Keith Winfrey, MD, MPH

New Orleans East Community Health Center

Dr. Keith Winfrey is the Chief Medical Officer for the New Orleans East Louisiana Community Health Center (NOELA CHC). He is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Tulane University School of Medicine. He completed his residency in Internal Medicine and a fellowship in Preventive Medicine at the Tulane University School of Medicine. He also holds a Masters’ Degree in Health System Management from the Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. Dr. Winfrey has been with NOELA since 2009 and has served as the Chief Medical Officer since 2011. He has guided NOELA Community Health Center through the practice transformation process to become a Level III “Patient-Centered Medical Home” and to improve the health center’s efficiency and effectiveness in chronic disease management and disease prevention. Dr. Winfrey serves on the steering committee for the Louisiana Colorectal Roundtable, the clinical committee for the Taking Aim at Cancer Louisiana initiative, and is the current Clinical Branch Chairman for the Louisiana Primary Care Association.

Candace Henley, MPH

The Blue Hat Foundation

Steering Committee

Candace Henley, MPH is a tireless advocate for colon cancer prevention and support. Candace was a single
mother who was raising five children who lost her car and home while battling colon cancer. Her
own battle and the devastation it left on her life and that of her children inspired her to create The
Blue Hat Foundation. The organization is founded on unconditional support and compassion for
people fighting colon cancer. Their mission is to provide education, information, and free screenings
for colon cancer in the minority and medically underserved communities. The Blue Hat Foundation
started as a single event – “ Blue Hat Bow Tie Sunday” — at one church in Chicago. The program is
now in 15 churches and promotes education through participation by asking the congregation to
wear blue in honor of someone who is fighting or passed away from colon cancer. In addition to the
Sunday events, The Blue Hat Foundation raises awareness about the disease’s signs and shares
personal experience stories through speeches, podcasts, articles, and community partnerships.

Allison Rosen, M.S.

University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth)

Steering Committee (Elect)

Allison Rosen is a graduate of Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Science
and received a Master of Forensic Science from Sam Houston State University. She has worked in the
field of Oncology for the past 14 years. She was a Lab manager and researcher at Baylor College of
Medicine’s Department of Cell and Gene Therapy for 11 years. After going through a personal journey
with colorectal cancer in 2012, she decided to shift her career goals to focus on community health
disparities and cancer prevention. She then served as Lead Project Coordinator at the Dan L Duncan
Comprehensive Cancer Center at Baylor College of Medicine in the Office of Outreach and Health
Disparities. Currently, she serves as Project Director at The University of Texas Health Science Center at
Houston leading the CDC-funded Colorectal Cancer Control Program in Texas.

Michael Sapienza

Colorectal Cancer Alliance

Steering Committee

Michael Sapienza, Chief Executive Officer of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, lost his mother to colorectal cancer in May 2009. He turned his profound grief into action, inspiring and challenging the colorectal cancer community, family, friends, and professional associates to follow his lead and dedicate themselves to ending colorectal cancer within our lifetime—the mission of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance. Michael founded The Chris4Life Colon Cancer Foundation and served as its President from 2010-2015. In 2016, he led the team that merged the Foundation and the Colon Cancer Alliance, creating the nation’s largest colon cancer specific nonprofit, which changed its name to Colorectal Cancer Alliance in 2017 to embrace both the colon and rectal cancer communities.

Over the last decade, Michael has become an expert and trusted voice on the topics of colorectal cancer prevention, patient care, and medical research. Michael regularly appears on TV and radio programs throughout the United States, including NBC’s TODAY show. He is frequently quoted in national publications such as USA Today, Newsweek, and The New York Times, promoting awareness and the importance of increased funding for colorectal cancer research and early detection.

Michael is a member of The Ruesch Center for the Cure of GI Cancer’s Advisory Board at Georgetown University, and in 2020 he was appointed to the President’s Cancer Panel. In 2014, Michael received three prestigious industry awards: David Jagelman, MD Award for advocacy in Colorectal Cancer Awareness by the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons; the Public Service Award from the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract; and the Champion Award from Preventing Colorectal Cancer. In 2018, Michael was honored with a Luminary Award from OncLive and The Ruesch Center for his lifetime commitment to improving the lives of patients affected by gastrointestinal cancer.

Michael holds degrees from both Northwestern University and Rice University and currently resides in the District of Columbia.

Beverly B. Green, MD, MPH

Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute

Steering Committee

Beverly B. Green, MD, MPH, is a physician scientist whose research has focused on improving systems of care by designing and evaluating programs that make it easier for patients to get the care they need, including colorectal cancer screening. She is currently a Senior Investigator at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute and an Associate Clinical Professor at University of Washington’s School of Medicine, Department of Family Medicine. In addition to practicing as a family physician, she was a Robert Wood Johnson fellow at University of Washington, where she trained in Preventive Medicine and received a public health master’s degree (MPH) in epidemiology.

Dr. Green’s research focuses public health, targeting conditions that impact large proportions of the population, such as cancer, with an emphasis on leveraging technologies and systems-based care. She has used electronic technologies to implement an EHR-linked mailed fecal testing program for colorectal cancer screening that more than doubled screening uptake, increased adherence to screening long-term (over 9 years), and decreased screening costs compared to usual care. The program was subsequently successfully adapted for use and scaled up in Federally Qualified Health Centers and Medicaid health plans.

Dr. Green is also interested in understanding and changing policies that block the development and improvement of equitable care and prevention of chronic conditions. She is a member of the Colorectal Cancer Screening Workgroup of the Bree Collaborative, an organization appointed by Washington Governor Jay Inslee to decrease health inequities and improve health outcomes in Washington state.

Frank Colangelo, MD, M.S.-HQS, FACP

Premier Medical Associates

Steering Committee

Francis R Colangelo, MD, MS-HQS, FACP practices as an internist and serves as Vice President and Chief Quality Officer for Premier Medical Associates, a large multispecialty group in suburban Pittsburgh, PA that is part of the larger Allegheny Health Network.

Dr. Colangelo is a 1984 graduate of Jefferson Medical College, and trained in Internal Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh. He obtained a Masters of Health Care Quality and Safety from the Thomas Jefferson College of Population Health in 2017. He is now a lecturer for the college.

Dr. Colangelo is part of the leadership team that has transformed Premier Medical Associates into a nationally recognized leader in providing high performing patient centered medical care. The practice has received recognition from the CDC’s Million Hearts Initiative as a Hypertension Control Champion, received a National Achievement Award from the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable for its work in increasing colorectal cancer screening rates, and have been awarded the prestigious Acclaim Award from the American Medical Group Association, and the Optum/AMGA Award for Innovation in Population Health.

Laura Makaroff, DO

American Cancer Society

Steering Committee Member

Laura Makaroff, DO

Dr. Laura Makaroff is a family physician and Senior Vice President of Prevention and Early Detection at the American Cancer Society. She oversees a broad portfolio of cancer prevention and early detection initiatives including health equity, cancer screening, HPV vaccination, tobacco control, comprehensive cancer control, and other national partnerships. Prior to joining ACS, Dr. Makaroff served as a Senior Clinical Advisor for the Bureau of Primary Health Care at the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA). Dr. Makaroff completed a fellowship in health policy at Georgetown University and The Robert Graham Center in Washington, DC. She completed her residency in family medicine at the University of Colorado Hospital and was previously in solo, private practice outside of Denver, CO.

Jordan Karlitz, MD

Tulane University School of Medicine

Steering Committee Member

Dr. Jordan Karlitz graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in molecular biology and genetics. He subsequently attended the McGill University Faculty of Medicine in Montreal where he received his medical degree. He received his internal medicine training at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons/New York Presbyterian Hospital and completed his fellowship in gastroenterology and hepatology at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Montefiore Medical Center.

Dr. Karlitz is currently an Associate Professor of Medicine at the Tulane University School of Medicine where he founded the Hereditary GI Cancer and Genetics Program at the Tulane Cancer Center, the first clinical program of its kind in Louisiana, of which he is director. He is also the Associate Program Director of the gastroenterology fellowship program at Tulane and the Fellowship Site Director at the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Healthcare System.

Dr. Karlitz’s clinical interests and research centers on early-onset colorectal cancer and familial colon cancer syndromes, including Lynch Syndrome. Through collaboration with the Louisiana Tumor Registry (LTR) based at the LSU School of public health (where he is an adjunct professor), Dr. Karlitz has been studying colorectal cancer incidence rates in Louisiana and nationally. Through his research, he has identified one of the highest rates of colorectal cancer in the U.S. in the Acadian parishes of Louisiana. Also through collaboration with the LTR, Dr. Karlitz has been studying population based Lynch Syndrome screening practices in young colorectal cancer patients. Through his affiliation with the LTR, Dr. Karlitz serves as the Physician Advisor for GI Cancers for the State Tumor Registry (SEER program).

Dr. Karlitz’s Acadian parish colorectal cancer research has been presented at the American Gastroenterological Association’s Digestive and Disease Week where he was a Poster of Distinction award winner. He also presented his population based Lynch Syndrome screening research at the Colorectal Cancer Prevention Plenary at the Annual American College of Gastroenterology (ACG) meeting and was awarded the prestigious ACG Governors Award for Excellence in Clinical Research. He also won an ACG Presidential Poster Award for his work in colon cancer genetics.

Dr. Karlitz is involved in multiple state and national initiatives regarding colorectal cancer and GI issues in general. He is the former Public Relations Chairperson for the American College of Gastroenerology (ACG) and the current Digital Communications and Publications Chairperson for the ACG. Dr. Karlitz is also the Chairperson of the Louisiana State Colorectal Cancer Roundtable, an organization whose goal is to increase colon cancer screening in Louisiana, particularly in underserved and at-risk populations.

Cecelia Brewington, MD

UT Southwestern Hospital

Steering Committee Member

Dr. Cecelia Brewington is a professor and Vice Chairman of the Radiology department at UT Southwestern hospital in Dallas, TX. She has both administrative responsibilities and clinical responsibilities. Administrative roles include strategic planning and oversight of expansion of community imaging locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

Dr. Brewington is the director of the UTSW CT Colon Cancer Screening Program. She has been a longtime advocate of CT Colonography Imaging, and has served as an international and national instructor and speaker in CT Colonography imaging. Dr. Brewington served as a national spokeswomen for the American Cancer Society creating a public education video on CT Colonography. She advocated for the use of CT Colonography screening imaging for colon cancer detection. She has also been a spokesperson on National Public Radio and various local television/newspaper media on the topic of CT Colonography as well as an invited lecturer within the national and international arena on numerous imaging topics. Dr. Brewington currently serves on the American College of Radiology Colon Cancer Committee and on the ACR National Radiology Data Registry sub-committee for CTC.

Annie Thibault, MS

Colorectal Cancer Prevention Network

Steering Committee Member

Through the course of her career, Ms. Thibault has developed comprehensive experiences in public health, public health administration, healthcare delivery, and population health program development. Her work focuses on reducing healthcare barriers for the uninsured and medically underserved population of South Carolina, as it relates to colorectal cancer (CRC). As the Director of the Colorectal Cancer Prevention Network (CCPN), she is responsible for the development and management of programs pertaining to Community Outreach and CRC screening in South Carolina. Ms. Thibault significant experience developing and providing patient-centered navigation programs and implementation of evidence-based practices combined with comprehensive expertise in cancer prevention, treatment, and clinical trials. As an Adjunct Faculty at MUSC and through the CCPN, she actively works at improving and promoting the use of patient navigation to increase CRC screening. In 2015, she spearheaded with a few colleagues the creation of a CRC consortium comprised of 13 southern states and 1 territory focused on identifying solutions to increase CRC screening.