Professor David F. Penson

David F. Penson, MD, MPH is the Hamilton and Howd Chair in Urologic Oncology, Director of the Center for Surgical Quality and Outcomes Research and Professor and Chair, Department of Urology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.  He obtained his MD from Boston University and completed his urology residency at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles. He then was awarded a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar fellowship at Yale University and also obtained an MPH at Yale. He currently maintains a clinical practice in urologic oncology at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center.  His specific research interests include the comparative effectiveness of treatment options in localized prostate cancer and the impact of the disease and its treatment on patients’ quality of life. He has received federal grant funding from the National Cancer Institute, the US Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute.  His work has been published in various high-profile journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA and the Annals of Internal Medicine.  He previously chaired the National Institutes of Health’s Health Services Outcomes and Delivery (HSOD) study section, which reviews almost all health services research grant submitted to the NIH.  He also maintains a strong interest in health policy and quality improvement. He currently serves as the Secretary of the American Urological Association.

Professor Andrew Loblaw

Dr Andrew Loblaw is a Radiation Oncologist, Clinician Scientist, and dual Professor in the Department of Radiation Oncology and the Institute of Health Policy Management & Evaluation at the University of Toronto. He’s the Site Group Co-Lead for Genitourinary Oncology at Sunnybrook.

He received a Bachelor of Science in Physics from the University of British Columbia and his Doctor of Medicine from Queen’s University. He completed his specialty training in Radiation Oncology concurrent with a Masters degree in Clinical Epidemiology to graduate from the Royal College’s Clinician Investigator Program all at the University of Toronto.

Dr Loblaw’s clinical practice and research interest focus on improving outcomes for men with prostate cancer and the healthcare system. He has a particularly interest in the design and conduct of clinical trials, the generation and dissemination of evidence-based guidelines and in image-guided radiotherapy.

Dr Loblaw is an Ontario Association of Radiation Oncology Clinician Scientist and a Senior Scientist at the Sunnybrook Research Institute. A Fellow of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (FASCO), he was previous Co-Chair of the ASCO’s Genitourinary Advisory Group and remains Co-Chair of the GU group for Cancer Care Ontario’s Program in Evidence-Based Care. He has authored over 325 peer-reviewed papers and has been awarded grant funding of over Cdn$52M.

Professor Henk van der Poel

Professor Henk van der Poel is head of the department of urology at the Netherlands Cancer Center in Amsterdam (NL) and endowed-professor the Free-University, Amsterdam (NL). Main focuses of research are the role of image-guided  surgery in the management of urological oncological diseases and the perioperative network cancer-care for prostate cancer. He is editor-in-chief of the Dutch Journal of Urology.

Professor Robert Reiter

Dr. Reiter is the Bing Professor of Urologic Oncology and Chief of the Division of Urologic Oncology. He attended Stanford Medical School, completed his urologic training at Stanford and Baylor College of Medicine, and completed additional fellowship training in urological cancer at the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Reiter was awarded the Outstanding Achievement Award by the Urologic Oncology branch of the National Cancer Institute.

Dr. Reiter is an internationally recognized expert in all areas of prostate cancer management and research. He was among the first to integrate functional MRI imaging and PSMA PET imaging into the diagnosis, surgical management, and care of men with prostate cancer. He was also an early innovator in the field of robotic surgery, and has completed more than 2,500 robotic prostatectomies. In addition to surgical management of prostate cancer, Dr. Reiter has expertise in MRI-guided biopsies to diagnose prostate cancer, focal therapy to treat select individuals, as well as all forms of medical therapy. Dr. Reiter has a particular interest in the multidisciplinary management of men with high-risk prostate cancer, incorporating the latest in genomics, clinical trials, and precision medical therapies into treatment plans in collaboration with UCLA leaders in the areas of radiation, medical and nuclear prostate oncology.

In addition to his broad clinical interests in prostate cancer, Dr. Reiter is a leading researcher in prostate cancer and has led UCLA’s 12 million SPORE grant, which supports work to translate laboratory discoveries into clinical advances, for more than 15 years. Drugs such as enzalutamide and apalutamide, and imaging tools such as PSMA PET, are among the many advances that have emanated from this program. His own laboratory discovered the prostate stem cell antigen and developed antibodies to target this protein, which has led to novel imaging and therapeutic approaches for prostate cancer currently in clinical trials. Dr. Reiter has authored more than 250 papers and lectures nationally and internationally on all aspects of clinical care of men with prostate cancer

Professor Arvin George

Dr. Arvin George is a urologic surgeon specializing in the diagnosis and management of genitourinary cancers. He currently serves as an Associate Professor of Urology and Director of Prostate Cancer Programs at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. After obtaining his medical degree from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, he completed his Urology Residency at the Smith Institute for Urology, Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine. He also completed his Endourology fellowship in New York gaining additional subspecialty expertise in robotic, laparoscopic, and percutaneous surgery. Subsequently, he completed a Urologic Oncology fellowship at the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health.

Dr. George’s clinical practice includes both surgical and non-operative management of prostate, kidney, and upper tract urothelial cancers. His research interests include minimally invasive and image-guided treatments, functional prostate imaging and focal therapy for prostate cancer.

Associate Professor Andrew G. Matthew

Dr. Matthew is a Health and Clinical Psychologist as well as a Clinician-Investigator in the Department of Surgery, Division of Urology, and an Associate Professor in both the Departments of Surgery and Psychiatry at the University of Toronto. He serves as the Lead Psychologist, Director of the Sexual Health Program, Director of Psychology Training, and Head of the GU Survivorship Program at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto, Canada. With over 150 published scientific articles, reviews, and chapters in cancer survivorship, Dr. Matthew has been instrumental in shaping national and international guidelines for sexual healthcare in cancer (ASCO/CCO, Movember). His clinical care and research are centered on urologic cancers, focusing on prevention, sexual health, survivorship, and improving patient quality of life.

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Associate Professor James Porter

A/Professor James Porter, is Director of Robotic Surgery for Providence St. Joseph Health and Swedish Medical Center. He is the most experienced robotic surgeon in the Pacific Northwest and has performed over 5000 robotic procedures. He is Director of the Robotic and Laparoscopic Fellowship in Urology at Swedish Medical Center over the last 22 years. He is recognized as a national and international leader in robotic surgery and is active in teaching robotic surgical techniques to surgeons around the globe. He pioneered the retroperitoneal approach for robotic renal surgery as well as retroperitoneal lymph node dissection for the treatment of testicular cancer.

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Dr. Youness Ahallal

Dr. Youness Ahallal is a leading urologist and robotic surgeon based in Casablanca, Morocco. With extensive training in New York and France, he specializes in advanced robotic and minimally invasive surgery. Dr. Ahallal is a pioneer in the field, having performed a world-first telesurgery operation from Shanghai to Casablanca. Committed to innovation, he actively promotes the development of robotic surgery and telemedicine across Morocco and Africa. A sought-after speaker, he shares insights on the future of digital health and medical technology. Dr. Ahallal’s work bridges cutting-edge technology with patient care, shaping the future of surgery in the region.

Dr Ryan Nelson

Dr Ryan J Nelson, a lead urologist in Michigan, United States, specialises in robotic surgery using the da Vinci SP system. His expertise includes various urological cancers (prostate, bladder, ureteral, kidney, testicular), erectile dysfunction, low testosterone, and scrotal masses.

A world leader in robotic single port surgery, Dr Nelson has published extensively on urologic tumours, single robotic partial nephrectomy, and robotic cystectomy.

Dr Nelson received his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from Touro School of Osteopathic Medicine in Vallejo, California. Dr Nelson completed his surgical residency at Michigan State – St. John Macomb/Oakland Hospital and his urologic residency at Michigan State – McLaren Macomb Hospital in 2015. He also completed a two-year Urologic Robotic and Minimally Invasive Fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic, which allowed a foundation, second to none, for his advancement in robotic surgery.

Dr Nelson specialises in difficult robotic cases with the single port robot instead of the multiport robot, such as creating new bladders, robotic reconstruction of ureters, and nephron sparing surgery for complex kidney tumours.

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