Board Members
Susan Thornton, Chair | Cutaneous Lymphoma Foundation
Susan Thornton is the CEO of the Cutaneous Lymphoma Foundation, and was elected Chair of the Board of Lymphoma Coalition on 31 January 2018. She has also served as a Founding Board Member/Vice Chair of the International Alliance of Dermatology Patient Organizations and Vice Chair of the Coalition of Skin Diseases.
Prior to joining the CLF as CEO, she served on the Board of Directors and provided consulting services to the Foundation. Susan spent over 25 years in the healthcare technology field, holding various positions in consulting, marketing and sales.
Monica Pasqualin, Vice Chair | ABRALE – Brazilian Lymphoma and Leukemia Society
Monica is an economist with a degree in Political Sciences, Marketing and Social Management. She has more than 20 years of experience at corporate and nonprofit institutions. Presently, she is a volunteer with ABRALE – Brazilian Lymphoma and Leukemia Society, founded in 2002 and one of the most prestigious patient advocacy organizations in Brazil and Latin America.
Previously, Monica worked for ABRALE as the Head of International Alliances and Fundraising. She also led the Alianza Latina programme, coordinating a network of 122 patient advocacy institutions across Latin America, the USA, Spain, and Portugal. ABRALE is the founding member and one of the leaders of the All Against Cancer Movement in Brazil, a well-known programme that unites public and private stakeholders to enhance knowledge and policies relating to the most relevant issues in oncology.
Guy Bouguet, Treasurer | Ensemble Leucémie Lymphomes Espoir (ELLyE)
Guy is President of Ensemble Leucémie Lymphomes Espoir (ELLyE). He was diagnosed with follicular lymphoma in 2000. Following his research to understand his disease, Guy noted the lack of information available in France and went on to become an active patient advocate. He then co-founded France Lymphome Espoir (FLE) in 2006. FLE merged with another blood cancer patient group SILLC in 2021 and rebranded as ELLyE. Guy has been involved with Lymphoma Coalition for more than a decade, serving as a Director, Treasurer, and helping to establish Lymphoma Coalition Europe. Guy is also a Member of the EBMT Patient Advisory Committee, has participated in several Advisory Boards and is involved in many different education programs.
Guy is an electronic engineer who worked over 10 years in Silicon Valley for one of the largest semiconductor companies, where he was Director of Market Development in Europe. In 2018, Guy graduated from the Patient University of la Sorbonne with a Health Democracy DU. Guy is dedicated to raising awareness of lymphoma, advocating for improved access to care and providing information to patients.
Lauren Pretorius, Secretary | Campaigning for Cancer, South Africa
Lauren is the CEO and co-founder of Campaigning for Cancer NPC, an advocacy patient group formed in 2008 to lobby for the promotion and protection of patients’ rights with regards to policy, healthcare costs and healthcare delivery. Lauren has worked in the cancer civil society since 2005. She has represented South Africa as a Global Cancer Ambassador for the UN’s Resolution for Non-Communicable Diseases, has chaired the Civil Society Commission at the National Department of Health’s NCD Summit and was a member of National Cancer Registry implementation team as well as a founding member of the executive committee of the Cancer Alliance.
As a specialist consultant, she assisted several non-profit organisations to apply business principles and marketing strategies to ensure their greater success and sustainability. From 2000 to 2003 she was contracted to the Nelson Mandela’s Children Fund on brand governance and fundraising partner. She was privileged to work with Nelson Mandela Foundation on the launch of their 46664 brand.
Debbie Brown, Director | Lymphoma Action
An active volunteer with Lymphoma Action since 2012, Debbie is a member of the Insight Panel, helping to offer valuable feedback and a unique perspective on the charity’s plans and activities; the Reader Review Panel, reviewing patient information and ensuring that it is easily accessible to all; as well as being involved in the creation and delivery of its Live Your Life survivorship programme. She also acts as an ambassador, sharing her story and representing Lymphoma Action at community events. Debbie has been a member of the Lymphoma Coalition Community Advisory Board (CAB) from its inception in 2019, as well as other educational activities with pharmaceutical partners, helping to shape clinical trials and patient support programs with her well-articulated fair and balanced insights.
Debbie previously worked in the education sector, in primary and secondary schools, specifically assisting students with special educational needs. Hence, she is passionate about the accessibility of information and the role it plays in equitable care, as well as ensuring everyone has a voice.
Anna Tapel-Delos Angeles | Lymphoma Philippines
Co-Founder of Lymphoma Philippines in 2016, a non-profit organization advocating for better healthcare access for lymphoma patients, Anna is currently in-charge of creating the communications strategy and implementing campaigns within the organisation while also being involved in its strategic direction and growth.
As a trained digital marketer who has worked in various industries (fashion, pharma, gaming, e-commerce, non-profit, entertainment, hospitality, etc.) for almost a decade, her expertise is producing creative materials that resonate within the patient community. For instance, her efforts have grown Lymphoma Philippines’ online Facebook community to over 1600 members and 3000 followers. Her experience was put to good use when Anna joined the first Lymphoma Coalition Community Advisory Board (CAB) in Asia-Pacific in 2021, focused on health literacy.
Kristina Modic, Director | Slovenian Association of Patients with Lymphoma and Leukemia
Kristina is Co-Founder and long-time president of the Slovenian Association of Patients with Lymphoma and Leukemia and is currently Managing Director. As a graduate economist and experienced expert in marketing and project management, she is leading the development and implementation of numerous quality and innovative support programs to complement the medical treatment of blood cancer patients. From 2016 to 2021 Kristina was the president and currently is the vice-president of the Association of the Slovenian Cancer Patients’ Organizations, Onko Net. She is a member of the Patients’ Council of the Oncology Institute Ljubljana and a member of the Council for the Supervision of the National Cancer Control Program at the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Slovenia. She has also been a member of the board of directors of Myeloma Patient Europe. For the successful design, management, and implementation of a national fundraising campaign for the purchase of a CAR T-cell therapy device, alongside a dedicated clinician Dr Samo Zver, she was awarded the prestigious 2021 Citizen’s Prize by the European Parliament for contributions to solidarity and the pan-European health progress of cancer patients. This effort ensured this novel treatment is available to patients in Slovenia
Sharon Winton | Lymphoma Australia
Sharon is CEO of Lymphoma Australia. With her 20 years of experience in the field, she has developed a deep understanding of lymphoma, patient experiences, and the broader policies of healthcare systems. Sharon has been a health consumer representative in several stakeholder meetings and committees in Australia and internationally, with the most recent appointment being a newly created Commonwealth Government committee to co design with the government and Medicines Australia recommendations for ensuring the patient voice is appropriately recognised within the health care system. Sharon also works closely with the clinical community, including the successful nurse education and engagement program to upskill all nurses caring for lymphoma patients and to connect them to Lymphoma Australia services for their patients.
Prior to her current role, Sharon worked with a private health insurance company in relationship and strategic management and was also a physical education teacher and Director of a Sport and Recreation Company. Sharon is extremely passionate about ensuring all Australians have equitable access to information and medicines.
Lorna Warwick, CEO | Lymphoma Coalition
Lorna was appointed CEO of the Lymphoma Coalition in December 2018, to provide vision and leadership for the 83-member strong organisation, having previous been the Coalition’s Director of Strategic Communications and Engagement. Lorna has successfully held senior leadership roles in health charities for more than twenty years and has a diverse background in patient advocacy, mission development, communications, and strategic planning.
Her efforts have been focused on haematological cancers since 2003, at a national (Canada) and global level. Lorna is recognized and respected for strong leadership skills, breadth of knowledge, critical thinking, and patient-focus.
A self-identified data wonk, the rich data procured from the biennial Lymphoma Coalition Global Patient Survey on Lymphomas and CLL allows Lorna to truly understand and report on the global patient experience, by subtype, by therapy area, by geographic area, by gender and by age.
As a result of her years of experience in evidence-based advocacy and especially in the haematology field, she is frequently asked to present on patient experience, emerging trends and important issues in the lymphoma and CLL landscape.
Medical Advisory Board
Dr. Laurie Sehn, MD, MPH – Chair
Chair, BC Cancer Agency Lymphoma Tumor Group, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Dr. Andreas Engert, MD, Professor, Internal Medicine, Hematology and Oncology, University Hospital of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
Dr. John G. Gribben, MD, DSc, FRCPath, FRCP, FMedSci, Professor, Support, Consultant Haematologist & Medical Oncologist Barts & The London NHS Trust. London, England
Dr. Gilles Salles, MD, Professor of Medicine at the University of Lyon, Lyon, France
Dr. John Seymour, MD, Professor, Chair Department of Haematology and Medical Oncology, the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre, East Melbourne, Australia
Dr. Julie Vose, MD, The Neumann M. and Mildred E. Harris Professorial Chair, Chief of Oncology/Hematology Division, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
Read Lymphoma Coalition’s By-Laws here.