Savor Health

Oh, bok choy, let us count the ways we love you!

Brimming with over 70 antioxidant phenolic compounds, this is one cruciferous to keep on frequent rotation in your diet. Aim for a serving of 1 cup cooked, at least three times a week (five times would be even better) and definitely mix and match with other cruciferous veggies.

Bok choy, a.k.a. Chinese white cabbage or pak choi, is a proud member of the brassica family – famed for its anticancer properties – and runs with other greats like Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, turnips and broccoli. The abundance of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients found in bok choy impart many potential benefits to those who eat it [i].

 

Antioxidant Benefits of Bok Choy

Bok choy is a powerhouse when it comes to antioxidants. Not only is it an excellent source of conventional antioxidants such as vitamin A, vitamin C and zinc, but it also has a plethora of phytonutrients – polyphenols, flavonoids, kaempferol, glucosinolates and many more that seem beyond pronunciation. (Recall that glucosinolates are reported to be the anticancer fighting agent in the brassica family.) The array of antioxidants and phytonutrients is noteworthy because, as we are learning, different antioxidants go about their tasks in different ways, so eating a variety of them ensures a multi-level affront on free radicals. If you are like me and believe in making food work for you, bok choy is one heavy hitter [i].

 

Bok Choy & Blood Pressure Management

With a reported amount of 630 mg of potassium per 1 cup of steamed bok choy, this bright green veggie is another great way to reach for the recommended daily intake of 4700mg of potassium. And why should you strive for that RDI, you ask? Well, potassium seems to lessen the effects of sodium. It is a vasodilator and diets deficient in this mineral have shown to be an independent factor of high blood pressure. Another mechanism of efficacy is that potassium helps to increase urinary losses of sodium. Of course, one still needs to monitor sodium intake, but striking a balance between the two seems to be key as a high sodium to potassium ratio can lead to increased risk for hypertension and heart disease. This whole-heartedly (pun intended) supports why diets emphasizing potassium rich foods like fruits, vegetables and whole grains are so effective at lowering blood pressure (think Mediterranean and DASH diets) [ii].

 

Bone Health

Healthy bones require a variety of nutrients for growth and maintenance and bok choy packs a great many of them, including vitamins C and K, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, manganese and zinc. Vitamin K is an under appreciated vitamin in the laymen’s world of bone health despite its crucial role in bone formation and density. Bok choy and other members of the brassica family are excellent sources of this often overlooked vitamin. Throw in some vitamin D and weight bearing exercise and you are on the path to maintaining a healthy bone matrix [v].

 

Anemia Support

Anemia is a common complication of cancer treatment. Bok choy contains the red blood cell promoting nutrients of iron, folate, zinc and vitamin B6. It also has vitamin C, which aids with iron absorption. And as an added bonus, folate is an essential part of DNA synthesis and repair, so having sufficient amounts may reduce DNA mutations and subsequent carginogenesis.

With its myriad of outstanding health benefits, we think nothing says, “I love you”, like a bouquet of bok choy.

 

Selecting, Storing and Preparing Bok Choy

Bok choy is available year around, but peaks during the winter months through early spring. Look for full, bright green leaves and moist, hardy stems that are usually white, but can also be cream colored or light green. You can store them in the refrigerator for up 1 week, unwashed, in a tight plastic bag to prevent it from drying out. As with most brassica vegetables, the anticancer properties are best obtained when just lightly cooked (steamed or sautéed) or even when consumed raw. Tossing them into soups at the end is a wonderful way to save some of their crunch while also slurping up the leeched phytonutrients in the broth [vi].

Check out the recipe below for a light and easy soup that is sure to warm you up in this wintery month. (I also like the healthy dose of ginger here, too.)

[buymeapie-recipe id=’46’]

 

References
[i] Lin LZ and Harnly JM. Phenolic component profiles of mustard greens, yu choy, and 15 other brassica vegetables. J Agric Food Chem. 2010; 58(11):6850-7.
[ii] Haddy FJ, Vanhoutte PM and Feletou M. Role of potassium in regulating blood flow and blood pressure. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2006;290(3):R546-52.
[iii] My Recipes. Oriental Soup with Mushrooms, Bok Choy, and Shrimp. http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/oriental-soup-with-mushrooms-bok-choy-shrimp. Accessed on January 29, 2015.
[iv] “Sodium/Potassium ratio linked to cardiovascular disease risk”. 2009. National Institutes of Health; Health Research Matters. http://www.nih.gov/researchmatters/january2009/01262009hypertension.htmAccessed January 30, 2015.
[v] Bone health: Looking beyond calcium. 2009. Nutrition 411.  http://www.nutrition411.com/content/bone-health-looking-beyond-calcium Accessed February 2, 2015.
[vi] The World’s Healthiest Foods. What New and Beneficial About Bok Choy. http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=152. Accessed February 2, 2015. 

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Susan started Savor Health after losing a close friend to a brain tumor and, through that experience, becoming aware of the significant unmet nutritional needs of people with cancer.  Struck by the fact that her friend was told “nutrition doesn’t matter” and “eat whatever you want,” Susan read the evidence-based literature on the subject, interviewed oncologists, oncology nurses and oncology dietitians, as well as patients and caregivers, and found that, in fact, nutrition does matter in oncology. Armed with solid scientific evidence supporting the clinical and quality of life benefits of proper nutrition, Susan left Wall Street and created Savor Health, an AI-based provider of personalized and clinically appropriate nutrition solutions for cancer patients, their caregivers and health enterprises. Susan brings to Savor Health over 25 years of industry experience in healthcare and business as well as expertise in strategy, finance and management.

Susan is an outspoken and tireless advocate for cancer patients receiving proper nutrition and nutrition support before, during and after treatment. She strongly believes that the U. S. healthcare system requires new innovation to transform it into a more holistic and integrated system of care whereby multiple disciplines coordinate care together for the benefit of the whole patient. As part of this, her goal is for nutrition to be an integral component of such an integrated cancer care delivery system.  Susan’s commitment to the field of oncology extends beyond Savor Health to volunteer work at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in pediatrics and as a runner for Fred’s Team to raise money for research at Memorial Sloan Kettering. Susan participated in the Cancer Moonshot in June of 2016 where she was a breakout session group “igniter” tasked with starting and leading discussion. Susan’s first book, the Meals to Heal Cancer Cookbook, was published in March 2016.

In addition to her role as CEO of Savor Health, Susan speaks nationally about the importance of ensuring proper nutrition in the cancer patient and on topics including leadership and startups. She has been a speaker at the Harvard Medical School’s Career Advancement and Leadership Skills for Women in Healthcare, ESMO World Congress on GI Cancer, BioPharm America, AARP Live @50+, Lake Nona Impact Forum, and IIR ePharma Summit.

Prior to starting Savor Health, Susan had a successful career on Wall Street as a healthcare services investment banker working at prestigious firms including Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, Wasserstein Perella and Robertson Stephens. Susan earned a B.A. from Duke University and M.B.A. from the University of Virginia’s Darden Graduate School of Business.

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Marissa Buchan is a registered dietitian, with advanced practice certifications in Oncology Nutrition (CSO) and Clinical Research (CCRP). She received her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Duke University, and Master’s of Science degree in Clinical Nutrition from New York University. Marissa worked for 10 years at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in both the clinical research and nutrition departments.  In addition to counseling patients before, during, and after cancer therapy, she spearheaded nutrition-research efforts for the bone marrow transplant service. She has co-authored over 20 articles and has a particular interest in the role of nutrition on the intestinal microbiota and its impact on patient outcomes. When Marissa’s not wearing her lab coat, she’s in her apron whipping up healthy and delicious recipes that you can find on her blog, Get Off Your Tush and Cook.

Marissa is Chief Operating Officer of Savor Health where she leads operations working with the technology, clinical, and business development teams and management. Prior to assuming the role of COO in March 2020, Marissa was Vice President, Clinical Research and Operations at Savor Health where she worked closely with Savor Health’s Chief Medical Advisor, Scientific Advisory Board, and Clinical Operations Team to evaluate, design and conduct clinical research.  She also counsels patients on oncology nutrition issues and contributes to the Company website’s clinical content.

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Dr. DeFrance has a unique background including clinical interventional cardiologist, chief medical officer, educator, outcomes researcher and entrepreneur. He has expertise in Lifestyle medicine in which he was board certified in 2020 and is highly interested in the prevention and reversal of chronic disease. Dr. DeFrance also has expertise in appropriate utilization of technology in medicine, healthcare economics, value-based metrics, and educational design and delivery. He worked as Chief Medical Officer for HealthHelp, one of the largest specialty benefit managers in the US, and led large teams of healthcare professionals in writing evidence based appropriate care guidelines and rule sets which improve the quality and safety of medicine for over 20 million people in the US while also creating sustained savings in healthcare. He has also designed clinical decision support systems that are currently in use helping to improve patient care.

In 2018 Dr. DeFrance founded MedMentor Education, a company that provides state of the art CME content using the latest in eLearning science and online delivery platforms. Dr. DeFrance is also the founder and President of Digimedica, a consulting and educational design and delivery company for healthcare professionals, hospitals, and universities. He is passionate about creating systems to optimize knowledge transfer and has won numerous awards for teaching excellence during his career. He is an expert in cardiovascular CT imaging and has taught more than 3,000 physicians how to perform and interpret cardiac CT nationally and internationally and has lectured extensively on this subject.

Dr. DeFrance has a stellar reputation in the medical field and continues work to improve the quality and safety of patient care in the US.

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Alyson is a registered nurse and is certified in oncology nursing (OCN) through the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS). She also has her certification as an ONS Biotherapy and Chemotherapy Provider. Alyson studied nursing at Thomas Jefferson University where she obtained her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing (BSN). Since starting her nursing career in 2004, Alyson has had a strong dedication and commitment to oncology patients. She has worked inpatient specializing in Bone Marrow and Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation. Alyson currently works in outpatient oncology at the North Shore-LIJ Monter Cancer Center. Alyson is part of the clinical team at Savor Health where she counsels patients on oncology and oncology nutrition issues and contributes to website and other Savor Health content.

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Chelsey is a Registered Dietitian and Board Certified Specialist in Oncology nutrition (CSO). She completed her Dietetic Internship at Northwell Health, received her BS in Dietetics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and her MS in Nutrition at Stony Brook University’s School of Medicine. Chelsey works as an outpatient dietitian at Mount Sinai covering all of the downtown cancer services at Mount Sinai Beth Israel and Philips Ambulatory Care Center. Chelsey works with patients and families before, during and after treatment to optimize their nutrition through dietary counseling and support. Chelsey has experience counseling clients with a variety of diagnoses including breast cancer, lung cancer, prostate cancer, head & neck cancer, and more. Chelsey also enjoys sharing nutrition knowledge with her peers by running a monthly Employee Wellness program that showcases healthy topics, recipes and food demos.

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Michelle is a Registered Dietitian specializing in oncology. She works as a clinical dietitian at an ambulatory cancer center in New York City and is a consultant for Savor Health. She is passionate about educating oncology patients on the importance of nutrition during their fight against cancer and helping them to optimize their nutrition through all phases of treatment. Michelle received her Bachelor of Science degree in dietetics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and her Master of Science degree in Clinical Nutrition from New York University.

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Denise Sievering is a Registered Dietitian who is board certified in Oncology Nutrition as well as Nutrition Support. A fluent Spanish speaker, Denise joined the Savor Health team to support Spanish speaking cancer patients and to continue to expand the Platform’s nutritional strategies and recommendations in Spanish. Denise holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Rutgers University, and completed her internship at New York Presbyterian Hospital (NYP). Denise started her career as a registered dietitian at NYP-Columbia University Medical Center, primarily covering inpatient Oncology units. Denise also holds a Master of Arts degree in Mental Health Counseling from New York University, and incorporates her advanced training in motivational interviewing and empathic listening in her patient encounters, particularly those whose lives have been forever changed by a cancer diagnosis. A New Jersey native, Denise now resides in sunny San Diego, CA where she works as a part-time outpatient Oncology dietitian at Scripps Health-MD Anderson Cancer Center, and also works as an inpatient dietitian at Kaiser Permanente. In her spare time, Denise can be found at a mom-and-pop taco shop, one of the many local craft breweries, and exploring her new city of San Diego with her husband and her rescue pup, Ripley.

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Karen is a Registered Dietitian, Board Certified Specialist in Oncology Nutrition and registered in New York as a Certified Dietitian Nutritionist. Fluent in Spanish, Karen joined the Savor Health team to support Spanish speaking cancer patients and to continue to expand the Platform’s nutritional strategies and recommendations in Spanish. Karen received her Bachelor of Science degree from Ithaca College and her Master of Science degree from Hunter College. She works as an outpatient oncology dietitian in New York. Karen often works with local community centers to host nutrition programs for cancer survivors and their families, leading classes on how to live healthier lifestyles throughout their continuum of care. The American Institute of Cancer Research selected to showcase one of her many programs at their conference in 2019. Karen has written for and lent commentary to various publications and truly enjoys teaching people how to eat better. She loves to cook and strongly feels that healthy food doesn’t have to taste bad.

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Allie is a Registered Dietitian and a Certified Specialist in Oncology (CSO). She joins Savor in 2023, bringing years of experience from the John Theurer Cancer Center in New Jersey, where she worked with patients with a variety of cancers. Her goal is to help people feel their best, both mentally and physically, when physical health challenges arise. She believes in the power of nutrition ever since the impact it made on her athletic career as a volleyball player during college. Allie graduated with her Bachelor of Science degree from University of Maryland-Baltimore County and has her Master’s degree in Human Nutrition from the University of Wisconsin Stout. She enjoys travelling, enjoying different cuisines, cooking, and hiking and other outdoor activities with her family and dog.

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Julia Penberg is a seasoned healthcare professional with more than 30 years of experience focusing on maximizing operational excellence, leading clinical program development and building strong cross-functional teams. Her previous roles include overseeing the performance of clinical managers and nurse practitioners across multiple markets within United Healthcare-Optum’s Medicare Advantage and dual-eligible special needs populations, payer outreach and program development at Mayo Clinic, ground level specialty hospital development and direct patient care as a family and dermatology nurse practitioner. Julia volunteered as an operating room nurse and nurse practitioner on several mission trips to Romania and was a support group leader for the Kansas City chapter of the International Myeloma Foundation. Her motivation throughout her career has been with wellness promotion, disease risk modification and ensuring the best patient experience across the health continuum. Ms. Penberg received an MBA from the University of Dallas; a MS in Nursing from the University of Kansas and a BS in Nursing from the University of Texas-Austin. She is board certified as a Family Nurse Practitioner.

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Rachel is a Registered Dietitian and Board Certified Specialist in Oncology Nutrition (“CSO”). She joined NYP-Columbia as the outpatient oncology dietitian in 2020 after working at Jamaica Hospital Medical Center for two years. Rachel completed her dietetic internship through Keene State College in 2017. She is pursuing an MS in Integrative Nutrition at Stony Brook University and has a BS in Human Nutrition, Foods and Exercise from Virginia Tech. Rachel provides nutrition counseling to all types of oncology patients and helps them understand the mental and physical benefits of nutrition as an ally in their fight against cancer. In her free time she enjoys slow meals with family and friends, Pilates, and tending to her fire escape garden.

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Allie Werner is a Registered Dietitian at Fresenius Kidney Care where she provides medical nutrition therapy diet counseling to patients on Dialysis. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in nutrition from Indiana University and completed her Master’s Degree and dietetic internship at Loyola University Chicago. In her free time she enjoys spending time with friends and family, checking out the amazing food scene in downtown Chicago, and exercising on her Peloton bike.

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Immersed in the tech world for a decade, I've coded, led teams, and honed my skills in architecture and design. As a tech enthusiast, I've seamlessly woven through full-stack projects, fusing my love for code with the art of leadership.

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Mohit is a full-stack developer with expertise in Python and JavaScript, known for his efficient coding and ability to deliver scalable software solutions. His technical contributions are highlighted on GitHub and Stack Overflow, demonstrating his commitment to the tech community and problem-solving skills. With a solid educational foundation and a diverse project portfolio, Mohit excels at navigating complex challenges and is well-equipped to contribute to dynamic software projects.

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Rayna McCann is a Registered Dietitian and Board Certified Specialist in Oncology Nutrition. She is a Registered Yoga Teacher and yoga4cancer certified. She received her BS in Nutrition at Penn State University and her MS from Stony Brook University. For work, Rayna wears many hats in the world of nutrition and worked for years in clinical settings focusing on oncology nutrition. She is also an Adjunct Professor and passionate about inspiring the future of dietitians. Throughout her career, she has received awards recognizing her dedication to patient safety and her contributions to improving malnutrition awareness. In 2022, Rayna was proud to accept the ‘Dietitian of the Year’ award through the Long Island Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Rayna has co-authored abstracts for poster presentations within the American Institute for Cancer Research conference, as well as, the Nutrition and Dietetics Food and Nutrition Conference Expo and subsequent publication. She has enjoyed authoring articles, including an article for The Cure magazine regarding Multiple Myeloma and nutrition. When Rayna is not participating in nutrition related activities, she is dedicated to dog rescue.

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Former Senior Vice-President, head of Strategies and Performance at Nestlé global HQ, Valerio is a leading innovation enabler who offers his expertise to a broad spectrum of start-ups, agencies and consulting companies as they expand their businesses and offerings.

Valerio has an exhaustive understanding of disruptive technologies, digital environments, and their commercial applications. A respected driver of innovation, he has a track record of engaging with academia, accelerators, VCs and start-ups, as well as with major strategic partnerships and alliances, to accelerate growth. His vast network, his drive to maximise corporate efficiency, his passion for innovation and for nurturing cross-functional corporate culture have allowed Valerio to deliver a number of business-relevant and innovative concepts, whilst leading change management.

Valerio’s international business expertise extends across Europe, Asia, Africa, US and Latin America.

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Vera has dedicated her professional life to creating innovative digital solutions at the intersection of science and technology. Her most recent engagement was with Nestlé Research, where Vera established the Digital Nutrition & Health group and led the development of Digital Food Safety department.

Vera has a PhD in chemistry and a Master’s degree in Information Technology, with a career spanning decades between academic research and technology development in diverse industries, such as pharma, telecom, packaging and food. Vera’s expertise is in using scientific insights to transform data into valuable digital assets and novel software solutions.

She’s also an expert in team dynamics and an early adopter of Agile methodologies. In every position she’s held, she has worked toward building independent, reliable, efficient, and fun teams. For Vera, the recipe for world-changing innovation is in exciting science, high-quality data, inspiring technology, and amazing people.

Vera loves cooking, as well as broadening her horizons through books, travel, and conversations.

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Dr. Becker has served in many roles throughout her career as a Transplant Surgeon. She is currently Vice President and Chief Medical Officer at LifeGift, an organ transplant procurement organization. Dr. Becker is a Past President of the Organ Procurement and Transplant Network/United Network for Organ Sharing (“OPTN/UNOS”) Board of Directors and served during tumultuous times. While serving as OPTN President, lung allocation and liver allocations were both amended to decrease geographic disparities. She has most recently served on the UNOS corporate affairs committee as an advisor. Dr. Becker is a former committee member for the National Academy of Science, Engineering and Medicine. She is currently serving on the Kidney Disease Improving Global Outcomes (KDIGO) steering committee as the Co-Chair of a workgroup assessing patient factors contributing to kidney graft loss.

Dr. Becker previously served as an elected member of the American Society of Transplantation (“AST”) Board of Directors, co-chairing its winter symposium, chairing its education committee and additionally serving on the minority affairs committee. She has served on the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (“ASTS”) scientific studies committee and on the AST/ASTS American Transplant Congress program planning committee. She also has served on the Board of Directors of the National Kidney Registry. Dr. Becker earned her medical degree at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in Baltimore and completed her surgery training at Vanderbilt University. She finished her multiorgan transplant fellowship at the University of Wisconsin as is proud of training many of the current Surgical Directors of Transplant Programs around the country. She is currently a retired Professor of Surgery from the University of Chicago. Dr. Becker is the proud mom of 2 college sophomores. In addition to her newly found love for running, she enjoys cheering on her favorite soccer teams, reading and taking care of her many pets.

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Jon Bond is one of the advertising and marketing industry’s most recognized thought leaders and entrepreneurs. He has developed several significant companies and marketing concepts over his 30-year career. Jon was Co-Founder and CEO of Kirshenbaum Bond and Partners (KBP). KBP was the first to develop the modern multi-disciplinary, integrated agency. He was CEO of Big Fuel (now part of Publicis) and co-founded and sold one of the first online media agencies (iballs) to Microsoft. Currently, Jon is founder and Chief Tomorroist at TOMORRO. Established in 2012, TOMORRO is a value accelerator using marketing, innovation, and strategic business development to help visionary companies achieve their ambitions.

Jon is co-founder of Evolve, the only non-partisan gun safety and responsibility group. He is a board member of Gods Love We Deliver and a former board member of the American Association of Advertising Agencies and the Ad Council. Jon co-authored “Under the Radar,” a book about talking to today’s cynical consumer. He has also written for Mediapost and the Huffington Post and is a keynote speaker represented by The Guild Group. Jon has appeared in Morgan Spurlock’s documentary The Greatest Movie Ever Sold, CNN, 20/20, CNBC, Barbara Walters, Deborah Norville, and Piers Morgan. In 2010, Jon was voted number 4 in Adweek’s “Executive of the Decade” poll.

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Eliza is passionate about helping people live healthier and more fulfilling lives. She has held leadership, advisory and consulting roles at numerous health-focused companies, including RunKeeper, MyFitnessPal/Under Armour, Foodsmart (formerly Zipongo), January AI (precision health), Allara Health (women’s health) and Everyday Health (and their acquisition of weight-loss app, Lose It!). Eliza is a business operator with a track record of building and inspiring high-performing teams to deliver outstanding results and scale effectively. She has a foundation in finance and consulting and 10+ years of operational leadership at Bay Area startups, including two successful exists (MyFitnessPal, Ooyala). Eliza completed her MBA at Harvard Business School and graduated magna cum laude from Middlebury College with a double major in Art History & Economics. She is a Boston native living in New York with her husband and three children.

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Ethan Basch is an oncologist and cancer researcher at the University of North Carolina, where he is Chief of Oncology and Physician-in-Chief of the Cancer Hospital. Dr. Basch has conducted research on patient-centered cancer care models for the past two decades, developing connected health technologies and care delivery strategies to improve quality of care and the patient experience. His research group established that care teams miss more than half of patients’ symptoms during cancer care, and demonstrated that electronic tools not only can close that gap, but can improve cancer outcomes including quality of life, hospitalizations, and overall survival. He has published over 300 scientific papers on these topics, including in JAMA, New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet, Journal of Clinical Oncology, JAMA Oncology, Cancer, etc. He has served on the Board of Scientific Advisors of the National Cancer Institute, the Board of Directors of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the Board of the International Society of Quality of Life Research (ISOQOL), and as an editor for JAMA. He received his MD at Harvard Medical School, residency training at Massachusetts General Hospital, and oncology training at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, where he was on faculty until moving to North Carolina in 2012. The mission of his work is to improve the experiences and quality of life of people with cancer.

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David Raben, M.D. is currently V.P. and Chief Medical Officer, Bicara Therapeutics. Dr. Raben is also on faculty at the University of Colorado where he is a board-certified Professor of Radiation Oncology and has recently been named a U.S. News Top Doctor. He received a B.A. in Psychology from Duke University in 1985 and completed his M.D. at Wake Forest University/Bowman Grey School of Medicine in 1990. After graduation, he completed residency in Radiation Oncology at the Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1991-1994, serving as a chief resident in 1994. Dr. Raben has developed nationally recognized clinical expertise over the past 20 years in the management of head and neck cancer (HNC), lung cancer and prostate/bladder cancers. Clinically, Dr. Raben has a strong interest in nutritional precision for patients, with an interest in reducing processed foods and sugars in patients with locally advanced cancers, especially ones with high cell turnover. An anti-inflammatory strategy with a Mediterranean dietary approach coupled with reductions in high carbohydrate loading may reduce or slow cancer progression and improve a patient’s intrinsic microbiome to enhance immune response to various therapies including immune enabling drugs like checkpoint inhibitors that have shown dramatic success recently in advanced cancers. From a research perspective, his focus has been on laboratory discoveries and innovative clinical trials in areas such as high risk, heavy smoker HNC patients and has explored approaches that inhibit cancer DNA repair or growth factor signaling. Dr. Raben recently completed the first Phase I clinical trial in the US with and oral DNA repair inhibitor (PARP inhibitor) and radiation for heavy smokers when combined with intensity modulated radiation (IMRT). His efforts currently center around evaluation of TGFb inhibition in HNSCC as well as the use of radiation to stimulate activity of immune enabling drugs. Nationally, Dr. Raben serves on the NRG Oncology head and neck steering committee as well as co-chairing the Developmental Therapeutics Co-Chair at the NRG. He actively serves as an ASCO Ambassador for Multidisciplinary Cancer Management Courses (MCMC) to help educate underserved areas around the world in cancer care. Finally, he serves an ad hoc reviewer for high impact journals such as Journal of Clinical Oncology, Annals of Oncology, JAMA Oncology, Oral Oncology, Head and Neck, Int. Journal of Radiation Oncology Biology Physics, Clinical Cancer Research and Cancer Research. He has authored over 140 publications.

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Jason Montrie is an award-winning healthcare technology executive and entrepreneur with over two decades of experience in building, growing, and scaling leading healthcare businesses. With a career that includes working at large health insurance companies like Humana, being Co-founder and CEO of the fastest growing heath insurance company in Illinois, and most recently serving as President of the premier healthcare data analytics platform and supplemental benefits company in the Medicare Advantage sector in Pareto Intelligence and Convey Health Solutions, Jason brings un unmatched set of experience and perspective to Savor which will help drive its growth.

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Jonathan M. Kurie, M.D. Professor, Department of Thoracic/Head and Neck Medical Oncology, MD Anderson.

Dr. Kurie received a BA in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC and an M.D., Medicine from East Carolina University, Greenville, NC. He was a Medical Oncology Fellow at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York from 1988 to 1993, a Biotechnology Fellow, Laboratory of Genetics, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD. He did his Internship and Residency at the Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA. Dr. Kurie has authored numerous publications.

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