Introduction 
Downloadable, printable meeting flier
The 139th meeting of the Association of Clinical Scientists will be held May 15-18, 2019 in Hershey, PA and sponsored jointly by the Penn State University, College of Medicine, Hershey, PA and the Geisinger Health System and Medical Center, Danville, PA.
The meeting has two main themes: “Opioid Stewardship” and “Lab 2.0,” and these themes will be covered in two of the sessions at the meeting.
The Abraham J. Gitlitz Memorial Lecture will be presented by Rachel Levine, MD, Secretary of Health and Physician General of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at Penn State College of Medicine, speaking on our theme of Opioid Stewardship.
The Annual Banquet will include the presentation of the Association’s awards and our featured speaker will be Graham S. Hetrick, FD, Coroner of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, Adjunct Professor of Forensics and Human Anatomy at Harrisburg University School of Science and Technology, and host of the TV program, The Coroner: I Speak for the Dead.
The meeting will open on Thursday morning with lectures and tours of laboratories, data centers, and wet training labs at Penn State Health and Hershey Medical Center. On Thursday afternoon will be our usual cultural/historic bus tour for participants and spouses, going to the National Auto Club of America, the Hershey Story Museum, and the Hershey Rose Garden and Conservatory. On Friday morning the meeting will open with the session on Opioid Stewardship, featuring the Gitlitz Memorial Lecture by Dr. Levine.
| Program Committee Co-chairs: | Keri J. Donaldson, M.D., Penn State University Myra L. Wilkerson, M.D., Geisinger Health System |
| Program Committee members: | Laurence M. Demers, Ph.D., Penn State University (Emeritus) Magali Fontaine, M.D., PhD, University of Maryland Amanda Haynes, D.O., Geisinger Health System Jordan Newell, M.D., Penn State University Jennifer O’Brien, M.D., PhD, University of Maryland Jordan Olson, M.D., Geisinger Health System |
Professor
Wittliff’s team is internationally regarded for studies of estrogens
and their mimics with receptor proteins in human cancer, exploiting
proteomics and genomics. His laboratory was among the first to report
estrogen receptors in a breast cancer biopsy predicted a patient’s
response to hormone therapy. This finding led to collaborations with
the NSABP, establishing Tamoxifen as adjuvant therapy for breast cancer
and use of receptors as biomarkers of patient prognosis and response.
With NEN/DuPont, Dr. Wittliff developed the original FDA-approved kits
for assessing estrogen and progestin receptors in biopsies, celebrated
as a major contribution to laboratory medicine. His laboratory,
designated the National Reference Facility for historical clinical
trials in North America, served more than 400 laboratories worldwide.
Focusing expertise on molecules exhibiting estrogen mimicry, Dr.
Wittliff and IA, Inc. patented receptor-based biosensors detecting
endocrine-disrupting compounds in the environment. Awards include
Outstanding Contributions to Clinical Chemistry from the AACC,
Goldsmith Research Excellence Award from the American Cancer Society
and the University of Louisville President's Award for Career
Achievements. More than 200 students and research fellows from 45
countries have trained in his laboratory. Currently Dr. Wittliff
directs the Institute for Molecular Diversity & Drug Design,
which he co-founded.
Dr. Valdes
is Professor and Senior Vice-Chairman in the Department of Pathology
and Laboratory Medicine, University of Louisville School of Medicine.
He is also Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, serves as
Chief of Clinical Chemistry and Toxicology and is the founder and
director of a Postdoctoral Fellowship Program in Clinical Chemistry in
the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Dr. Valdes is
nationally and internationally recognized as a leader in advancing the
profession of clinical chemistry through his major contributions in
promoting clinical chemistry as a discipline via the scholarships of
clinical service, research, and teaching. As a result of these
activities, Dr. Valdes has played a major role in heading and
participating in numerous national committees and in leading several of
our key professional organizations. He has served as president of the
Clinical Ligand Assay Society (CLAS), president of the National Academy
of Clinical Biochemistry (NACB), and is a past-president of the
Commission for Accreditation in Clinical Chemistry (ComACC). Dr. Valdes
has also served on the Board of Directors of the American Association
for Clinical Chemistry (AACC) and as a director on the American Board
of Clinical Chemistry (ABCC). Additionally, Dr. Valdes has been engaged
in many other national work groups including federal government
advisory committees. His scientific interests involve discovery and
characterization of the mammalian cardenolides and their
pathophysiologic role in cardiovascular disease and, more recently, in
cancer therapeutics. For this scientific work, he has been awarded
numerous grants from the NIH and other public and private organizations
as well as several distinguished scientist awards from professional
organizations such as the NACB, the CLAS, and the ACS. Dr. Valdes has
authored more than 250 publications. In addition to his other research
laboratories, Dr. Valdes is the principle founder and President of the
Pharmacogenetics Diagnostic Laboratory at the University of Louisville
where he is currently working on transitioning the science of
pharmacogenetics and proteomics into clinical laboratory practice.
Dr.
Charles Hawker is Scientific Director for Automation and Special
Projects at ARUP, where he has been for 19 years. Dr. Hawker is also
Professor (Adjunct) of Pathology in the University of Utah, School of
Medicine. Previously, over a twenty year period, he held various
positions in research and development and management at Laboratory
Procedures, Inc. (Upjohn) and SmithKline Beecham Clinical Labs. At ARUP
he has installed several major automation and robotic systems that have
made ARUP one of the country’s most automated laboratories. He is a
past president of the Association of Clinical Scientists, the National
Academy of Clinical Biochemistry (NACB), and the Clinical Ligand Assay
Society (CLAS). He has received the John V. Bergen Award of the
Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI), the Professor Alvin
Dubin Award from the NACB, and the Becton Dickinson Award from the
Association for Laboratory Automation.
Dr. Peter
Hu is an Associate Professor in the School of Health Professions (SHP)
and is Director for the Molecular Genetic Technology Program. He
received his Bachelor’s degree from Purdue University in 1990 with a
major in Psychology and a minor in Chemistry. He later received his
Master’s degree from Lamar University majoring in Microbiology and
subsequently a Doctor of Philosophy from Trident University
International (TUI) Healthcare Administration and Molecular Genetics.
Dr. Hu also holds 3 specialty clinical certifications in Molecular
Biology, Cytogenetics, and Clinical Laboratory Science. He joined MD
Anderson Cancer Center (MDACC) in1995 and has worked in both clinical
and academic environments.