Pepperdine Oncology Symposium 2026

Sara Hurvitz, professor of medicine, is a medical oncologist and clinical research leader at the University of Washington School of Medicine where she serves as division head of Hematology/Oncology. She is also the senior vice president of the Clinical Research Division and is honored with the Smith Family Endowed Chair in Women's Health at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center. As an international expert in breast oncology and a leader in clinical and laboratory-based oncology research with extensive experience leading clinical trials in all phases, Hurvitz led the breast cancer clinical trials program at the University of California, Los Angeles, for 17 years and was medical director of the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center until 2023 when she accepted her position at UW/FHCC. Hurvitz has won numerous awards, among them the Marni Levine Memorial Breast Cancer Research Award 2008 through 2015 and the European Society of Medical Oncology Breast Cancer Award in 2023. She has an active clinical practice specializing in the treatment of women with breast cancer and continues to be involved in designing, implementing, and leading multiple national and international clinical trials testing new targeted therapies. Hurvitz earned her MD from the University of Southern California. At UCLA, she served an internship/residency, was chief resident of internal medicine, and completed a hematology-oncology fellowship in 2006. Hurvitz is board certified in internal medicine, hematology, and medical oncology.

Andrew McKenzie joined the Sarah Cannon Research Institute (SCRI) in 2015 and serves as the vice president of its Personalized Medicine program. He also serves as the scientific director for Genospace, SCRI's fully integrated personalized medicine engine.

McKenzie has more than 10 years of basic science and translational research experience in oncology. In his current role, he is responsible for providing scientific and operational oversight for implementing SCRI’s personalized medicine strategy, which provides scientific, consultative, and programmatic services to clinical research investigators, study sponsors, research personnel, and other healthcare providers to advance SCRI’s molecular profiling efforts. As scientific director at Genospace, McKenzie is responsible for providing scientific and strategic guidance to data science and product development activities.

Prior to joining SCRI, McKenzie was a research fellow in the Cancer Biology Department at Vanderbilt University's Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, where he investigated extracellular vesicle trafficking and translational cell biology research. He earned a PhD in pharmacology from the University of Vermont, where he investigated extracellular matrix remodeling and cell motility.

Lindsey Murphy practices as a pediatric oncologist at City of Hope Children’s Cancer Center, where she joined the faculty as an assistant professor in 2023. She is also the medical director for the School of Physician Assistant Studies at Pepperdine University College of Health Science, which will enroll the first class of students in 2027. Murphy is  a physician-scientist with multiple lines of investigation aiming to advance leukemia treatment by identifying potential new biomarkers for targeted therapies (including CAR T cell therapies) and translating those into clinical trials as novel therapeutic approaches for relapsed and refractory pediatric leukemia. Other investigations focus on improving the process of treatment itself in stem cell transplantation,chemotherapy, and oncology inpatient care.Murphy specializes in pediatric hematology/oncology because it allows her to build long-term relationships with her young patients and their caregivers. Inspired by their resilience and strength, she stays at the leading edge of her field so that she can introduce families to the latest therapies, specifically those that minimize harmful and long-lasting side effects. 

She received her bachelor’s degree in biology and applied mathematics from Pepperdine University and thereafer earned an MD from the University of Nevada School of Medicine. She completed a pediatric residency at the University of Washington/Seattle Children’s Hospital follow by a fellowship in pediatric hematology, oncology, and bone marrow transplant at the University of Colorado/Children’s Hospital Colorado. She holds dual board certification in pediatrics and pediatric hematology/oncology. She also completed a master’s degree in clinical science at the University of Colorado, which allowed her to gain additional experience with clinical trial design and clinical research conduct. She has gained extensive experience with early phase clinical trials in children with relapsed malignancies and serves as the primary investigator for several early phase trials investigating the role for novel diagnostic and therapeutic techniques in the treatment of pediatric leukemia.

Shahryar (Shay) Ashouri is a clinical professor of medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the
University of California, Los Angeles. He currently sees patients at the UCLA hematology/oncology
practice in Westlake Village, California. Ashouri demonstrates his primary objective—service to his
patients and community—by offering his patients state-of-the-art, personalized cancer management,
including involvement in appropriate clinical trials, while providing a calm and familiar atmosphere close to their home. He creates a comprehensive treatment strategy for each of his patients that not only assists them in fighting their disease, but also maintains their high quality of life. He sees patients with breast cancer, urologic cancers, gastrointestinal cancers, gynecologic cancers, and lung cancer, as well as lymphomas.

Ashouri is a board-certified, fellowship-trained hematologist and medical oncologist. He earned his
medical degree at the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine and completed an
internship and residency in internal medicine at the University of Southern California and Los Angeles
County Medical Center. Ashouri received his fellowship training in hematology and medical oncology at
USC’s Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center.