Naveen Pemmaraju, MD Associate Professor Department of Leukemia The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston, TX

Naveen Pemmaraju, MD, is an associate professor in the Department of Leukemia, Division of Cancer Medicine, at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.

Dr. Pemmaraju received his medical degree from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. He completed his internal medicine training in the Osler Medical Program at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, followed by a fellowship in hematology and oncology at MD Anderson Cancer Center. His clinical and research work focuses on improving outcomes and developing novel therapies and clinical trials for patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs), and blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN). Dr. Pemmaraju serves as principal investigator for several national clinical trials in MPNs and BPDCN, and he has helped develop novel targeted therapies for patients with these disorders. He led a multicenter team in a phase 1/2 clinical trial for patients with BPDCN that ultimately led to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the first targeted agent available for this rare leukemia. Dr. Pemmaraju is a member of the American Society of Hematology, American Society of Clinical Oncology, and the American Association for Cancer Research, among others. Additionally, Dr. Pemmaraju serves as a section editor for Elsevier, on the advisory board for Oncology Times, on the editorial review board of HemOnc Times, and as a reviewer for several medical journals. He has authored or coauthored more than 175 peer-reviewed articles and has presented his work at national and international meetings.

Allyson Price, MPAS, PA-C Physician Assistant Department of Leukemia The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston, TX

Allyson (Ally) Price is a physician assistant in the Department of Leukemia at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. She began her journey here in May 2014. Prior to this, she practiced hematology and oncology at Ironwood Cancer & Research Center in Phoenix, Arizona. Ally is a founder and program coordinator for an education course at MD Anderson for newly diagnosed acute leukemia patients. She serves on multiple committees, including the PA Public Relations Committee and the education committee for APSHO (the Advanced Practitioner Society for Hematology and Oncology). She has served as editor for updates for APPs (Advanced Practice Providers) in managing chemotherapy side effects in JADPRO (Journal of the Advanced Practitioner in Oncology). She is also active in The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS). In 2018, she rode 100 miles around Lake Tahoe at the America's Most Beautiful Bike Ride for LLS and was a top 20 fundraiser, raising over $15,000.

Michelle Rajotte, LMSW Associate Director Information Resource Center The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Rye Brook, NY

Michelle Rajotte, LMSW, is currently the Associate Director of The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's (LLS) Information Resource Center (IRC). She has worked for LLS since 2005, when she started as an Information Specialist. As part of her role as Associate Director, she assists and educates those affected by blood cancers when they reach out to LLS for resources, information and support. Michelle has a Masters degree in Social Work from New York University (NYU) and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Quinnipiac University. In addition to working with blood cancer patients and their families, she also has experience assisting individuals with developmental disabilities, adults with psychiatric diagnoses, children and adolescents with various medical issues, and children in foster care.