About Us

Overview

A leading incubator for cancer treatment innovations with a focus on the diagnosis and treatment of multiple myeloma, other B-cell malignancies and related disorders.

ONCOtracker, Inc. is aÂ West Hollywood-based oncology company pursuing intellectual property for innovative treatments leading to dramatically improved outcomes.

We have exclusive rights to a Serum B-Cell Maturation Antigen (sBCMA) blood test, which is being developed to monitor tumor burden and predict the therapeutic outcome of multiple myeloma patients.

sBCMA is being investigated for clinical application in chronic lymphocytic leukemia, B-cell lymphoma and select solid tumor malignancies.

ONCOtracker has intellectual property related to novel treatment approaches for multiple myeloma, which are being pursued in ongoing clinical trials.

Leadership

James R. Berenson, MD

Founder
and Principal

About Dr. Berenson

Jessica Yataco

Chief Operating Officer

About Jessica

Marissa-Skye Goldwater

Research Associate I

About Marissa

Marissa-Skye Goldwater

Research Associate I

About Marissa

Scientific Advisory Committee

O. Landgren, MD, PhD

Scientific Advisory
Committee Member

About Dr. Landgren

S. Lentzsch, MD, PhD

Scientific Advisory
Committee Member

About Dr. Lentzsch

R. Fonseca, MD, PhD

Scientific Advisory
Committee Member

About Dr. Fonseca

Marissa-Skye Goldwater

Research Associate I

About Marissa

M. Albitar, MD, PhD

Scientific Advisory
Committee Member

About Dr. Albitar

Collaborations & Partnerships

How can we help you?

James R. Berenson, MD

Founder and Chief Scientific Officer:

Dr. Berenson is the Founder and Principal of the Berenson Cancer Center, a unique multi-faceted business entity built around an established and integrated healthcare and biotech family of companies.

These consist of:

Berenson Cancer Center:Â A prolific specialty practice in West Hollywood, CA focused on the treatment of patients with multiple myeloma and related malignancies and conditions. More than 600 patients are under his care.
ONCOtherapeutics:Â A highly regarded targeted CRO leading clinical trials from phase I to IV in community and academic oncology sites throughout the United States.
ONCOtracker: An emerging incubator biotech company developing innovative approaches for monitoring and treatment of patients with multiple myeloma, other B-cell malignancies, and related disorders.

He also is the Founder, President, and Medical and Scientific Director of the Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research (IMBCR):Â A missionâ€‘driven 501(C)3 non-profit institute dedicated to the discovery of novel treatments for multiple myeloma and related conditions in a preâ€‘clinicalÂ in vitro and in vivoÂ research laboratory and includes an extensive biobank with long-term clinical samples.

Dr. Berenson has authored nearly 300 peer-reviewed publications and contributed to multiple book chapters. He has served as a member of the National Institutes of Health â€“ Center for Scientific Review, Clinical Oncology Study Section and has been a member of the Scientific Boards of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation and the International Myeloma Foundation. Dr.Â Berenson has served on both the Foundation and the Scientific Boards of the Leukemia, Lymphoma and Myeloma Society. He also serves on the Scientific Board of the International Waldenstromsâ€™ Macroglobulinemia Foundation.

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Jessica Yataco

Chief Operating Officer

Jessica Yataco joined the Berenson Cancer Center in August 2018 with nearly 15 years of experience in business operations and financial management at a domestic and an international level.

Her work within the insurance, engineering and healthcare industries have afforded her the chance to master the skill of team building, time management, damage control, and asset allocation to reach a companyâ€™s end goal.

Jessica holds a B.S. degree in Finance from California State University, Northridge and an MBA from Pepperdine University. Her graduate program included studies at the University of Oxford, England where she strengthened her knowledge in Leadership and Change Management.

Marissa-Skye Goldwater

Research Associate I

B.S., UCLA
Marissa-Skye is a recent UCLA graduate on a pre-medical track with a B.S. in psychobiology. In addition to her UCLA laboratory coursework, she has two and a half years of experience working in an immunology lab, including a year and a half spent working on her student research projects. One project was on the topic of the induction of antimicrobial peptides in response to the active form of Vitamin D (1,25D3) in uninfected and M. Leprae infected macrophages. The other project encompassed functional data analysis of single-cell RNA sequencing identified cell clusters in uninfected and M. Leprae infected macrophage samples with or without IFNg and/or the autophagy inhibitor wortmannin. She is now working towards pursuing an M.S. in Immunology Research before applying to medical school.

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Ola Landgren, MD, PhD

Â Scientific Advisory Committee Member

Dr. Ola Landgren is Professor of Medicine and Chief Attending Physician of the Myeloma Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) in New York City. He is one of the world leaders in the field of early treatment strategies and molecular- and cell-based monitoring of minimal residual disease (MRD) detection in multiple myeloma and its precursor states. Dr. Landgren leads a translational research program at MSKCC designed to discover new treatment paradigms integrating modern therapy and novel MRD assays. He has designed and led the definitive study showing that all multiple myeloma patients are preceded by a precursor stage. As part of his ongoing research program, Dr. Landgren is studying molecular mechanisms underlying the trajectory from precursor to full-blown multiple myeloma with the goal to develop treatment strategies aiming to delay, prevent, and ultimately define a cure for multiple myeloma

Dr. Landgren has published over 250 peer-reviewed publications and he is a frequently invited speaker at national and international hematology conferences. He serves on several research committees and editorial boards for scientific journals.

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Suzanne Lentzsch, MD, PhD

Scientific Advisory Committee Member

Dr. Suzanne Lentzsch is an Associate Professor of Clinical Medicine and the Director of the Multiple Myeloma and Amyloidosis Program at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University and at New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York. She received her degrees from the Humboldt University/CharitÃ© Berlin, Germany, and completed her residency and fellowship at Humboldt University. Dr. Lentzsch completed a research fellowship, studying the mechanism of action of thalidomide and its derivatives in multiple myeloma, in the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center under the mentorship of Dr. Kenneth Anderson at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts.

Dr. Lentzsch was recruited in August 2004 to the University of Pittsburgh and University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI), PA, USA, and served as Clinical Director of the Multiple Myeloma Program at UPCI before accepting the position as Director of the Multiple Myeloma and Amyloidosis Program at Columbia University Medical Center. She cares primarily for patients with plasma cell dyscrasia including MGUS, multiple myeloma, amyloidosis, POEMS and Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia.

Dr. Lentzsch is an internationally recognized expert in the field of multiple myeloma and amyloidosis. She serves as a SWOG Myeloma Committee Member, SWOG Study Coordinator and International Myeloma Foundation "Black Swan Research Initiative" committee member. She is a member of the standing advisory board for the evaluation of secondary primary malignancies associated with IMiDs.

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Rafael Fonseca, MD

Scientific Advisory Committee Member

Dr. Rafael Fonseca is a Hematologist and Oncologist, and Chair of the Department of Internal Medicine at Mayo Clinic in Arizona. Â He is the Getz Family Professor of Cancer and a Distinguished Mayo Investigator. Dr. Fonseca completed medical school at Anahuac University, followed by residency at the University of Miami. He completed a fellowship at the Mayo Graduate School of Medicine in Clinical Hematology and Medical Oncology. Dr. Fonseca's research focuses on understanding the disease biology and genetic characteristics of plasma cell disorders. He is also interested in myeloma clinical trials, developing novel therapies and biomarkers for myeloma bone disease. He has a special interest in targeting reactive oxygen metabolic pathways as a way to treat myeloma. Dr. Fonsecaâ€™s research has helped guide the myeloma field in understanding patient risk markers and the progression of disease. He has received consulting from Amgen, BMS, Celgene, Takeda, Bayer, Jansen, Novartis, Pharmacyclics, Sanofi, AbbieVie and Merck. He is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Adaptive Biotechnologies.Â

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Maher Albitar, MD

Â Scientific Advisory Committee Member

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 credited with transforming the NeoGenomics Laboratories from FISH testing 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.