Professor Benjamin Kile is an internationally recognised medical researcher who has made significant contributions to the understanding of blood cells, cancer, and inflammatory disease. His work shed light on the mechanisms of programmed cell death, informing the development of the BH3 mimetics, a new class of cancer drugs approved by the FDA in 2016. Professor Kile has a distinguished research leadership background, having occupied senior roles at WEHI, Monash University, and the University of Adelaide. He made foundational contributions to the establishment of the National Drug Discovery Centre, the South Australian immunoGENomics Cancer Institute, and the Bragg Comprehensive Cancer Centre. 

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Executive Director

Professor Benjamin Kile 

Isabella Bailey is Garvan’s Chief People Officer. She brings 10 years of experience in human resources across the technology, telecommunications and professional services industries. Prior to joining Garvan, she was the Head of People at Trayport Ltd in London, UK. Isabella focuses on enhancing the employee experience and fostering a culture of continuous learning and belonging. She is currently building on her Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Commerce, with a Master of Commerce. As a licensed Mental Health First Aid Instructor, Isabella believes strongly in promoting wellbeing and inclusion in the workplace. Her passion lies in empowering individuals and teams to reach their full potential.

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Chief People Officer

Isabella Bailey

Mara-Jean Tilley is the Director of the Garvan Research Foundation, Garvan’s marketing and fundraising arm. Since her commencement at Garvan in 2011, her leadership has been instrumental in the sustained growth and increased impact of the Foundation. Prior to joining Garvan, Mara-Jean was the Foundation Executive at Sydney Theatre Company, where she held a variety of positions over more than eight years with the organisation. She is a member of the Perpetual Foundation and the Centenary Foundation Advisory Committee.

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Director, Garvan Research Foundation

Mara-Jean Tilley 

Professor Sarah Kummerfeld is Chief Scientific Officer. She uses genomics to understand human disease and translate findings into clinical diagnostics and treatments. Professor Kummerfeld completed her PhD in Computational Biology at the University of Cambridge, working on protein structure and function prediction. Her postdoctoral research at Stanford University focused on the molecular basis of human ageing. She has worked both in academia and industry, including 10 years as a scientist at Genentech in San Francisco. At Genentech, she used large-scale genomics approaches to study patient responses to treatments and to identify diagnostic biomarkers that predict responses to particular drugs.

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Chief Scientific Officer

Professor Sarah Kummerfeld

Associate Professor Jodie Ingles is Head of the Clinical Genomics Laboratory. She is a cardiac genetic

with more than 20 years' experience working with families with inherited

cardiovascular diseases and sudden cardiac death. A/Prof Ingles

is a Heart Foundation Future Leader Fellow, receiving the Shirley E. Freeman award for innovation in 2022.

In 2019 she was awarded an NHMRC Excellence Award.

Her team is focused on finding ways to use cardiac genomics and genetic counselling to improve diagnosis, management and care for families with inherited cardiovascular diseases. 

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Co-Director, Genomic and Inherited Diseases Program

Associate Professor Jodie Ingles

MBBS PhD FRACP, completed his medical oncology training at the Royal Prince Alfred hospital in Sydney, before moving to Toronto, Canada to complete a PhD

. He then joined the Department of Medical Oncology at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto as a staff oncologist, specialising in genito-urinary malignancy and melanoma with research interests in circulating tumour DNA, tumour heterogeneity, mechanisms of enzalutamide resistance and autophagy. He returned to Australia, joining The Kinghorn Cancer Centre and Garvan in 2015. He is also a Conjoint Professor at UNSW Sydney.

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Co-Director, Translational Oncology Program

Professor Anthony Joshua

Professor Joseph Powell is Head of the Computational Genomics Laboratory and Director of the UNSW Cellular Genomics Futures Institute. Professor Powell's research focuses on how the functional mechanisms of genetic variants contribute to disease susceptibility at a cellular level and ultimately influence outcomes. In 2015 he was awarded the prestigious Commonwealth Health Minister’s Medal for Excellence in Medical Research in the same year and an NHMRC Research Excellence Award.

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Director, Translational Genomics Program

Professor Joseph Powell

Professor Alex Swarbrick leads a multidisciplinary cancer research laboratory focussed on identifying new biomarkers and therapeutic strategies in breast and prostate cancer and melanoma. He is an international leader in the application of single-cell and spatially-resolved 'omics' to cancer. He leads the international Breast Cancer Cellular Atlas Consortium and co-directs Garvan's Cancer Ecosystems Program with Professor Paul Timpson. Professor Swarbrick is an NHMRC Leadership Fellow and a Breast Cancer Research Foundation Investigator. He chairs the Cancer Research Committee of the Cancer Council NSW. 

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Co-Director, Cancer Ecosystems Program

Professor Alex Swarbrick

Professor Cindy Ma is the Faculty Chair and Head of the Human Immune Disorders Lab at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research and holds a conjoint appointment with UNSW Sydney’s School of Clinical Medicine. Her work focuses on diseases of the human immune system, including primary immunodeficiencies due to inborn errors of immunity. Her lab also investigates the pathways underlying severe allergies and atopic diseases, such as atopic dermatitis and food anaphylaxis. In recognition of her work, she was awarded a NHMRC Career Development Fellowship in 2011, a NSW Government Ministry of Health Early-Mid Career Research Fellowship in 2017, and more recently, a NHMRC Investigator Grant (2023).