Allan T. Bombard, M.D., FACOG, FACS, FACMG, Medical Director
Anne-Renee Hartman, M.D., Oncology Advisor
Huijun Z. Ring, Ph.D., F.A.C.M.G., Director of Pharmacogenetics
Elissa Levin, M.S., CGC, Clinical Director
Lisa Kessler, M.S., CGC, Clinical & Advocacy Coordinator
Ryan Phelan, Founder and CEO
Lisa E. Lee, Director of Content Development
Alla Rogers, Information Technology Manager
Kipp McMichael, Web Developer
Adam Ward, Office Manager
Kemp Battle, Investment Banker, Tucker Capital
Ryan Phelan, Founder and CEO, DNA Direct
Brad Popovich, Ph.D., CEO, Sirius Genomics
Sharon F. Terry, CEO, Genetic Alliance
C. S. Yannias, Board Member and former CEO, Encyclopaedia Britannica
Katherine A. Rauen MD, Ph.D. University of California, San Francisco Pediatrics and Medical Genetics Faculty
George Church, Ph.D., Harvard Medical School and Harvard Lipper Center for Computational Genomics
Philip D. Cotter, Ph.D., Director, Cytogenetics and Molecular Genetics, Children's Hospital and Research Center, Oakland.
Andy Faucett, M.S., CGC, Director, Genomics and Public Health Program, Emory University School of Medicine
Ora Karp Gordon, M.D., M.S., Director, GenRISK Program, Cedars-Sinai and Co-director, Gilda Radner Ovarian Cancer Screening Program
Frank McCormick, Ph.D., FRS, Director, University of California San Francisco Cancer Center and Cancer Research Institute
Arlene J. Morales, M.D., Fertility Specialists Medical Group
Brad Popovich, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer, Sirius Genomics
Julia Kirchheiner, MD, Ph.D., Professor University of Ulm, Germany
Alan Eshleman, MD, Ph.D.
Clinical Experts
Allan T. Bombard, M.D., FACOG, FACS, FACMG
Medical Director
Dr. Allan Bombard is Chief Medical Officer, Sharp Mary Birch Hospital in San Diego, California, the largest women's hospital in the western United States. Previously, Dr. Bombard was the chair of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Lutheran Medical Center and has served as Western US Medical Director for Women's Health at Aetna US Healthcare. He holds the rank of Professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the State University of New York at Downstate Medical Center. Dr. Bombard is an established leader who has worked to bridge the fields of Ob/Gyn and genetics, improving and increasing access to healthcare services.
Dr. Bombard is board-certified in both clinical genetics and obstetrics/gynecology. He received his Bachelor of Arts from Colgate University and his Doctor of Medicine from the George Washington University. He completed a residency in Ob/Gyn at the Wilford Hall USAF Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, and his fellowship in Human Genetics at Northwestern University.
Dr. Bombard retired from the USAF Reserves in 2002 with the rank of Colonel, and served in Operation Desert Storm. He is a Founding Fellow of the American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG), a Fellow of the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists (ACOG) as well as the American College of Surgeons (ACS), and a life member of the American College of Physician Executives (ACPE). He has lectured extensively on a variety of women’s health issues including genetic counseling, prenatal screening and diagnosis, the business of medicine, and BRCA screening. His articles have appeared in peer-reviewed medical journals such as the Lancet and the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
Anne-Renee Hartman, M.D.
Oncology Advisor
Anne-Renee Hartman, MD, is board certified in Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology, and specializes in both clinical breast cancer and breast cancer genetics. She is a medical consultant for DNA Direct. Previously, Dr. Hartman held a faculty position as Assistant Professor of Medicine at Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, where she focused on the clinical treatment and management of breast cancer patients and women at high risk for developing breast cancer. During her fellowship at Stanford, she developed The Breast Cancer Genetics Clinic, developing and implementing novel clinical protocols to detect breast cancer and precancerous breast lesions at their earliest stages.
Dr. Hartman trained at the University of Chicago in Internal Medicine and completed a five-year fellowship at Stanford University in clinical oncology with a research focus on understanding the role of hereditary breast cancer genes in DNA repair and developing novel screening strategies for high-risk women. She is a member of The Amercian Society of Clinical Oncology where she previously held the position of Track Leader for the Fellows and Junior Faculty Program of the Cancer Education Committee.
Huijun Z. Ring, Ph.D., F.A.C.M.G.
Director of Pharmacogenetics
Dr. Huijun Z. Ring is a clinical molecular geneticist, board-certified by the American Board of Medical Genetics. Dr. Ring received her Ph.D. in molecular biology and genetics at Cornell University and completed her post-doctoral medical genetics training at Stanford University School of Medicine. She is a fellow of the American College of Medical Genetics.
Dr. Ring has worked in the field of pharmacogenetics, in both industry and academic settings, prior to joining DNA Direct. She led the pharmacogenetics program at Incyte Genomics, Inc., where she guided the development of many innovative products and services that enabled pharmaceutical companies to incorporate genetics and genomics into drug discovery and development processes. She was a principal investigator in the Pharmacogenetics Research Network of the National Institute of Health, and oversaw several large scale genetic association studies. She also was a key contributor to the Human Variome Project, an international effort to catalogue all human genetic variations relevant to a wide range of genetic disorders and drug responses.
At DNA Direct, Dr. Ring is dedicated to developing and providing premium pharmacogenetics testing and consultation services which will help consumers and physicians use genetic information to select safer and more effective drug therapies. She also has a deep interest in the science, ethics and societal issues of personalized medicine and global health.
Elissa Levin, M.S., CGC
Clinical Director
Elissa R. Levin is a board-certified genetic counselor with diverse professional experience in both clinical and research genetics. Levin comes to DNA Direct after working as a genetic counselor at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center. As a member of both the General and Biochemical Genetics teams, she provided direct counseling services for children and adults with a diverse array of conditions. She also managed a late stage clinical trial for enzyme replacement therapy and transition to clinical use upon FDA approval. During her time at UCSF, she enjoyed the challenge of providing genetic education to both clients and medical trainees.
Before relocating to the Bay Area, Levin coordinated a collaborative national research project at the renowned Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. She provided genetic education and counseling services for interested families and ensured informed consent for study participants.
Levin also has experience working in cytogenetics and molecular genetics laboratories. The combined background of counseling and lab work has provided her with a solid foundation for conveying accurate interpretations of test results.
Levin is dedicated to providing responsible, comprehensive genetic services and strives to provide multiple media resources to facilitate understanding of complex genetic information. At DNA Direct, she hopes to create an innovative model of genetic counseling using the Web to reach a wide consumer base that may not currently have access to genetic services.
Lisa Kessler, M.S., CGC
Clinical & Advocacy Coordinator
Lisa R. Kessler is a board-certified genetic counselor with a background in medical genetics and research. Kessler worked in adult genetics at the University of Pennsylvania, Division of Medical Genetics, where she had the opportunity to meet with patients and families with a variety of different medical concerns including hemochromatosis, hereditary cancer syndromes, Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia, and Marfan syndrome.
Kessler helped design and manage research for individuals who have had Aortic Dissections and she presented the findings at several national conferences. Kessler also has experience providing genetic counseling to women with hereditary breast cancer as part of a research study that focused on African American women. One of the goals of this project was to create a successful referral network including local hospitals, physician offices, and support groups. Kessler has had several publications resulting from this research and enjoyed the opportunity to reach out to women who may not otherwise benefit from access to genetic counseling.
Kessler is often inspired by her patients, learning from their determination, strength, and commitment to helping others. She has observed the development and utilization of support groups, and the significant impact these groups have made. Kessler is enthusiastic about helping DNA Direct create lasting relationships with advocacy organizations to promote increased access to genetic services.
Staff
Ryan Phelan
Founder and CEO
Ryan Phelan is an entrepreneur and businesswoman - influential in diverse fields from education and health care to software development and the equestrian industry. She excels at starting for-profit businesses, as well as non-profit organizations, building their staff, board, and partnerships, turning concept into reality, resulting in high quality service and products.
Phelan's current business and focus is DNA Direct, a company that provides direct-to-consumer genetic testing and related consumer oriented genomic services.
Phelan has been a strong consumer health advocate for the past 25 years, having started the first medical library for consumers in 1978. As Founding Director of Planetree, a nonprofit consumer health care organization, she helped create a national model for humanizing hospitals, (an experimental 13-bed medical surgical unit at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco) and a national model for providing health information to the public, the Planetree Resource Center.
Today the Planetree Alliance is a group of over 85 innovative hospitals and health care institutions with shared values, goals and experiences dedicated to implementing Planetree programs. http://www.planetree.org/about/about.htm
In 1995 she founded Direct Medical Knowledge (DMK). DMK was an extensive consumer health web site highly regarded for its unique content depth and innovative search interface. DMK developed proprietary software that enabled users to drill down through the most current medical literature and retrieve personalized health and medical information. As CEO of DMK, Ms. Phelan forged alliances with major medical institutions, national health care plans, publishers, and consumer groups. In 1999 Direct Medical Knowledge was acquired by WebMD, a leader in the Internet health information industry. DMK’s content became the backbone of WebMD's consumer health site, http://my.webmd.com/
She is a co-founder of the ALL Species Foundation, a global science initiative to discover all life on Earth in the next 25 years. In 2002, Phelan served as CEO for the ALL Species Foundation http://www.all-species.org/ and continues her involvement today by serving on the Governing Board of Directors.
Lisa E. Lee
Director of Content Development
Lisa Lee is a 15-year veteran of consumer health and medical publishing. She strives to make clinical health and medical information accessible and relevant to readers of all levels.
As Director of Content Partnerships & Special Projects at WebMD, she developed partnerships with premier medical publishers, educational institutions, nursing organizations, and nonprofit health organizations to develop features and programs for WebMD's consumer and professional channels.
Prior to WebMD, she worked with Ms. Phelan at Direct Medical Knowledge, developing a licensing and partnership program for the company from R&D through beta and commercial launches. She has also developed and managed an editorial program for creating high-quality, peer-reviewed content, and produced branded content features for other Web sites.
Prior to her work in internet publishing, Lee acquired and developed award-winning health and self-help books as Senior Editor at Hunter House Publishers. She has edited and ghostwritten consumer health and sexuality books.
Lee received her Bachelors in English from Pomona College, and has studied at Cambridge University and University of California, Berkeley. She is also a certified doula who assists women and couples during pregnancy, childbirth, and post-natal recovery.
Alla Rogers
Information Technology Manager
Alla Rogers graduated from Hawaii Pacific University in 2002 with a degree in Business Administration in Computer Information Systems.
Rogers then started her career at a Hawaiian company that designed, integrated, and customized content management systems (CMS). Her duties included modification and design of CMS features, communication with clients, analysis of their needs and matching CMS features to best serve clients' business needs.
In addition to computer science, Rogers has an interest in the field of genetics. She feels fortunate to have become part of a team whose members share the same passion and posess great knowledge in her fields of interest.
Kipp McMichael
Web & Interface Developer
Kipp McMichael hails from the Heart of Dixie. Before starting a career as a web and interface developer, he earned bachelor's degrees in Anthropology, Psychology, and Philosophy from the University of Alabama and a masters degree in Cognitive Psychology from Indiana University.
McMichael moved to San Francisco to join the dotcom boom in 2001 and has held a variety of web development positions. He is particularly intrigued by the design and interface challenges DNA Direct faces in bringing genetic testing services directly to consumers.
He is confident that the DNA Direct team, and the consumers it empowers, are ready to face those challenges: Ipsa scientia potestas est.
Adam Ward
Office Manager
Adam Ward comes to DNA Direct with a diverse background in the fields of business management, journalism and administrative support.
Ward is a 1997 graduate of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, with a degree in English. After graduating, he moved to Jackson Hole, WY, where he became the editor of the Jackson Hole Daily Guide. For nearly five years, he was responsible for the editorial content and graphic design of the entire newspaper.
After leaving the Guide to travel abroad, he became the Operations Manager of an employment business, where he learned valuable business management skills over a two-year period. Adam has recently relocated to the Bay Area.
Ward has a keen interest in genomics and is excited to help provide direct-to-consumer access to genetic tests.
Medical Advisors
Katherine A. Rauen, M.D., Ph. D. served as medical director of DNA Direct from 2005-2007 and is currently on the faculty at the University of California, San Francisco and Stanford University in both Pediatrics and Medical Genetics. She attends on both the general and biochemical genetics service. Her research program involves the clinical and basic science study of cancer syndromes to identify underlying genetic abnormalities that may affect common developmental and cancer pathways. Recently, her team discovered the genetic cause of cardio-facio-cutaneous syndrome (CFC). Rauen received her doctorate in Genetics at the University of California at Davis, and obtained her medical degree at the University of California at Irvine.
Philip D. Cotter, Ph.D., FACMG received his doctorate in Biomedical Sciences from the Department of Human Genetics at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. He is Board Certified by the American Board of Medical Genetics in both Clinical Cytogenetics and Clinical Molecular Biology and is a Fellow of the American College of Medical Genetics. Dr. Cotter is currently Vice President of Clinical Laboratories at Biocept Inc., San Diego, Adjunct Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of California San Francisco and Director of Cytogenetics and Molecular Genetics at Children's Hospital and Research Center in Oakland, California.
Andy Faucett, M.S., CGC, is Director of the Genomics and Public Health Program at Emory University School of Medicine. He has an Interagency Professional Agreement (IPA) appointment at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and serves as Program Coordinator of the CETT Program (www.cettprogram.org) for the NIH Office of Rare Diseases. Previously he worked as a clinical genetic counselor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX. He received his Master's of Science in Human Genetics from Sarah Lawrence College. He has served on the Board of Directors for National Society of Genetic Counselors and the American Board of Genetic Counseling.
Ora Karp Gordon, M.D., M.S. is Director of the GenRISK Adult Genetics Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and co-director of the Gilda Radner Ovarian Cancer Screening Program. She is an assistant professor of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). A diplomat of the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Medical Genetics, Dr. Gordon's primary research interests include the study of common disease genetics and prevention of breast cancer in high-risk patients.
Frank McCormick, Ph.D., FRS, is director of the University of California San Francisco Comprehensive Cancer Center and Cancer Research Institute. Prior to joining the UCSF faculty, Dr. McCormick pursued cancer-related work with several Bay Area biotechnology firms including Cetus Corporation and Chiron Corporation, and he also founded Onyx Pharmaceuticals. In addition to his position as director of the UCSF Cancer Center, McCormick holds the David A. Wood Chair of Tumor Biology and Cancer Research in UCSF's Department of Microbiology and Immunology. He has been a Fellow of the Royal Society since 1996.
Arlene J. Morales, M.D., FACOG, is nationally recognized as a leader in reproductive endocrinology and bioethics and has extensive experience in treating multi-faceted infertility issues. She is a partner in Fertility Specialists Medical Group, Inc. Previously, she was the medical director of Sharp Fertility Associates in San Diego, and was Associate Professor of Gynecology & Obstetrics, Director Assisted Reproductive Technologies at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Morales is a frequent guest speaker for radio and television programs.
Brad Popovich, Ph.D., is the Chief Executive Officer at Sirius Genomics in Vancouver. Before joining Sirius, Popovich was the VP, Operations at Xenon Pharmaceuticals Inc. Prior to joining Xenon, he was a tenured professor at Oregon Health Sciences University in the Department of Molecular and Medical Genetics. Popovich has over 20 years of experience in the commercialization of DNA-based diagnostic tests. He has served on the boards of both public and private sector companies, including TM Biosciences and Roche Diagnostics.
Julia Kirchheiner, MD, Ph.D, is professor of clinical pharmacology at the department of pharmacology of natural products and clinical pharmacology, University of Ulm, Germany, where she is building up a research group with focus on individualization of drug therapy by means of pharmacogenetic diagnostics and molecular medicine. She is doing research upon the physiological functions of genetic polymorphisms of several drug metabolizing enzymes such as CYP2C9 and CYP2D6. She was awarded the "Presidential Trainee Award 2003" of the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics. She has been an extraordinary member of the Drug Commission of the German Medical Association since 2004.
Alan Eshleman, MD MPH, is a board certified internist, medical writer, and editor. His clinical practice is in general internal medicine. He recently retired from the Northern California Kaiser Permanente Medical Group where he divided his time between seeing patients and serving as the Chief Medical Editor for Kaiser's Internet Services Group. Dr. Eshleman has a special interest in communicating scientific and medical issues to the general public. He has moderated on-line medical discussion groups, and for several years wrote the "Doctor E's Diary" for SFGate, the online service of the San Francisco Chronicle.
Board of Directors
- Kemp Battle, Investment Banker, Tucker Capital
- Ryan Phelan, Founder and CEO, DNA Direct
- Brad Popovich, M.S., Ph.D., FACMG, Chair, Scientific Advisory Board, Tm Bioscience Corporation
- Sharon F. Terry, CEO, Genetic Alliance
- C. S. Yannias, Board Member and former CEO, Encyclopaedia Britannica
