Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocates
About the Advisory Advocates
Friends established the Advisory Advocates in 2023 to provide the patient perspective to Friends’ projects and messaging and to create a forum for sharing the needs of the patient community as it relates to cancer research, oncology drug development, and US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory affairs. Advisory Advocates are patients, caregivers of patients, and survivors of cancer who provide invaluable insights on their experiences to ensure patient perspectives are represented in Friends’ work. They volunteer to serve as project members on Friends’ projects and are may also be included as panelists at Friends’ meetings. Advisory Advocates attend quarterly meetings with Friends’ staff to learn about updates on Friends’ projects, discuss upcoming events, and share community needs. Advisory Advocates have completed the ProgressforPatients.org Advocacy Education Program and are interested in using their experience to support cancer research. If you are interested in becoming an Advisory Advocate, please fill out this form.
Scroll through below to see our current Advisory Advocates.
Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocates
Ken Billett
Friends Projects
Digital PATH Project
Other Affiliations:
Melanoma Action Coalition, Executive Committee | Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC), Research Advocate | CDMRP Grant Reviewer
Mary P. Harper, PhD
Friends Projects
ctMoniTR Project
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
Mucosal Melanoma Warriors | Melanoma Research Alliance | Melanoma Research Foundation
Abigail Johnston, Esq.
Friends Projects
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
Project Life, Director of Mentorship and Legal Clinics | SurvivingBreastCancer.org, MBC Leadership Committee, Board Member and Chair | PIK3CA PathBreakers, Co-founder
Maria Boyce
Other Affiliations:
The Rose Breast Center of Excellence, Board of Directors | MD Anderson’s CancerConnect Program | Alamo Breast Cancer Foundation
Patsy Hinson
Friends Projects
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
Survivor Teaching Students
Joan Mancuso
Friends Projects'
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
ASCO's Targeted Agent and Profiling Utilization Registry (TAPUR) | Theresa’s Research Foundation Metastatic Breast Cancer Research Conference (MBCRC) | Guiding Researchers and Advocates to Scientific Partnerships (GRASP)
Judith Medeiros Fitzgerald
Friends Projects
Other Affiliations:
Sisters4Prevention, Founder | Annie Appleseed Project | CDMRP Grant Reviewer Lee Jones
Friends Projects
Clinical Trials Eligibility Criteria
COVID-19 Mitigation Strategies Working Groups
Other Affiliations:
SWOG Cancer Research Network, Advocate member | Fight Colorectal Cancer, Research Advocate | Georgetown University Oncology IRB and NCI CIRB
Eva A. May, MBA
Friends Projects
Real World Evidence Portfolio
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology | NCI’s NCTN Core Correlative Sciences Committee | UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Community Advisory Board | UNC Breast Cancer SPORE
Kristin R. McJunkins
Friends Projects
2022, 2023 Annual Meeting Working Group
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
Melanoma Research Foundation (MRF) | Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) | National Patient Advocate Foundation (NPAF)
Kelly Shanahan
Friends Projects
2023 Annual Meeting Working Group
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
METAvivor, Director | Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology, Advocate Member | Komen Advocates in Sciences
Carol Vallett
Other Advocacy Affiliations:
Komen Advocate in Science | CDMRP Grant Reviewer | Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas Grant Reviewer
Chris White
Friends Projects
