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Ian Witterick

MD, MSc, FRCSC

Professor and Chair
Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery
University of Toronto

Dr. Witterick is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery at the University of Toronto. He is also the Otolaryngologist-in-Chief, Sinai Health and the Chief of the Department of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery at Mount Sinai Hospital.

He is a Diplomat of the American Board of Otolaryngology, and a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.

He graduated from medical school at The University of Western Ontario cum laude. He completed the otolaryngology-head & neck surgery residency training program at the University of Toronto followed by two fellowships (head & neck oncology and rhinology). He also completed a Masters in Clinical Epidemiology. He is a graduate of the Program for Chiefs of Clinical Services, Harvard School of Public Health and of the Rotman Advanced Leadership Development Program.

His current research interests include head & neck oncology, rhinology, and skull base surgery. He has published widely in the fields of head & neck oncology, rhinology, and skull base surgery with 111 peer-reviewed publications and 30 book chapters.

He is an associate editor of American Journal of Rhinology & Allergy and sits on the editorial boards of four other journals. He is actively involved in research supervision of graduate students and holds an appointment with the School of Graduate Studies, Institute for Medical Sciences, University of Toronto.

He is a highly regarded teacher, receiving various teaching awards including the Postgraduate Medical Education Program Development and Innovation Award and the Charles Mickle Fellowship Award.

He has received the Educational Excellence Award from the Canadian Society of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery and a presidential citation from the American Head & Neck Society.

Diana Lin

MD

Assistant Professor
Division of Anatomic Pathology
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Dr. Lin joined the Division of Anatomic Pathology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham as an assistant professor. Her research interests focus on cytopathology and head and neck pathology. This includes molecular characterization of thyroid tumors, specifically focusing on the sequencing of cytologic smears.

She earned her medical degree from Augusta University and completed her residency in anatomic and clinical pathology at Rush University Medical Center and a cytopathology fellowship at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Simon Young

DDS, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor, Director of Research
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, School of Dentistry

Dr. Young is an Assistant Professor and Director of Research in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at UTHealth School of Dentistry. He received his dental degree at the University of Toronto, his doctoral degree in Bioengineering at Rice University, and his medical degree at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. He completed his residency at UTHealth.

His research efforts include the synthesis and characterization of implantable biomaterials designed to elicit in situ cell recruitment and programming. His work includes the use of materials able to simultaneously deliver multiple bioactive factors with distinct release profiles. These constructs have been used in a diverse set of applications such as the promotion of craniofacial bone regeneration and cancer immunotherapy. He has broad experience in the fields of polymer synthesis and characterization, growth factor delivery, in vivo models, characterization of bone and neovascularization, cancer immunotherapy, and implantable therapeutic cancer vaccines. In addition, he is a board-certified oral and maxillofacial surgeon with significant experience in the treatment and reconstruction of craniomaxillofacial trauma and pathology.

The focus of his current research is to develop novel material-based immunotherapies for the treatment of head and neck cancer and explore mechanisms of how this approach may synergize with other modalities of treatment, such as chemo/radiation therapy. The paradigm of in situ cell programming using biomaterials is also being utilized in separate research projects in collaboration with MIT and Rice University, exploring the use of layer-by-layer technology to deliver bioactive factors for the enhancement of craniofacial bone regeneration and Multidomain Peptides for nerve regeneration. He currently holds the Young OMS Research Professorship.

He is a Fellow of AAOMS, AACMFS, and ACS. In 2020, he received the AAOMS Faculty Educator Development Award, a prize given to only 4 emerging leaders in the specialty each year, for his groundbreaking academic contributions, most notably in biomaterials development for tissue engineering and cancer immunotherapy applications.

He regularly contributes to textbooks, is extensively published in the medical literature, and is invited to speak nationally and internationally on oral cancer-related topics.

James Melville

DDS, FACS

Associate Professor
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, School of Dentistry

Dr. Melville is an Associate Professor in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at UTHealth School of Dentistry and specializes in oral, head and neck oncology, and microvascular reconstructive surgery. He graduated from University of Michigan School of Dentistry in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 2005, and completed a general practice residency at UCSF in 2006. He completed a residency in oral and maxillofacial surgery in 2012, followed by fellowships in oral, head and neck oncology, and microvascular reconstructive surgery at the University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital. He was appointed UT OMS Internship Director in 2017.

He was awarded the Faculty Educator Development Award (FEDA) in 2019 by AAOMS, an award given to promising young academic surgeons. He was awarded the AAOMS Advocacy Challenge Coin by the Association’s Board of Trustees and Committee on Government Affairs in 2020. AAOMS designed the Challenge Coin to recognize oral and maxillofacial surgeons who have made significant advocacy contributions on behalf of the Association. The AAOMS Challenge Coin is awarded to those elite few who transcend the efforts of their colleagues to further the specialty through advocacy.

He is a Diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and a Fellow of AAOMS, the American Academy of Craniomaxillofacial Surgeons, and the American College of Surgeons.

He has written a Springer textbook on maxillofacial reconstruction and contributed to 18 chapters in textbooks concerning oral and maxillofacial surgery, oncology, maxillofacial reconstruction, microvascular reconstruction, and tissue engineering. In addition, he is the author of more than 25 articles in peer-reviewed journals. He is a reviewer for the Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, OOOO, Journal of Cranio-Maxillofacial Surgery, and Journal of Tissue Engineering.

Deepak Kademani

MD, DMD, FACS

Associate Professor
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
University of Minnesota

Dr. Kademani’s dental, medical degrees and surgical residency in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery was at the University of Pennsylvania. This was followed by a fellowship in Head and Neck Surgery. He was subsequently Board Certified by the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and has a Certificate of Added Qualification in Head and Neck Oncologic and Reconstructive Surgery. In 2004, he was the recipient of the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons Faculty Education Development Award.

After the completion of his surgical training, he moved to Minnesota to join the Department of Surgery at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester where he was an Assistant Professor. In 2008, he joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota as an Associate Professor in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. He has served on numerous roles including Chairman of the Department of Surgery, Fellowship Director for the Oral/Head and Neck Surgery Program and Chief of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at North Memorial Medical Center. He is currently the Chief of Staff at North Memorial Medical Center.

In 2020, Dr. Kademani received the Committee Person of the Year Award for his participation on AAOMS committees.

Dr. Kademani is a member of numerous professional societies including the American Surgeons and the American Head and Neck Society. In addition to authoring or co-authoring over 100 textbooks, abstracts, chapters, monographs, and publications. He has delivered over 300 invited lectures nationally and internationally on a variety of topics, predominantly in head and neck pathology, oral cancer and reconstructive head and neck surgery.

He has served as President of the Minnesota Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. He has also served on the Examination Committee for the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and was recently elected as Director. He has a number of roles associated with the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, including being appointed as Chair of Committee of Continuing Education and Professional Development, Research Committee and the Committee on Oral/Head and Neck Oncologic and Reconstructive Surgery. With the American Dental Association, he serves on the Clinical and Scientific Affairs Committee. His practice is dedicated to the care of head and neck cancer, oral cancer, salivary gland tumors, thyroid, skull base surgery and reconstructive head and neck surgery, orthognathic, TMJ, sleep apnea and dentoalveolar surgery.

Rui Fernandes

MD, DMD, FACS, FRCS

Professor & Associate Chair
Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
University of Florida Health

Dr. Fernandes is a Board Certified Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon. He holds dual appointments in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Surgical Oncology at the University of Florida College of Medicine – Jacksonville. He currently serves as the Chief of Head and Neck Surgery, Director of the Head and Neck/Microvascular Reconstructive Surgery fellowship and Associate Chairman of the Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery.

He received his undergraduate degree in Biology and Doctorate in Dental Medicine from the Goldman School of Dental Medicine, at Boston University. He is a graduate of the University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine and completed residency training in Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery at UAB. Upon completiong of his residency, he began a 2 year combined Head and Neck Oncology and Microvascular Surgery Fellowship at the University of Maryland College of Medicine.

Dr. Fernandes currently serves as chair of the education committee of the International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. He has lectured extensively both nationally and internationally, and has authored several manuscripts in the areas of head and neck oncology and reconstructive surgery as well as a single author textbook in reconstructive surgery of the head and neck.

Eric Dierks

MD, DMD, FACS, FACD, FRCS(Ed)

Founding Partner
Head & Neck Surgical Associates
Portland, Oregon

Dr. Dierks is a founding partner at Head & Neck Surgical Associates. He earned his medical and dental degrees from the University of Louisville. One of just a handful of American surgeons to be Board Certified in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery as well as Otolaryngology (Head & Neck Surgery), he completed his residency in these specialties in Delaware and in Texas. His surgical practice consists of Head & Neck Cancer and Reconstructive Surgery, Craniomaxillofacial Trauma, Cleft Lip/Palate Surgery, and Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery including complex dental implant surgery.

Dr. Dierks is an Affiliate Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at OHSU. He has published over 120 journal articles and book chapters on his various areas of interest and is frequently called upon to lecture both nationally and around the world. He has been invited to teach surgery in India, Europe, Australia and the Middle East and is actively involved in the training of fellows in head & neck surgery, as well as oral and maxillofacial surgery.

Carlo Sistilli

CPA, CMA

Carlo has been serving as Chief Financial Officer of Arista Homes Limited for 14 years and his responsibilities include overseeing the finance, accounting and IT areas, as well as due diligence and analysis of land purchases and various other investments. He has held a variety of Senior Positions in the Accounting and Finance Areas during his professional career. As the Controller and part of the Senior Management Team of a $1 Billion Regional Trust Company, he was part of the team to facilitate the successful sale of the Trust Company to Manulife Financial. He also had a Private Accounting Practice/Consulting firm providing services to Small Business Clients and IT Project Management. He spent 5 years as CFO of an Internet Start-up, which provided innovative finance solutions using the internet in the automotive retail sector. As a Founder and member of the Senior Management Team, he was a key player in taking the company public on the Alberta Ventures Exchange (Now TSX Ventures Exchange). He was responsible for the Finance, Accounting and Administration of the company during his tenure, including a member of the due diligence process for the analysis and purchase of other companies in Canada and the US.

Steven G. Arless

BSc, MBA

Steve is currently the MedTech Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Centech. As a Canadian entrepreneur in the biomedical technology industry, he has directed and created several medical device companies, from inception to major financing and public stock offerings. He served as CEO of several medical device companies including CryoCath Technologies, CadrioInsight and Resonant Medical, in addition to advancing new medical devices from R&D to commercialization and global sales marketing.