Medical Council Members
Our Medical Council members are experienced professionals from the fields of medicine, science and health care.
Katharina Harf, Chairwoman of the DKMS Foundation Board
For Katharina Harf, the motivation to change the lives of blood cancer patients has always been personal. At 14 years old, she watched her mother fight and ultimately pass away from leukemia. Inspired by her mother’s strength throughout her battle and aware of the fact that a stem cell donor could mean a second chance for patients like her, Katharina embarked on a mission to ensure other families were saved from the painful experience of loss that her family suffered.
Dr. Elke Neujahr, Chief Executive Officer of the DKMS Foundation Board
In 2018, Elke Neujahr rejoined a cause that had long been close to her heart by becoming Global CEO of the DKMS Group, as well as Executive Vice-Chairwoman of the Board of Directors in the US and Chairwoman of the board in Poland, United Kingdom and South Africa. With a doctorate in communication sciences, Elke served national and international executives as an expert in all questions of corporate reputation, crisis and change management. Initially holding a variety of positions in the industry, Elke ultimately switched to the consulting side of the corporate communications business. She has been Partner and CEO of a leading European PR Consultancy , before she successfully ran her own company for 15 years. With her 40 years of expertise in general management, she drives the development of the DKMS Group.
As the Global CEO, Elke oversees all DKMS operations and the organization’s continued international expansion.
Prof. Dr. Johannes Schetelig
Professor Johannes Schetelig's is the Head of the Stem Cell Transplant Unit at the University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus. He has had an illustrious career in medicine marked not only by his scientific accomplishments, but also his unwavering dedication to the patients his work serves. Commencing his academic journey at Johann Wolfgang Goethe-University in Frankfurt, he continued his studies at Freie Universität and Humboldt-University in Berlin, earning recognition as a Cusanuswerk Scholar.
Dr. Schetelig currently heads the DKMS Clinical Trials Unit and holds the prestigious position of Full Professor for Stem Cell Transplantation at TU Dresden. With numerous memberships in influential medical organizations, Professor Schetelig is an instrumental figure in advancing medical science. His contributions extend to clinical trials, where he serves as a principal investigator, emphasizing his commitment to improving patient outcomes. His prolific scholarly work boasts over 200 peer-reviewed publications, further solidifying his status as a luminary in the field.
Prof. Marcel R.M. van den Brink, MD, PhD, Chairman of the DKMS Medical Council and Vice Chairman of the DKMS Foundation Board
Marcel R.M. van den Brink, MD, PhD, is a leading oncologist with extensive experience in both laboratory and clinical research, specializing in strategies to improve allogeneic bone marrow transplantation (BMT). He is the President and Chief Physician Executive at City of Hope Los Angeles and National Medical Center, one of the largest cancer research and treatment organizations in the United States.
Prof. Thomas Klingebiel, MD, Vice Chairman of the DKMS Medical Council and Senior Advisor Access to Transplantation
Thomas Klingebiel, MD, was Director of the Clinic for Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine at the Frankfurt University Hospital of the Goethe University from 2000-2021. The Clinic for Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine also includes the focus areas of pediatric oncology, hematology and hemostaseology and the Pediatric Stem Cell Transplant Center Frankfurt; it is considered one of the best in Germany. Since July 1, 2021, he has been managing director of the Frankfurt-based association Hilfe für krebskranke Kinder Frankfurt e.V. (Help for Children with Cancer Frankfurt).
Dr. Marcelo Fernández-Viña, PhD
Marcelo Fernández-Viña, PhD, is a Professor for the Department of Pathology at Stanford University Medical School. He also serves as Director of the Histocompatibility, Immunogenetics and Disease Profiling Laboratory. Marcelo Fernández-Viña has been working in the fields of Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics since 1982. He has more than 220 peer-reviewed publications, many of them focusing on HLA variation in multiple world populations, identifying susceptibility and resistance factors for diseases, and the impact of HLA mismatches in allogeneic transplantation.
Prof. Dr. Katharina Fleischhauer
Prof. Dr. Katharina Fleischhauer studied medicine in Bonn and spent four years as a Research Associate at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. From 1992 to 2013 she worked at the Istituto Scientifico San Raffaele in Milan, including as Head of the Immunogenetic Diagnostics and Research Laboratory. Since October 2013, Prof. Fleischhauer has led the Institute for Cell Therapeutic Research at the Essen University Hospital. She specializes in the research of T-cell alloreactivity in allogeneic stem cell transplantation. She was also awarded with the DKMS Mechtild Harf Science Award in 2016.
Stephen J. Forman, MD
Stephen J. Forman, MD, leads the City of Hope’s Hematologic Malignancies and Stem Cell Transplantation Institute and the Francis & Kathleen McNamara Distinguished Chair in Hematology and Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation in Los Angeles. He was awarded the 2019 DKMS Mechtild Harf Science Award in honor of his outstanding achievements in cancer immunology, hematology, stem cell transplantation, and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy. Stephen Forman’s research is focused on combining CMV-specific T cells and a CAR against the leukemia and lymphoma biomarker CD19. City of Hope’s CAR T-Cell Program has 16 active clinical trials and has treated nearly 300 patients.
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dieter Hoelzer
Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Dieter Hoelzer was the Director of the Department of Hematology/Oncology, Rheumatology and Infectious Diseases at the Frankfurt University Hospital for more than 20 years. He has extensive clinical experience with inpatient and outpatient treatment of all hematological/oncological and internal diseases. Prof. Hoelzer is one of the most renowned haematologists and specialists in the field of acute lymphatic leukaemia. He was also awarded with the DKMS Mechtild Harf Science Award in 2017.
Prof. Dr. Emma Morris, PhD
Prof. Dr. Emma Morris has been a consultant since 2002 and has run her own research program since 2005. She is now a UCL professor and director of the UCL division of infection and immunity. Emma Morris is also director of the UCLH Biomedical Research Centre inflammation, immunity and Immunotherapeutic research theme. Her research group focuses on novel aspects of immune therapies for hematological malignancies and inherited immune deficiencies, predominantly cellular and gene therapy and more recently, gene editing.
