NCI-CONNECT Staff
Our team at the NCI-CONNECT Rare Brain and Spine Tumor Network is dedicated to helping those with rare central nervous system (CNS) tumors within the NCI Center for Cancer Research Neuro-Oncology Branch (NOB).
Co-Leaders
Terri Armstrong, Ph.D.
Co-Lead, NCI-CONNECT; Deputy Chief, NOB
Dr. Armstrong co-leads all aspects of NCI-CONNECT and, specifically, leads its patient risk and outcomes project. The project is an online survey that looks at the impact a rare CNS tumor diagnosis and treatment has on patients and their families and explores potential clinical and genomic risk factors.
Mark Gilbert, M.D.
Co-Lead, NCI-CONNECT; Chief, NOB
Dr. Gilbert co-leads all aspects of NCI-CONNECT and, specifically, serves as the protocol principal investigator for its clinical trials. Dr. Gilbert directs the Brain Tumor Trials Collaborative (BTTC), a network of renowned medical centers throughout the United States that provide clinical trials to patients with rare CNS tumors.
Clinical Staff
Alvina Acquaye-Mallory
Outcomes Program Manager
Alvina manages the patient outcomes studies and provides wellness practices to patients. These include strategies to help patients cope with the mental, physical and emotional challenges faced during diagnosis.
Nicole Lollo
Nurse Practitioner
Nicole manages the care for patients with rare brain and spinal tumors who are enrolled in clinic trials. She provides comprehensive clinical evaluations and symptom management to incorporate a holistic approach to their care.
Kristen Oshin
Patient Care Coordinator
Kristen coordinates the intake process for patients, including scheduling appointments, coordinating travel and gathering all necessary information from the patient to visit the NIH, and then provides visit information.
Byram Ozer, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Research Physician
Dr. Ozer is a neuro-oncologist who cares for patients with rare brain and spine tumors. His interests encompass clinical research as well as translational research that uses scientific advancements to understand the cellular processes underlying tumor development and progression.
Marta Penas-Prado, M.D.
Senior Clinician
Dr. Penas-Prado provides clinical care to patients with rare CNS tumors and serves as principal investigator on therapeutic clinical trials. She evaluates patients’ physical well-being and provides diagnosis, symptom and treatment information.
Margarita Raygada, Ph.D.
Oncology Genetic Counselor and Geneticist
Dr. Raygada provides genetic counseling and testing to patients, evaluates family and medical history to help determine if patients and their families are at risk for developing specific cancers or hereditary cancer syndromes, and discusses management plans for cancer screening, prevention, and risk-reduction.
Kathleen Wall
Clinical Research Nurse
Kathleen manages patient participation on clinical trials, including assessing if patients are eligible and registering patients for clinical trials.
Program Staff
Brittany Cordeiro
Program Manager
Brittany manages program operations, plans workshops and meetings, oversees and coordinates projects, and aids leadership to achieve project success. She also facilitates partnerships with non-profit organizations and provides referral information and education materials to providers, advocates and patients.
Raleigh McElvery
Scientific Communications Editor
Raleigh manages communications projects, strategies and initiatives, such as the NCI-CONNECT website, newsletter, news and feature stories, multimedia, social media and other print materials to educate and inform patients, providers, researchers and advocates.
NCI-CONNECT welcomes your questions.
NCICONNECT@mail.nih.gov or call 240-760-6530