Meet the Speakers

Praveen Arany, BDS MDS MMSc PhD

Dr. Arany is an Associate Professor of Oral Biology at the University of Buffalo School of Dental Medicine. He has adjunct appointments in Surgery, Biomedical Engineering, Nursing, and Physical Therapy. He completed a joint PhD-Residency program as a Harvard Presidential Scholar and holds certificates in clinical translational research from Harvard Medical School and the National Institute of Health. He pursued additional fellowships at the Indian Institute of Sciences, the National Cancer Institute and Harvard’s School of Engineering and Applied Sciences & Wyss Institute. He has published over 125 peer-reviewed articles, recipient of numerous awards, and active member of organizations promoting lasers and photobiomodulation (WALT, NAALT, Optica, SPIE). Dr. Arany’s work has been featured in mainstream media such as Fox news, CNN, BBC, and Reuters.

Erin Denney-Koelsch, MD

Dr. Denney-Koelsch received all of her medical training at the University of Rochester: Her MD, residency in Internal Medicine and Pediatrics and then her fellowship in Hospice and Palliative Medicine. She has been faculty since 2008. She was recently chosen as the Interim Division Chief of Palliative Care, beginning July 1, 2023. She works as a palliative care consultant in the Prenatal, Pediatric and Adult Palliative Care Programs. She has been the Director of the Perinatal Supportive Care Program since 2010 and the Program Director of the Hospice and Palliative Medicine Fellowship from 2013-2023. She is an active researcher in perinatal palliative care, with 16 peer-reviewed publications, and is the editor (and author of many chapters) of 2 books.

Sharon Elad, DMD MSc

Sharon Elad, DMD, MSc, is a Professor of Dentistry at the University of Rochester, where she is Chair of the Division of Oral Medicine at the Eastman Institute for Oral Health, and a Principal Consultant for Hospital Dentistry at University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, USA. Previously, Dr. Elad served as the Chair of the Mucositis Study Group of MASCC/ISOO and led the development of international clinical practice guidelines about mucositis. Currently, Dr. Elad serves as the Chair of the Oral Care Study Group of MASCC/ISOO. Dr. Elad is involved in research collaborations on topics interlacing oral medicine, hematology/oncology, and dentistry, and she is the site PI for NIH-funded research.

Cherry Estilo, DMD

Cherry L. Estilo, DMD is a full-time Attending and Clinical Member in the Dental Service, Department of Surgery and the Director of the Dental Oncology Fellowship program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC). She began her career at MSKCC in 1999 as a fellow in Dental Oncology and joined the faculty staff in 2001. At MSKCC, Dr. Estilo is committed to patient care, education, mentorship and research. She has mentored over 150 residents and fellows over the course of her academic career. At MSKCC, her clinical research interests focus on the dental and oral effects of cancer therapies. She has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and participates in various collaborative projects within MSKCC and with colleagues from institutions both nationally and internationally.

Noam Yarom, DMD MPH

Prof. Noam Yarom is the head of Oral Medicine at the Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel, and a clinical associate professor at Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel. Prof. Dr. Yarom is the President of the International Society of Oral Medicine (ISOO) and a Past President of the Israeli Society of Oral Medicine (ISOM). He is involved with developing clinical practice guidelines and position papers for major international organizations such as the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer/International Society of Oral Oncology (MASCC/ISOO). The focus of his research is on oral oncology and improving the quality of life for individuals with cancer, and he has published extensively on these topics.