For Immediate Release       
Contacts: Dorothy Coyle, 773-332-6201         

Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation Announces the Appointment of Four Board Members

The Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation (PFF), the nation’s leading pulmonary fibrosis research, advocacy and education organization, today announced the addition of four new members to its Board of Directors: Kenneth C. Fang, MD, Erin McGarry, Devi Kumar-Nambiar, JD, MBA, and Wayne T. Pan, MD, PhD, MBA.

“We are pleased to welcome these new board members who will bring important expertise and valuable insight to our work on behalf of the more than 250,000 Americans living with pulmonary fibrosis,” said William T. Schmidt, PFF President and CEO. “The PFF’s Board of Directors is comprised of leadership from all sectors of the community including patients, healthcare providers, caregivers, donors, and industry.”

These board members will join the 13 current members of the PFF Board of Directors.

Kenneth C. Fang, MD

Dr. Fang’s focuses on translational medicine, integrating a background in basic science and biomarker research with patient management experience for the development of multivariate diagnostic algorithms for clinical decision-making. He was Chief Medical Officer for private and public biotechnology companies focused on the accelerated translation of biomolecular advances and technologies into products with high clinical impact. Dr. Fang was also a physician-scientist at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), where he provided patient care in Internal Medicine and Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine with independent NIH RO1-supported basic science research. Dr Fang continued practicing in the USCF ILD Clinic on a voluntary basis as a service to patients and community physicians for 10 years after his transition into biotechnology.

Devi Kumar-Nambiar, JD, MBA

Devi Kumar-Nambiar is an experienced in-house attorney with a wide breadth of legal and business experience. She is Vice President and Deputy General Counsel of CPS Energy in San Antonio. Ms. Kumar-Nambiar is respected and trusted by peers and leaders to provide reasonable and solution-oriented counsel while building strong team relationships. Her husband, Dr. Anoop Nambiar, is the Founding Director of the Center for Interstitial Lung Disease at the University of Texas, San Antonio. Ms. Kumar-Nambiar secured a partnership with the San Antonio Legal Services Association to assist the San Antonio Pulmonary Fibrosis Support Group with help on a variety of documents and directives related to their care. 

Erin McGarry

Erin McGarry is a Chief Financial Officer focusing on financial performance, building scalable solutions for accounting, financial planning, analysis and operations of a company. She has experience with mergers and acquisitions and equity raises in healthcare companies. Ms. McGarry currently serves as Chief Financial Officer of EdgeIQ in Boston. Her husband suffers from systemic scleroderma and interstitial lung disease. Ms. McGarry is motivated to help raise awareness and funding for this devastating illness.

Wayne T. Pan, MD, PhD, MBA

Dr. Pan is a physician-scientist executive with experience in clinical practice, managed care, physician group management, healthcare quality improvement, healthcare information technology, chronic care management, enterprise sales and marketing and more. Dr. Pan wants to transform the way in which healthcare products and services are delivered and reimbursed to improve patient outcomes. He is Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer for Salusive, Inc. in Emeryville, Calif. There, Dr. Pan is responsible for managing clinical operations and formulating corporate strategy as well as working with the business development team. Previously, Dr. Pan was Medical Director and Health Economist for Genentech, a member of the Roche Group.

“We are very fortunate to have this talented new class of board members joining the PFF,” said David McNinch, Chair of the Board for the PFF. “They will play a vital role in our mission to drive research and accelerate the development of new treatments for individuals living with pulmonary fibrosis.”

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About the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation
The mission of the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation is to accelerate the development of new treatments and ultimately a cure for pulmonary fibrosis. Until this goal is achieved, the PFF is committed to advancing improved care of patients with PF and providing unequaled support and education resources for patients, caregivers, family members, and health care providers. The PFF has a three-star rating from Charity Navigator and is an accredited charity by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance. The Foundation has met all of the requirements of the National Health Council Standards of Excellence Certification Program^® and has earned the Guidestar Platinum Seal of Transparency. For more information, visit pulmonaryfibrosis.org or call 844.TalkPFF (844.825.5733).