Home >> Platform >> Conferences >> Dermatology Summit 2025
Hyatt Regency, San Francisco, CA
January 12, 2025
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The mission of the Dermatology Summit is to build a community of people who are excited about innovation in dermatology.
This conference uniquely brings together members of the financial community and business leaders from established and emerging companies in the dermatology space to help foster investment and partnerships in the next generation of dermatology companies and products.
Dermatology Summit 2025 Speakers
Liav Abraham
Managing Director, Global Healthcare
UBS
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Biography
Liav Abraham is a Managing Director in UBS’ Global Healthcare group based in NY, where she focuses on advising life sciences companies on a variety of strategic and capital markets transactions, including in the dermatology and aesthetics therapeutic areas. Liav joined UBS in 2023 following the acquisition of Credit Suisse, and prior to her time at Credit Suisse, she was a biopharma equity research analyst at both Citi and Morgan Stanley, where she covered stocks in the pharmaceuticals sector. She holds an MBA from Columbia University.
Diego Alvarado, PhD
Vice President of Research
Celldex Therapeutics
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Biography
Dr. Alvarado is a Vice President in the Research Department at Celldex Therapeutics, where he oversees discovery and translational medicine activities. He joined Celldex in 2016 as a Director of Research, where he contributed to the discovery and preclinical development of several programs, including barzolvolimab (CDX-0159). Previously, he was a Director and Senior Scientist at Kolltan Pharmaceuticals from 2010 to 2016, where he oversaw the discovery, preclinical development, and biomarker discovery for several monoclonal antibodies and antibody-drug conjugates targeting receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs). Dr. Alvarado did his postdoctoral work at the University of Pennsylvania with Dr. Mark Lemmon, focusing on the structural mechanisms governing activation and inhibition of receptor tyrosine kinases. Dr. Alvarado received his Ph.D. in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology from Indiana University in 2004.
Mathew M. Avram, MD, JD
Director Dermatology Laser & Cosmetic Center
Massachusetts General Hospital
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Biography
Dr. Avram is one of the leading medical authorities on cosmetic dermatology in the world. He is the Past-President of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery, the leading organization in the United States for cosmetic dermatology with 6,400 physician members who elected him to this prestigious position. He has served as the Director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Dermatology Laser & Cosmetic Center for 18 years. He also serves as Faculty Director for Laser and Cosmetic Training in the Department of Dermatology at Harvard Medical School.
Dr. Avram was elected by his peers and served as President of the American Society for Laser Medicine Surgery (ASLMS) in 2017-2018, the leading society in the world for laser and energy-based treatments with 4,400 members at that time. He was the 2015 recipient of the ASLMS Annual Leon Goldman Award for excellence in research, patient care, and education, and he was the 2016 recipient of the ASLMS Annual Ellet Drake Award for innovation in laser surgery.
Dr. Avram has co-authored or edited 7 textbooks that have been translated into 5 languages. He has 90 peer-reviewed publications in journals including the New England Journal of Medicine. He has served as co-investigator for five annual Best Science Awards at ASLMS. Dr. Avram has chaired 31 national meetings and has delivered over 800 invited lectures at national and international meetings on 4 continents. Dr. Avram served as co-chair for an annual laser and energy-based teaching session for the FDA in Silver Spring, Maryland for three years. He also has two U.S. patents.
This year, Dr. Avram was recognized by Newsweek magazine as one of the Top 10 cosmetic dermatologists in America. For 10 consecutive years, Dr. Avram has been selected as one of Boston’s Top Dermatologists by Boston Magazine. Dr. Avram is a frequent guest on ABC, NBC, CNN, CBS, FOX and is a regularly quoted medical expert in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post and numerous other media publications.
Orla Cunningham, PhD
Global Granular Program Lead
Alys Pharmaceuticals
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Biography
Following a postdoc in cancer cell biology, Orla returned to Ireland to establish Wyeth’s nascent antibody discovery & engineering group; subsequently acquired by Pfizer. In her role at Pfizer, Orla led multi-disciplinary internal antibody discovery teams, in addition to academic collaborations with universities across Ireland & the UK. She has supported pre-clinical programs from conception through development, with many candidates currently progressing through clinical trials. Orla left big pharma for the start-up biotech world in 2020, and is currently global program lead for Alys Pharmaceuticals, focusing on next-generation mast cell targeting. Throughout her 20 year career Orla has published and patented widely in the field of therapeutic antibody engineering.
Daniel Gil, PhD
Chief Executive Officer
Pelage Pharmaceuticals
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Biography
Dr. Gil has had a 30+ year career in Pharmaceutical R&D. He is CEO of Pelage Pharmaceuticals, which is conducting clinical trials on a regenerative hair growth treatment. He is also a Venture Partner with Visionary Ventures, an ophthalmology and aesthetics-focused fund. Until 2018, Dr. Gil worked at Allergan. As VP, Research Technologies and Portfolio, he oversaw preclinical to early phase 2 clinical development and directed the Medicinal Chemistry, Biologics and translational pharmacology research groups. His research contributed to development of 5 marketed drugs and he led 8 clinical development projects in the areas of Ophthalmology, Neuroscience and Dermatology. He is an inventor on more than 70 issued US patents and author on 50 peer-reviewed research articles. Dr. Gil has an undergraduate degree in Biology from Harvard University and a PhD in Pharmacology from the University of Pennsylvania.
Brian S. Kim, MD, MTR
Sol & Clara Kest Professor of Dermatology & Vice Chair of Research, Department of Dermatology
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Director
Mark Lebwohl Center for Neuroinflammation & Itch
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Biography
Dr. Kim received his MD from the University of Washington, was a HHMI-NIH Scholar, completed residency in dermatology at the University of Pennsylvania where he earned a Master of Translational Research (MTR). His research focuses on mechanisms that underlie skin inflammation and the sensation of itch as a fundamental, broad, model paradigm of neuroimmunology. He has >120 peer-reviewed publications, multiple NIH grants, designed pivotal clinical trials that led to novel FDA-approved treatments, and is an inventor of itch-centered technologies. His research has led to awards and funding from NIH, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, American Skin Association, American Academy of Dermatology, American Society for Clinical Investigation, American Dermatological Association, and International League of Dermatological Societies. He holds a patent for the use of JAK inhibitors for itch. He is on the SAB for Abrax Japan, Granular Therapeutics, Recens Medical, National Eczema Association, and Cell Reports Medicine.
Michael Ringel, JD, PhD
Managing Director and Senior Partner
Boston Consulting Group
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Biography
Dr. Michael Ringel has been at BCG 25 years and is currently Managing Director and Senior Partner. He is on the Board of Hevolution US, the charitable organization focused on extending healthy aging for the benefit of all humanity, the Board of AFAR, one of the oldest organizations supporting healthy aging through biomedical research, and on the Executive Board of the Sheba Longevity Center, a clinic at one of the world’s best hospitals devoted to healthy aging. Dr. Ringel holds a B.A. summa cum laude in biology from Princeton, a Ph.D. in biology from Imperial College, and a J.D. cum laude from Harvard Law School.
Edwin Tucker, MD
Chief Medical Officer
Jasper Therapeutics
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Biography
Dr. Edwin Tucker has over 30 years of clinical experience leading novel drug development. He is Chief Medical Officer at Jasper Therapeutics driving clinical development in mast cell mediated diseases including urticaria and asthma. Previously, he was Chief Medical Officer at Goldfinch Bio, a nephrology development stage company. Previously, he served as Chief Medical Officer at Mirum Pharmaceuticals, where he contributed to the achievement of key milestones in the development of medicines for adult and pediatric cholestatic liver disease including the first FDA approval for Alagille Syndrome. Prior to joining Mirum, Dr. Tucker was at Acerta Pharma LLC, now part of the AstraZeneca family of companies, ultimately serving as Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining Acerta, he held leadership positions in development, medical safety and medical affairs at Genentech, Janssen Research and Development and Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals.
Dr. Tucker is a member of the Royal College of Physicians (UK) and received his M.B.A. from the University of Connecticut. Dr. Tucker holds degrees in Pharmacology and Medicine from the University of Leeds, United Kingdom. Additionally, he served as a managing director at Golden Seeds, an investment firm dedicated to pursuing early-stage investment opportunities in women-led businesses.
Program
Registration and Networking Café
Program*
* Presentation order subject to change
State of the Industry
Liav Abraham; Managing Director, Global Healthcare, UBS Securities
Panel: The intersection of innovation in longevity and dermatology
Moderated by: Frederick Beddingfield, III, MD, PhD, FAAD, FACMS; Executive Partner, Apollo Health Ventures; Volunteer Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, Division of Dermatology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Michael Ringel, JD, PhD; Managing Director and Senior Partner, Boston Consulting Group
The New Paradigm of Mast Cell Therapies
Moderated by: Brian S. Kim, MD, MTR; ; Sol & Clara Kest Professor of Dermatology & Vice Chair of Research, Department of Dermatology, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Director, Mark Lebwohl Center for Neuroinflammation & Itch
Diego Alvarado, PhD; Vice President of Research; Celldex Therapeutics
Orla Cunningham, PhD; Global Granular Program Lead, Alys Pharmaceuticals
Edwin Tucker, MD; Chief Medical Officer, Jasper Therapeutics
Panel: The Landscape of Longevity & Regenerative Medicine in Dermatology – Perspectives from the Corporate, Clinical, Regulatory, and Financial Sectors
Moderated by: Christina Weng, MD, FAAD; Chief Medical Officer, Pelage Pharmaceuticals; Lecturer in Dermatology, Harvard Medical School; Dermatologist, Massachusetts General Hospital
Mathew M. Avram, MD, JD; Director Dermatology Laser & Cosmetic Center, Massachusetts General Hospital
Daniel Gil, PhD; Chief Executive Officer, Pelage Pharmaceuticals
Michael E. Meyers; Vice Chairman, Head of M&A and Strategic Advisory Services, H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC
Markets and Medicines: Two dermatologists’ rapid-fire perspectives
Frederick Beddingfield, III, MD, PhD, FAAD, FACMS; Executive Partner, Apollo Health Ventures; Volunteer Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, Division of Dermatology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Seth Orlow, MD, PhD, FAAD; Senior Advisor, Pharus Advisors, LLC; Professor & Chair of Dermatology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine
Entrepreneurial Company Showcase
The program committee is accepting Entrepreneurial Company Showcase applications until October 18, 2024. Eligibility guidelines, details and the online submission form can be accessed below.
Learn More and Apply
People
Conference Board of Directors
Frederick Beddingfield, III, MD, PhD, FAAD, FACMS
Executive Partner
Apollo Health Ventures
Volunteer Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, Division of Dermatology
David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
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Biography
Frederick C. Beddingfield III is a physician-scientist and biotech entrepreneur. He is currently an Executive Partner at Apollo Health Ventures. Previously Frederick was the CEO and member of the board of directors of Kira Pharmaceuticals, a development stage complement therapeutics biotech company focused on immunology, inflammation, and rare diseases. He was founder, president, chief executive and member of the board of directors of Sienna Biopharmaceuticals Inc. and took the company public in 2017. Prior to Sienna, Frederick served as Chief Medical Officer of Kythera Biopharmaceuticals from March 2013 until it was acquired by Allergan in 2015. Frederick worked at Allergan for 10 years (2003-2013) where he served in various roles including the Therapeutic Area Head of Dermatology and Chief Medical Officer Allergan Medical. He has led the development and approvals of global leading brands in medical dermatology, aesthetics, neurology, metabolic, and other therapeutic areas. These brands include Botox (cosmetic, hyperhidrosis, spasticity, and other), Juvederm, Voluma, Kybella, Latisse, Aczone, and Tazorac. Frederick has led four successful FDA advisor committees.
Since completing his training, Frederick has maintained a clinical and teaching practice at UCLA. He is a board-certified dermatologist and emergency medicine physician and fellowship trained in dermatologic surgery and cutaneous oncology. Frederick completed his medical degree with honors at UNC Chapel Hill, his residency and fellowship training at UCLA, and his PhD in Policy Analysis Research at RAND. He serves on the board of directors of Cytrellis Biosystems, Inc. and on the medical advisory board of the Children’s Skin Disease Foundation and Camp Wonder. He is on the board and co-founder of the Dermatology Summit and Dermatology Innovation Forum conferences, part of Advancing Innovation in Dermatology, a non-profit organization.
William Ju, MD, FAAD
President & Founding Trustee
Advancing Innovation in Dermatology, Inc.
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Biography
William Ju, MD, FAAD is a board-certified dermatologist and has over 20 years of biopharmaceutical experience in a wide variety of therapeutic areas, including dermatology. He is president and a co-founding trustee of Advancing Innovation in Dermatology, Inc. Dr. Ju has been president and chief executive officer of Follica, Inc. and chief operating officer at PTC Therapeutics, Inc. (PTCT). In addition, he has held executive positions at Pharmacia Corporation/Pfizer, Inc. Merck & Co., Inc., and Hoffmann La Roche, Inc. in a broad range of product development and leadership functions. Dr. Ju served as project leader for SUTENT®, introduced CANCIDAS® into humans, and was part of the product development teams for CRIXIVAN® and TRANSLARNA™.
Dr. Ju began his pharmaceutical career at Hoffmann-La Roche where he was a clinical leader for the development of dermatology compounds. Before entering industry, Dr. Ju was a senior staff fellow in basic research in the Laboratory of Cellular Oncology under Douglas Lowy, M.D. and was affiliated with the Dermatology Branch at the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health. He obtained his M.D. with Alpha Omega Alpha honors at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and his A.B. with Phi Beta Kappa honors at Princeton University.
Seth Orlow, MD, PhD, FAAD
Senior Advisor
Pharus Advisors, LLC
Professor & Chair of Dermatology
NYU Grossman School of Medicine
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Biography
Seth Orlow, MD, PhD has over 25 years of experience in medicine, science, and finance. As a faculty member at New York University, Dr. Orlow rose to become Chair of its leading dermatology department. He serves as a Senior Advisor with Pharus Advisors, focused on strategic transactional/investment banking advisory services in the dermatology and personal care sectors. In 1995 he co-founded Anaderm, a dermatologic discovery company backed by Pfizer and OSI Pharmaceuticals. He participated in the sale of Anaderm to Pfizer in 2002. From 2001-2010, he rose from Advisor to Partner with Easton Capital Partners, a venture capital firm focused on healthcare and consumer products. At Easton, he was involved in the sourcing, diligence, funding, oversight and exit of investments in many healthcare companies such as Acorda, Conor Medsystems, Protez, Salmedix and Transave. Dr. Orlow has licensed technologies to companies ranging from Pfizer to SkinMedica. An author of over 200 medical/scientific publications, he is an internationally sought-after speaker and thought leader. A graduate of Harvard in Biochemical Sciences and with an MD-PhD in Molecular Pharmacology from Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Dr. Orlow trained in Pediatrics and Dermatology at Mt. Sinai and Yale.
Kristen B. Slaoui, PhD
Chief Corporate Development Officer
Galderma
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Biography
Kristen B. Slaoui, PhD has been the Chief Corporate Development Officer at Galderma, the world’s largest independent global dermatology company, since 2020. Since joining Galderma, she oversaw several significant transactions including the acquisition of Alastin Skincare in 2021, adding to Galderma’s premium portfolio. Prior to this role, she spent 20 years with GSK, first in the research labs, where her work in pulmonary disease resulted in the discovery of the long-acting muscarinic receptor antagonist in the approved medicines Anoro™ Ellipta™, Incruse™ Ellipta™, and Trelegy™ Ellipta™. She holds multiple patents, has authored more than 40 original peer-reviewed publications, and she has had ongoing roles as a peer reviewer for a dozen established medical journals. She joined GSK’s Business Development team in 2006 and held various roles of increasing seniority, and executed more than $30 billion worth of deals and acquisitions, including the $3.6 billion acquisition of Stiefel Laboratories in 2009 (where she subsequently served as VP and Head of Business Development & Licensing), participating in the $20+ billion three-part transaction with Novartis in 2015, and the $5.1 bn acquisition of Tesaro in 2018, with transactions covering the pharma R&D, commercial, emerging markets, specialty pharma and consumer spaces.
Dr. Slaoui earned Bachelor’s degrees in both Biology and Classical Studies from Gettysburg College. She earned her PhD in Physiology from The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and completed an NIH Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the University of Washington in Seattle, WA.
Christina Weng, MD, FAAD
Chief Medical Officer
Pelage Pharmaceuticals
Lecturer in Dermatology
Harvard Medical School
Dermatologist
Massachusetts General Hospital
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Biography
Qing Yu Christina Weng is a physician-scientist, entrepreneur, and biotech executive. She is the Chief Medical Officer of Pelage Pharmaceuticals, a biotech company developing innovative treatments for hair loss by targeting stem cell metabolism. Prior to Pelage, Christina was the Head of Business Development & Strategy and Senior Medical Director of Kira Pharmaceuticals, a global company developing complement therapeutics. Christina co-founded Mymiel, a high-performance clean skincare line, where she served as Chief Strategy Officer. As faculty at Harvard Medical School and attending dermatologist at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), she specializes in melanoma and pigmentary disorders.
Christina attended the California Institute of Technology, where she received her bachelor’s degrees in Biology and English with honors. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard Medical School, where she received her medical degree and was a medical fellow of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. She completed dermatology residency at the Harvard Combined Dermatology Residency Training Program with advanced clinical training at the MGH Laser & Cosmetics Center. Her postdoctoral research was at the Cutaneous Biology Research Center of MGH.
Christina’s bench research has focused on melanocyte biology and mechanisms leading to pigment dysregulation, with an emphasis on clinically translatable opportunities in pigmentary disorders and melanoma. Christina’s clinical research has led to new guidelines recommended by the American Academy of Dermatology for drug monitoring. She has received research support and awards from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, American Skin Association, American Dermatological Association, and National Institutes of Health.
Sponsors
Major
Supporting
Founders
Networking
The Dermatology Summit utilizes a conference app for meeting materials and networking, available on both Apple and Android devices for all registered attendees. The conference app will open in December and instructions will be shared at that time.
The app will serve as a networking portal. Upon logging into the app, you will be able to update your profile, view other registered attendees in the app and communicate via chat. A 1:1 networking room will be available at the conference for your use should you wish to set up meetings on your own with other attendees.
Contact
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the agenda for the conference?
The current program agenda can be found here.
What is the cost of registration?
If registered by October 31, 2024 – $795
Registration after October 31, 2024 – $995
What is included in the registration fees?
Conference registration includes:
- Networking Café
- Networking Lunch
- Networking Breaks
- All Conference Sessions
- Access to Conference App for Networking Opportunities
- Evening Networking Cocktail Reception
Cancellation Policy
Requests for registration fee cancellations for the conference must be received on or before December 12, 2024. At the discretion of the conference organizers, a refund via the method of original payment, minus a $125 non-refundable administrative fee, will be issued. No refunds will be made if notice is received after 3pm Eastern Time on December 12, 2024. Written notice of your cancellation should be sent to jamie.breslin@advancing-derm.org with a copy to support@advancing-derm.org.
I am a Sponsor. How do I redeem my contracted complimentary registration(s)?
After your sponsorship has been processed, you will receive an email with a unique code and instructions to register online. We encourage all complimentary and discounted registrations to be completed by December 12, 2024. If you have not yet received the email, please contact Faye Silag at faye.silag@advancing-derm.org.
How do I become a Sponsor?
If you are interested in a sponsorship opportunity, please contact Amanda Pacia at amanda.pacia@advancing-derm.org, for the sponsorship overview and level pricing.
I am a confirmed speaker, now what?
Please contact Faye Silag at faye.silag@advancing-derm.org.
Networking
Our app will launch in December, and you will receive an email at that time with download instructions.
Where can I make hotel reservations?
There are several hotels within a short distance from the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero, where the Dermatology Summit will take place.
Hotel |
Address |
Phone |
Hyatt Regency San Francisco |
5 Embarcadero Center |
415-788-1234 |
Grand Hyatt San Francisco |
345 Stockton Street |
415-398-1234 |
Beacon Grand |
450 Powell Street |
866-377-9412 |
Westin St. Francis |
335 Powell Street |
415-397-7000 |
JW Marriott |
515 Mason Street |
415-771-8600 |
Hilton San Francisco Union Sq. |
333 O’Farrell Street |
415-771-1400 |
Ritz-Carlton |
600 Stockton Street |
415-296-7465 |
Marriott Union Sq. |
480 Sutter Street |
415-398-8900 |
What is the dress code?
Attire is business casual. Feel free to be comfortable in slacks, polo shirts, blazers, blouses and most importantly, comfortable shoes. We do recommend you dress in layers as temperatures in meeting rooms can vary.
Force Majeure
No damages or refunds shall be due for a failure of performance or because of a delay or cancellation by the occurrence of any contingency beyond the reasonable control of Host. These contingencies include, without limitation, threat of or actual war, terrorism, sabotage, insurrection, riot or other act of civil disobedience, act of public enemy, strikes, labor disputes, picketing or work stoppage (actual or threatened), failure or delay in transportation, an epidemic, pandemic or disease, act of government or any agency affecting the terms of this Agreement, accident, fire, explosion, flood, severe weather, natural disaster, or other act of God, interruptions or failure of the Internet or third-party network connections, or acts beyond the reasonable control of the responsible parties making the Event impossible to hold.