Management & Leadership
Board of Directors
Maher Albitar, M.D.
Technical
Director
Dr. Albitar has extensive experience in anatomic/clinical pathology, hematopathology, and molecular pathology. He also has extensive business and administrative experience as an executive leader of large laboratories, Board member, and director of large scientific and genomic diagnostic studies. Until recently, Dr. Albitar was the Senior Vice President, Chief Medical Officer and Director of Research and Development at NeoGenomics.
He is credit of transforming the NeoGenomics Laboratories from FISH testing company to a company offering the most sophisticated molecular testing. Prior to NeoGenomics, Dr. Albitar served as the Medical Director for Hematopathology and Oncology, Nichols Institute, Quest Diagnostics, and Chief R&D for Hematopathology and Oncology for Quest Diagnostics from 2003 to 2010. From 1991 to 2003, Dr. Albitar held various faculty positions at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, including Section Chief of Leukemia Section in Laboratory Medicine and Pathology Department, Director of the molecular laboratory and Director of Hematopathology Fellowship program.
Dr. Albitar was a tenured full professor in Pathology and Leukemia at the time of leaving MD Anderson Cancer Center. Dr. Albitar is certified AP/CP pathologist with fellowship training in Hematopathology and molecular pathology. After his training in Hematopathology, Dr. Albitar spent 4 years in Physician/Scientist training program at the University of Pennsylvania/Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Department of Genetics. Dr. Albitar has published more than 300 peer-reviewed papers, book chapters, and review articles. He is the lead inventor on more than 50 different patents and patent applications.
Dr. Maher Albitar is the founder and CEO of Genomic Testing Cooperative, LCA.
Alex Ewing, M.D.
Lab Medical
Director
Dr. Ewing is Chair, Department of Pathology and Medical Director of the Laboratories at JFK University Medical Center, where he has served since 2003.
Dr. Ewing received his B.S. degree from Davidson College in 1993, and his M.D. degree from Wake Forest University School of Medicine in 1997. He completed his residency in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC in 2001, also serving as Chief Resident. Dr. Ewing completed a fellowship in Surgical Pathology at Georgetown in 2002, followed by a fellowship in Cytopathology at Memorial-Sloan Kettering Center in 2003.
Dr. Ewing is Board-Certified in Anatomic and Clinical Pathology, as well as Cytopathology. He is a Fellow and Inspector for the College of American Pathologists, and member of American Association for Physician Leadership, the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology, and New Jersey Society of Pathologists. Dr. Ewing is an Associate Professor at the Hackensack-Meridian School of Medicine, and a Clinical Assistant Professor at the Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. His academic and research interests include molecular pathology of adult brain tumors, breast cancer, and cytopathology, and he has produced numerous articles and presentations on these subjects.
He also serves as co-investigator on several sponsored brain tumor investigational trials with the NJ Neuroscience Institute.
Sharon Pearlman
Genomics & Biomarkers
Director
Sharon Pearlman is the administrative director for Anthology Diagnostics.
Prior to joining Anthology Diagnostics, Sharon served in the clinical laboratory as the Hematology Supervisor at JFK Medical Center in Edison, NJ since 2014.
Sharon also led the laboratory Quality Assurance, Safety and Compliance department and was the Manager of the Hematology department at Raritan Bay Medical Center for ten years prior to joining JFK Medical Center. Sharon graduated from Weber State University with a bachelor of science in clinical laboratory science and is certified as an MT (ASCP).
Mark S. Stauder
Board Chair
Mark S. Stauder, is the Chief Operating Officer at Hackensack Meridian Heath and Chairman at the Anthology Diagnostics Board of Directors.
A proven executive with more than 30 years of senior management experience, including large multi-site integrated delivery systems, Mr. Stauder serves as chief operating officer of Hackensack Meridian Heath. He has extensive practical knowledge of health services, health plans, physician leadership relations, health information technology, high reliability quality care initiatives, patient-centered clinical process, clinical and business transformation, and population health, leading senior teams, business development, and mergers and acquisitions.
Prior to Hackensack Meridian Health, Mr. Stauder served as president and chief operating officer of Inova Health System, a nonprofit integrated $3.6 billion net revenue regional multi-campus health system with 2,356 total beds in Falls Church, VA. During his tenure, his team significantly improved the strategic positioning, growth and clinical operational effectiveness of the organization.
Mr. Stauder previously served as chief operating officer of St. Johns Mercy Health Care, an 1166-bed integrated regional multi-campus health delivery system in Creve Coeur, MO. His team led the strategic and operational transformation of the organization. Prior to this role, Mr. Stauder served as chief operating officer of Mercy Health System, an integrated delivery system in Laredo, TX, where he strategically and operationally led the organization to a position of strength. In Mr. Stauder’s earlier career, he served as chief administrative officer of Mercy and Baptist Medical Center in New Orleans, LA. He also served as chief operating officer and associate administrator/senior vice president of Mercy Hospital of New Orleans, and vice president of Mercy Regional Medical Center in Vicksburg, MS.
Mr. Stauder holds a Masters of Hospital and Health Care Administration from St. Louis University (St. Louis, MO) and a Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Missouri-Kansas City (Kansas City, MO).
His professional affiliations include or have included: board member of the Northern Virginia Technology Council; board member of the Washington, DC Regional Board of Trade; Campaign Committee of the Greater Washington, DC United Way; Advisory Committee of the George Mason University Graduate Program for Health Sciences; board member of Innovation Health Plan; board member of InTotal Health; board member of Inova Loudon Hospital; chairman of the board of St. Johns Mercy Rehabilitation Hospital; chairman of the board of DeBouis Long Term Acute Care Hospital; board member of Mercy Health Plans; board member of Catholic Charities of St. Louis; board member of St. Johns Mercy Health System; chairman of the board and Executive Committee of Texas Public and Nonprofit Hospitals; board and Executive Committee of Texas Conference of Catholic Health Facilities; board and Executive Committee of the National Association of Critical Access Hospitals; board member of the Laredo Chamber of Commerce; editorial board member of City Business/Health Care New Orleans; board member of St. Thomas Housing Project Health Clinic; board member of New Orleans Speech and Hearing; New Orleans Metropolitan Leadership Committee member; president of the Mississippi Young Administrators Forum; president of the McAuley Federal Credit Union; and board member of United Way of Warren County.
Andrew Pecora, M.D.,F.A.C.P., C.P.E.
Member Partner
Chief Innovation Officer, Professor and Vice President of Cancer Services
John Theurer Cancer Center
When Andrew L. Pecora, MD, FACP, CPE, joined John Theurer Cancer Center, he elevated cancer care to the department level and reorganized cancer services into 14 separate divisions. His accomplishments include the aggressive recruitment of leading oncologists from all over the United States, the addition of innovative basic research and clinical trials, the expansion of patient care services, and the acquisition of new state-of-the-art technology that has helped make John Theurer Cancer Center one of that nation’s top 50 best cancer centers — and the only one in New Jersey with this designation.
A certified hematologist/oncologist, Dr. Pecora is recognized internationally as one of the world’s foremost experts in blood and marrow stem cell transplantation, cellular medicine, and immunology research. In 1989, he spearheaded the development of John Theurer Cancer Center’s Adult Blood and Marrow Stem Cell Transplantation Program and is responsible for many advancements used in stem cell transplantation today.
Dr. Pecora’s current research involves developing vaccines and other cellular therapies that boost the power of a patient’s own immune system to fight cancer, as well as targeted therapies that destroy cancer cells. His research has been published extensively in prestigious medical journals, and he is a frequently requested lecturer at conferences all over the world. Dr. Pecora’s award-winning research is funded by the National Cancer Institute, Amgen, Merck, and the AHEPA Research Foundation.
Research Interests
• Skin and Sarcoma
• Bone Marrow Transplantation
• Hematology/Oncology
Specializations
• Skin and Sarcoma
• Stem Cell Transplantation
Education
Medical Education
• University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey
• Certified Physician Executive, American College of Physician Executives
Residency/Fellowship
• Residency: Department of Internal Medicine, The New York Hospital, New York, NY
• Fellowship: Hematology-Oncology: Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY
Board Certifications
• Internal Medicine, Hematology and Oncology
• Licensed in New Jersey, New York, and Washington D.C.
Sandra Elliott
Operating Manager
Sandra Powell Elliott is the Vice President for Life Sciences and Innovation at Hackensack Meridian Health.
Her role is to develop not only to foster the internal development of an innovative culture, but to bring innovative and transformative solutions from outside of the organization to the forefront of the organization’s strategic planning efforts.
The scope of internal and external innovation spans the breadth of precision medicine, new device development, new product and solution development, new business model development, remote models of care and population health management as well as new more efficient ways to operate the business units within an integrated health network.
She has been instrumental in defining opportunities to work with innovative companies and begin to understand how home or person based technology can be integrated into a health delivery system as well as how automation can begin to transform how clinical care can be provided at the bedside. In addition, Sandra is involved in some of the emerging research based entities on the campus of new Seton Hall- Hackensack Meridian Health School of Medicine at the Nutley campus.
Sandra received the 2018 NJBIZ Vanguard Award and speaks at National Conferences and has published many articles in developing opportunities for growing business in publications such as Trustee Magazine, Journal of Healthcare Financial Management, FutureAge, Hospitals and Health Networks, and the Health Strategist.