication. After completing her undergraduate degree in just three years, she joins the team with experience in public relations, campaign communication, and journalism. With a strong interest in politics and a background in communication, she is excited to help advocates work with politicians to successfully implement policy that is beneficial to our cause. Her passion towards cancer prevention stems from the loss of her grandmother to lung cancer and the recent Leukemia diagnosis of a close friend.
Jerri Lyn Mooney, Office Manager: Jerri Lyn brings 10 years of experience as an office manager to Fight Colorectal Cancer. Her background and expertise make her a valuable resource in handling the day-to-day activities of the organization. She is also well aware of the impact of cancer having lost her father in December 1999 to liver cancer. Most recently, she served as the office manager of TD Promotions and was with CSC Scientific Company before that, both based in Northern Virginia. Her current responsibilities include processing all financial transactions, maintaining Fight Colorectal Cancer’s database, fulfilling product orders and numerous other responsibilities to make sure the office runs smoothly. She is also the head tweeter for Fight Colorectal Cancer’s Twitter feed. Outside of work, Jerri Lyn is an active member of Society for Creative Anachronism and resides in Fairfax, VA with her sons Jacob and Ben.
Danielle Burgess, Community Blogger: Danielle is a two-time colorectal cancer survivor diagnosed at age 17 and again at age 25. Surviving colorectal cancer in high school paved her way to the University of Central Missouri where she earned a Bachelors of Science in Public Relations. Her goal? Work with the healthcare community and support those in the fight against cancer. After working at Kansas City advertising agency Kuhn & Wittenborn and as the Director of Communications for The Avenue Church, Danielle started Semicolon Communications. Danielle specializes in content writing and marketing consulting. She serves on the Board of Directors for The Colon Club and is a published devotional author.
Vanessa Kurtzer, Answer Line Associate: Vanessa Kurtzer is a certified Medical Interpreter and Patient Navigator. After her husband’s diagnosis of stage III rectal cancer, she realized the necessity of guiding patients and families through the complex medical system. Vanessa is passionate and committed to assisting patients and families living with the difficult diagnosis of colorectal cancer. She was born and raised in South Texas and is fluent in Spanish. She graduated from the University of Cincinnati with a Bachelor’s of Arts degree. She resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, with her husband and two children.
