The Desmoid Tumor Research Foundation

Palma Dileo, MD

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Palma Dileo, MD, is Consultant Medical Oncologist specializing exclusively in the management of soft tissue and bone sarcomas. Dr. Dileo previously served on the Sarcoma Unit at UCLH, together with the Sarcoma Unit at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, is the London Sarcoma Service, which offers a comprehensive clinical service to patients of all ages with sarcoma at all sites of the body. She continued to provide patient care since 1996 (general oncology), with more emphasis on sarcoma and rare tumors starting from 1998. 

She completed her training at the Istituto Nazionale Tumori of Milan, Italy and at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA. From 2006 to 2010 she was an Associate Physician, Medical Oncology, Istituto Nazionale Tumori, Milan working in the Sarcoma Team. She has a strong interest in early phase clinical trials and is a co-investigator for a number of clinical trials in sarcoma. She is also a member of the EORTC Soft Tissue and Bone Sarcoma Group and ASCO.

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Rashmi Chugh, MD, is a Professor of Internal Medicine in the Division of Hematology/Oncology at University of Michigan Rogel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Associate Division Chief of Clinical Services of Hematology/Oncology, and Sarcoma Clinical Research Team Co-Leader. Her clinical practice is focused on the care of patients with bone and soft tissue sarcoma and desmoid fibromatosis.  Dr. Chugh’s research involves conducting early and late phase clinical trials of novel therapies alone or in combination with a goal to advance the care of sarcoma and desmoid patients. She also has a particular interest in the care and research surrounding the adolescent and young adult (AYA) population and understanding the unique challenges they face.

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Aaron Weiss, MD, graduated from the University of Rochester in 1994 and subsequently earned his medical degree from the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1999. He completed a pediatric emphasis internship at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine/Albert Einstein Medical Center in 2000 followed by a pediatric residency at the AI duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, DE in 2003. He then went on to complete a pediatric hematology-oncology fellowship at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN in 2006. He subsequently spent six years as an attending pediatric hematologist-oncologist at the Cancer Institute of New Jersey/University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and Jersey Shore University Medical Center. In 2012, Dr. Weiss joined the Maine Children’s Cancer Program at Maine Medical Center in Portland, ME. 

Dr. Weiss has particular interest in pediatric sarcomas. He has co-authored a number of publications on this subject and is currently involved in conducting pediatric clinical trials both locally and nationally in the fields of desmoid tumor and soft tissue sarcoma. He is the Vice-Chair of the Soft Tissue Sarcoma Committee and Associate Vice-Chair of the Adolescent and Young Adult Committee of the Children’s Oncology Group. He is the Principal Investigator of the DTRF-funded project: Deregulated mTOR in Desmoid-type Fibromatosis: Identification and Validation of a New Therapeutic Target.

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Amanda Lucas is a dedicated patient advocate and research associate with the Desmoid Tumor Research Foundation (DTRF), as well as a clinical research project manager based in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. Her passion lies in serving the Desmoid Tumor community and addressing the needs of patients with serious, unmet medical challenges. 

Amanda is a graduate of Clemson University with a B.S. in Biological Sciences and was chosen in 2008 to participate in the Alta Bates Oncology Preceptorship in Berkeley CA. Now, she has more than 12 years of clinical research experience primarily in the early phase development of assets, including large and small molecules, across various therapeutic areas.

Most notably, Amanda was part of a small clinical team responsible for data collection and on-time database closure of a pivotal Phase 2/3 trial to enable fast-tracked FDA approval. She was part of the initial team, working with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, in the start-up of an international Phase 1/2 program, and a year later, she was recruited into Amgen’s Early Development Department as a Clinical Research Study Manager in Thousand Oaks, CA.

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Dr. Mrinal Gounder is the Scientific Director of DTRF and a member of the Medical and Scientific Advisory Boards. He is a medical oncologist at MSKCC specializing in sarcomas and developing new drugs in cancer and specializes in desmoid tumors. He is an internationally recognized leader in desmoid tumors and has lead numerous clinical trials in desmoid tumors. He led the phase 3, international studies of sorafenib and nirogacestat in desmoid tumors. In collaboration with DTRF,MSKCC and IQVIA, he developed the GODDESS patient reported outcomes tool – the first of its kind to evaluate the experience of patients with desmoid tumors.

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Kelly Mercier, PhD is a DTRF grant recipient, the DTRF Natural History Study and Patient Registry Principal Investigator, Diagnostic Regional Medical Lead (Lung Oncology) at Daiichi Sankyo, Inc, and an adjunct associate professor at Duke University.

Dr. Mercier specializes in designing, implementing, and prompting the adoption of novel therapies and diagnostic assays in oncology. She has received grants to understand the metabolic differences between desmoid tumors and normal adjacent tissue in the same patient with Dr. Ben Alman. Dr. Mercier is passionate about desmoid tumor research and is thrilled to be able to contribute her scientific knowledge to better understand and treat desmoid tumors.