Board of Trustees
![]() John “Jack” R. Fowle III PhD, DABT |
![]() Gerry Kenna, PhD |
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![]() Thomas Hartung, MD, PhD |
![]() Emily S Sena, PhDDr Sena is a Research Fellow at the Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Convener, CAMARADES. She has a background in neuroscience and is a research fellow specialised in the validity of preclinical studies. Her research interests are in the use of systematic review and meta-analysis of preclinical efficacy studies to increase the understanding of critical facets of translational medicine and developing new hypotheses for testing in the laboratory. Since 2015 Dr Sena has led the Collaborative Approach to Meta-Analysis and Review of Animal Data from Experimental Studies (CAMARADES), a multicentre international research collaboration facilitating the pooling and analysis of data from a range of disease models across the basic sciences. To support this she has developed an internationally accessible database, similar to the Cochrane library, to facilitate interpretation of the preclinical data used to justify progression to clinical trial. Dr Sena's research has informed laboratory practice guidelines, editorial policy and the design of clinical trial protocols. |
![]() Kristina Thayer, PhDSince January 2017, Dr Thayer serves as the Integrated Risk Information System (IRIS) Division Director, located within the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) National Center for Environmental Assessment (NCEA). IRIS assessments identify the potential for a chemical to cause cancer or non-cancer health effects in people and are considered the top tier source of toxicity information used by EPA and other agencies to inform national standards, clean-up levels at local sites, and set advisory levels. IRIS uses systematic review methods to evaluate epidemiological and toxicological literature and include consideration of relevant mechanistic evidence. Prior to joining EPA, Dr. Thayer was Deputy Division Director of Analysis at the National Toxicology Program (NTP) and Director of the NTP Office of Health Assessment and Translation (OHAT) located on the campus of the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). As Deputy Division Director of Analysis, she oversaw OHAT and the NTP Office of the Report on Carcinogens (ORoC). She has also worked in the NTP Office of Liaison, Policy, and Review, the NIEHS Office of Risk Assessment Research, and the NTP Center for the Evaluation or Risks to Human Reproduction (CERHR). Prior to joining the NTP/NIEHS, she was a senior scientist at the World Wildlife Fund and then at the Environmental Working Group. She is considered an expert on the application of systematic review methods to environmental health topics and the use of specialized software and automation approaches to facilitate conducting reviews. |
![]() Didier Verloo, PhDDidier Verloo is working for the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) since 2005 where he is heading the Assessment and Methodological Support Unit since 2008. This multidisciplinary unit leads and supports the development, implementation and review of evidence based risk assessment and decision support approaches in all fields within EFSA’s remit and was responsible for the EFSA guidance on Systematic Review in food and feed safety risk assessment and the EFSA guidance on Expert Knowledge Elicitations. Recently the unit developed and started to implement an overall framework for Promoting Methods for Evidence Use in Scientific assessments (Prometheus).Didier Verloo graduated as a Veterinarian in 1995 and started his professional career at the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp on the development of diagnostics, interpretation and medical decision making based on diagnostic test results in human and animal trypanosomosis (sleeping sickness) and worked from 2000-2005 for the Belgian government as an epidemiologist and Risk Assessor. Over those years he built up academic and hands on experience in biostatistics, epidemiology, risk analysis, test validation and provided risk analysis consultancy in public health, construction, finance and engineering. |
Daniele Wikoff, PhDDr. Daniele Wikoff is the Director of ToxStrategies’ Health Sciences Practice. She specializes in the use of evidence-based methods in support of hazard and risk assessment applications for food ingredients and contaminants, industrial chemicals, and consumer products. She has successfully implemented a turn-key process for conducting systematic assessments at ToxStrategies, with a workflow facilitated by the combination of an experienced multidisciplinary team and use of systematic review software and tools. Dr. Wikoff has diverse experience in applying systematic mapping (scoping reviews) and systematic reviews as platforms for facilitating risk assessment, including development of health-based benchmarks as well as topic-specific application of various organizational concepts for mechanistic data, including key characteristics, adverse outcome pathways, and mode of action. Dr. Wikoff has particular interest in methods development related to the definition and evaluation of data quality, and how elements of internal, construct, and external validity can be used to transparently inform conclusions and provide critical information to decision makers. Dr. Wikoff is involved in a number of global collaborations to advance the practice of evidence-based toxicology, highlighted by her membership on the Board of Trustees and role as the Vice-Chair of the Science Advisory Council for the EBTC, membership on a National Academy of Sciences committee in the capacity of systematic review, co-authorship on the World Health Organization’s systematic review guidance (under development), and service as an Associate Editor for Toxicological Sciences and Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology. Holger Schunemann, Professor, Health Research Methods, Evidence, and ImpactHolger Schünemann is a tenured professor in the Departments of Health Research Methods, Evidence, and Impact and of Medicine at McMaster University. From 2009 to 2019, he completed his two terms as Chair of Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics at McMaster University, widely considered the birthplace of evidence-based health care. He had trained in respiratory and exercise physiology and internal and respiratory medicine at the Medical School of Hannover (MD in 1993 & Dr. med. in 1994) and lung biology, epidemiology, internal medicine and preventive medicine/public health at the University at Buffalo (UB), State of New York (M.Sc. Epidemiology in 1997; Ph.D. Epidemiology & Community Medicine in 2000). He was on faculty at UB and, from 2007 to 2009, interim Chair of Epidemiology at the National Cancer Institute in Rome, Italy. |
EBTC staff members Drs. Katya Tsaioun, Martin L. Stephens, and Sebastian Hoffmann are non-voting members of the Board of Trustees.