When in 1994, Philippa was diagnosed with breast cancer she was an informed patient, the cancer was detected early, and she had insurance, access to treatment options, excellent doctors, powerful support systems, a loving family and God in control.

Philippa survived a radical mastectomy with reconstruction, chemotherapy for nine months, hair loss, nausea, headaches, pain; fatigue….the list goes on.

Philippa is committed to use her survival as a tool to teach and touch women (and men) in her life as a breast health advocate using readily available life changing information such as the importance of early detection, self awareness and regular clinical screening; emphasis on preventive measures through healthy life style choices and access to appropriate diagnosis and treatment options. She strongly believes that health care is a human right and such, geography or where one lives should not determine whether one lives or dies. The fight against breast cancer must be on worldwide and it must it must be won worldwide for breast cancer does not discriminate.

Philippa’s affiliations: Sisters Network for seven years. Susan G Komen for the Cure Houston: currently as a volunteer on the education committee, Initial leader Project Pink. Sponsor, Project Pink at Langham Creek High School where she teaches.

Member of Breast Health Collaborative of Texas, National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC).

2007, Philippa founded Breast Cancer Initiative East Africa Inc. (BCIEA INC) a 501 (c),3, tax exempt, nonprofit organization whose mission is to ensure that no patient faces breast cancer fearfully and hopelessly alone.

She is currently working with East Africa refugees in Harris County, Houston. She travels once a year to East Africa promoting BCIEA mission while forging for building the necessary

infrastructure for sustainable breast health services in East Africa.

Philippa lives with her husband Lee, in Houston, Texas. Together they have two adult children, Kwame and Lisa and two precious grand children, Jaylon and Lia.

Philippa’s message: Early Detection is the Best Protection!

Ukaguzi Mapema Ndiyo Ulinzi Bora!

Board Certification: Internal Medicine, 1986 & Medical Oncology, 1988

Residency: Yale-New Haven Hospital, Internal Medicine, 1982-85

Fellowship: National Institutes of Health, Hematology, 1985-86; Johns Hopkins Cancer Center, Medical Oncology, 1986-88

Medical School: Tufts University School of Medicine, 1982

Medical Degree: Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Internship: Internal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine.

Residency: Internal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine.

Fellowship: Hematology/Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas. Chief Medical Fellow.

Board Certified: Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology and Hematology.

Dr. Eric P. Kleinbaum started his medical training and completed his first year of medical courses at the Sackler School of Medicine, Israel.

He earned his Medical Degree from Jefferson Medical School in Philadelphia. During his fellowship, he actively participated and managed different oncological and hematological disorder studies. As Chief Fellow, he participated in the development of the academic curricula for the fellowship program. Dr. Kleinbaum's main area of interest is gastrointestinal malignancies and a chapter on gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) will be published soon in a textbook of surgical oncology.

Dr. Kleinbaum's stellar performance during his education and medical training has prepared him to join the professional staff at Northwest Cancer Center in 2006. He is a member of the American College of Physicians, The American Society of Clinical Oncology and The American Society of Hematology.

Dr. Kleinbaum values the trust that his patients place on his care. He deeply respects a patient ability to make informed decisions about their treatments and thus, he places great emphasis in education and communication. As a world traveler, he has become an excellent gourmet cook. He also enjoys competitive sports.  He and his wife, Brenda, enjoy outdoor sports.

She was Board Certified in Family Practice (AAFP) in 1987 and re-certified in 1995, in Hyperbaric Medicine 1998 and by the American Association of Disability Analyst in 2000. With 22 years experience ranging from Emergency Medicine to private practice, Dr. Atkins focuses on an Integrative approach blending traditional care with a holistic care to insure the best outcome for the patient.

Currently she is the medical director of the Center for Wellness and Healing, PA providing “patient-focused” healthcare directed toward prevention and wellness. Dr Atkins has authored magazine publications is a lecturer and speaks nationally and internationally.

She was designated “Doctor of the Year” by the Alternative and Integrative Medical Association and acknowledged by numerous organizations for her work in the community.

She is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., a wife, a mother and a role model to others seeking to make a difference.

She is the founder and CEO of CENTER FOR WELLNESS AND HEALING

She completed a residency in Internal Medicine at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami, and a Fellowship in Medical Oncology at the Ochsner Clinic Foundation in New Orleans. She then went to the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to specialize in Breast Cancer as she was selected as the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Fellow. She stayed at MD Anderson faculty and works exclusively with Breast Cancer patients and in Breast Cancer research. She is interested in aggressive types of breast cancer including triple receptor-negative disease.

Her research focuses on mechanisms of resistance to standard breast cancer therapies, and on the development of markers to predict response to treatments using functional proteomics. She is funded by the NCI, ASCO, Komen for the Cure, AACR (SU2C) and the Commonwealth Foundation for Cancer research.

She is the Chair of the Endocrine Resistance Working Group and a member of the Correlative Sciences Working Group for the Translational Breast Cancer Research Consortium, and a member of the Breast Cancer Committee of SWOG and of the BIG-NABG Triple Negative Working Group.

She serves as a member of the steering committee of The United States – Middle East Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness and Research and the Partnership for Breast Cancer Awareness and Research of the Americas.

Associate Professor of Medicine

Departments of Breast Medical Oncology and Systems Biology

The University of Texas, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center

Co-Director, Perini Family Survivors' Center; Director, Lance Armstrong Adult Cancer Survivorship Program

Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School. Discipline: Medical Oncologist

Interests: Breast cancer, medical and psychosocial late and long-term effects of cancer treatment.Background

Board Certification: Internal Medicine, 1986; Medical Oncology, 1988

Residency: Yale-New Haven Hospital, Internal Medicine, 1982-85

Fellowship: National Institutes of Health, Hematology, 1985-86; Johns Hopkins Cancer Center, Medical Oncology, 1986-88

Medical School: Tufts University School of Medicine, 1982

He is a Board Certified Internist having completed his residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston, Texas. Masozera holds a Masters degree in Public Health from Columbia University, New York.

He is a graduate of Makerere University Medical School in Kampala, Uganda.

Chief, Division of Investigative Pathology

Effie and Wofford Cain Centennial Endowed Chair in Clinical Pathology

Scott & White Memorial Hospital and Clinic and The Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine

Biography:

Alexzander A. A. Asea received his Ph.D., in Medical Microbiology and Immunology from the University of Gothenburg, Sweden in 1995 where his studies helped form the basis for clinical trials of combined immunotherapy with histamine and interleukin-2 in metastatic melanoma and high-risk acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). Dr. Asea went on to perform postdoctoral training at the University of Miami School of Medicine and then to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School. In 2002, Dr. Asea was recruited as the Deputy Director for the Center for Molecular Stress Response at Boston University School of Medicine and the Boston Medical Center. During this time, the center tested heat shock protein/dendritic cell-based vaccines in breast cancer, and successfully produced a vaccine that is effective in a murine model and is now geared towards Phase I clinical trials.

In 2005, Dr. Asea was recruited to Scott & White Hospital and the Texas A&M Health Science Center College of Medicine as the Effie and Wofford Cain Centennial Endowed Chair in Clinical Pathology and Chief, Division of Investigative Pathology. Dr. Asea's research centers on the role of heat shock proteins in human disease. His initial observations studying the effect of heat shock proteins on human monocytes lead to the proposal of a novel paradigm; that heat shock proteins previously known to be an intracellular molecular chaperone, can be found in the extracellular milieu where it has regulatory effects on immunocompetent cells. Additional discoveries including the recent finding that surface expression of heat shock proteins differentially regulate tumor growth and metastasis, and that silencing these proteins eliminates the migration capability of the highly metastatic breast adenocarcinoma in vitro and in vivo, has opened a new front in the fight against cancer.

Dr. Asea has received numerous honors and awards, and has received grant funding for his studies from the federal government, industry, and private foundations. He currently has 2 patents, over 80 scientific publications, books and reviews in the field of cancer research. Dr. Asea is the editor of the book series Heat Shock Proteins (Springer Publications) and currently the Biology & Chemistry Counselor for the Society of Thermal Medicine, a scientific society focused on combining hyperthermia and radiation with current therapies for curing cancer and other human diseases.

Medical Degree: Geneva University Medical School, Switzerland.

Internship: State University of New York Health Science Center, Kings County Hospital, Brooklyn, New York.

Residency: Internal Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas.

Fellowship: Hematology/Oncology, the University of Texas, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Teaching: Former Faculty, Department of Medicine; Hematology/Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine.

Board Certified: Internal Medicine, Medical Oncology and Hematology.

Dr. Gressot joined the Northwest Cancer Center in 1998, bringing extensive experience in oncology and hematology to the practice. As an educator and clinical researcher, he has published several papers on solid tumor treatments and new drug development, and continues his interest in coagulation disorders and genetic applications in the development of new medications.

Dr. Gressot has a keen interest in the role nutrition plays in the care of his patients. Dr. Gressot is a member of the American Medical Association, Texas Medical Association, and the American Society of Hematology and Clinical Oncology. He was included among the Texas Monthly "Super Docs" in 2004, 2005 and 2006, and has also been named one of America 's Top Physicians by the Consumer's Research Council of America for two successive years.

Dr. Gressot and his wife, Charlotte, have three daughters. He is an outdoor sports enthusiast and he especially enjoys yoga, bird watching skiing and tennis. Dr. Gressot's approach to patient care is one of sensitivity, encouragement, and awareness of the spiritual journey his patients embrace.

Medical Degree: Cordoba Medical School, Argentina, Magna Cum Laude.

Internship: Medicine, Jewish Hospital and Medical Center, Brooklyn, New York.

Residency: Medicine, Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center, Brooklyn, New York.

Fellowship: Medical Oncology, the University of Texas System Center, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Teaching: Former Faculty as Assistant Professor of Medicine, Thoracic Oncology and Medical Breast Center, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Board Certified: Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology.

Dr. Casmir earned her medical degree from Cordoba National University Medical School, Argentina, Magna Cum Laude at 22 years of age. Dr. Casmir opened Northwest Cancer Center in 1990. She is a founding Member of the Texas Society of Medical Oncology. Dr. Casmir served a three year term as the Cancer Liaison Physician for the American College of Surgeons. She has served in a variety of leadership capacities for local hospitals, medical organizations, and community groups, including being a member of the Executive Committee at several local hospitals. Dr. Casmir received the prestigious American Cancer Society's Sword of Hope Award, and has been named one of America 's Top Physicians by the Consumer's Research Council of America. Since 2005, Dr. Casmir has been appointed to the commission on cancer for the Texas Medical Association.

Dr. Casmir’s approach to patient care is both multidimensional and comprehensive. As an educator by training and inclination, she encourages patients and their family members to take an active role in decision-making, and to make a commitment to realizing their full healing potential.

Dr. Casmir has two children and three grandchildren. She enjoys all types of expressive and performing arts.

General Surgeon, specialized in Diseases of the Breast and a Clinical Instructor of Surgery at The University of Texas –Houston Medical School

Honors:
- The Methodist Hospital-Sugar Land - Female Physician of the Year 2010
- Memorial Hermann Hospital-Sugar Land - Female Physician of the Year 2007
- Harris County Medical Society’s Resident Abstract Competition 2002- First Place
- Dean's Honor Scholarship and National Merit Scholarship from Tulane
- Tulane Dean’s List
- Fred R. Cagle Award for Excellence in Biology, 1994
- David M. Berger Award for Service to Club Sports and Academic Achievement, 1995
- Shelby G. Friedrichs Award for Commitment to Club Sports, 1994

- Member of:
- Fellow, American College of Surgeons
- American Society of Breast Disease
- American Society of Breast Surgeons
- Texas Medical Association
- Harris County Medical Society

Hospital Affiliates:
- Memorial Hermann Hospital Sugar Land
- The Methodist Hospital Sugar Land
- St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital Sugar Land

Omar Kiggundu completed his undergraduate studies in Economics and Mathematics from Yale University and his international baccalaureate from St. Clare’s College, Oxford, in the United Kingdom, and has work experience in several nations including Uganda and Indonesia.

After his undergraduate studies, Omar worked in the investment banking sector in New York, where he was a leading analyst and among the pioneers of the fixed income department’s life finance group at Credit Suisse through the end of 2006. He then joined K&S Consulting as, its Chief Operating Officer and later its Chief Financial Officer, as the company matured, heading its operations and its financial and accounting departments.

In 2000, Omar worked with One World International, a multinational non-profit organization, at its regional headquarters in Lusaka, Zambia. At One World, Omar gained first hand non-profit sector administration experience in Sub-Saharan Africa where his work centered on building and integrating the organization’s regional network. He has since participated with various non-profit organizations in the region including Amnesty International and the Heifer Foundation, and is an active member of two non-profit organizations domiciled in the United States with a focus on development and education in East Africa.

After working seven years as a Licensed Practical Nurse, received Associates Degree in Nursing in 1989.

In 1995, began a business career in Medical Case management, and after partnering with two other companies, decided to pursue further education in business, thus Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management acquired in 2005.

August 2005, everything changed, Hurricane Katrina destroyed business. I relocated to Pearland Texas in August 2006. Accepted employment with small hospital in Lake Jackson Texas, and after one year was hired by MD Anderson Cancer Center. After exactly three (3) months of employment, I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer, and there my journey began…

Treasurer and Executive Director BCIEA Rwanda

Survivor, Advocate

Young, Survivor, Advocate

Advocate / Representative Kenya

Business Management Advisor

Executive Director/Founder of C101/Advisor