ANTHONY BAJORAS
founder, managing director

Nearly 20 years ago, Anthony met a doctor looking for investors to help launch a promising cancer therapy. That experience woke him to the immense challenge facing the mission to eliminate cancer: not funding for research, but investors willing to take significant financial risks, and possibly benefit from the rewards of supporting cancer innovations. It took losing his father to cancer, and starting his own family, to motivate Anthony to launch CANCER FUND, wanting more options and better outcomes for his own kids should they be diagnosed with cancer someday.

Anthony is the Founder of CANCER FUND and Managing Director of CANCER FUND I. He has 20+ years of experience building early-stage ventures, taking several from concept through exit. His advisory, consulting, and executive experience includes work with medical device, pharmaceutical, bioinformatics, wellness, and healthcare IT/ IoT companies. Anthony earned his BS in Business Management & Entrepreneurship from DePaul University adding non-degree undergraduate and graduate studies in design, engineering, and business from ASU, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Northwestern University.

ANN LOW
co-founder, The Lowdown on Cancer host

Ann is a serial entrepreneur, author, and cancer advocate. After her own cancer diagnosis in 2014, Ann, who spent several decades as a surgical assistant to a glaucoma specialist, recognized how little she knew about the cancer journey, even with her vast medical background. This raised a question in her mind, “If I found the experience difficult, what must it be like to have no medical background and receive a cancer diagnosis?” This question was the impetus for her to pen, Holy Crap I Have Cancer! Now What? What to Expect When You Weren’t Expecting, a book that assists patients, who are newly diagnosed with cancer through their treatment and into survivorship.

Prior to joining the CANCER FUND, Ann spent nearly a decade as the Executive Director of a Phoenix based non-profit, Hearts of Stone, whose mission is “to develop entrepreneurism in at-risk children and to transform the organizations that support them.” Ann was drawn to the CANCER FUND’s mission to invest in only early stage cancer innovations and hopes to join forces with like-minded individuals driven to have a real impact on cancer. Besides her advocacy, Ann is a mom, wife, and caregiver to her elderly parents, and likes to dabble in several different mediums of art.

JEFF REA, MBA
co-founder, stakeholder engagement

Jeff’s personal interest in cancer took root during college when his father fell to lung cancer and this interest was rekindled while developing and launching Athena bottled water benefiting women’s cancer research. Jeff and his wife relocated to Phoenix in 2017 after fledging their youngest child and he became involved in the area’s medical technology scene leading a new start-up, which eventually led him to CANCER FUND.  As a CANCER FUND co-founder, Jeff wears multiple hats but professes a particular interest in engaging our stakeholders – our community, investors, and innovators.

Professionally, Jeff is a Fortune 50 executive turned entrepreneur with a passion for early-stage ventures. After 15 years holding domestic and international responsibility for some of the world’s largest and most trusted consumer brands, Jeff helped launch a variety of start-ups in sectors ranging from entertainment to media to consumer products. Jeff has his MBA from the Kellogg School at Northwestern University and a BBA from Washington State University.

JAKE SNYDER
co-founder, venture studio

Over the 2010 – 2020 decade, Jake watched as his grandmother battled recurrence after recurrence of cancer, always refusing chemotherapy and other non-naturopathic treatments. She passed peacefully with her family in 2020, but continues to be a source of inspiration to him.

Jake is a native of Phoenix, Arizona and a graduate of the Biomedical Engineering program at Arizona State University. Growing up, he was passionate about capital markets and often spent time learning the principles of investing from his father. He realized early in his career as an orthopedic engineer that to create the impact he wanted to see in health innovation, he needed to take a risk. BIG risks. He gave his two week notice and moved from Indiana back home to the Valley, where he soon met the CANCER FUND team and immediately put his skills and experience to work supporting the back office operations of the fund and managing the CANCER FUND Venture Studios program. When not helping to build start-ups, he enjoys reading about history and exciting new technologies,  as well as training for triathlons.

SHARAD MISHRA, MD, MBA
venture partner

Sharad lives by the adage “if it isn’t really difficult, is it even worth pursuing?” He is a 20+ year healthcare veteran, having been in diverse roles as a physician, an entrepreneur, an investor, and in venture development for large corporations, bringing a global perspective through his life and work experiences in Asia, the Middle East, the UK, and the US. Most recently at UnitedHealth Group’s R&D Ventures team he was involved with multiple investments in and around oncology and care delivery, and saw first-hand the immense need for new therapies and delivery models, while at the same time getting a deeper understanding of challenges early-stage startups face in making these possible and accessible.

Sharad got his degree in Medicine from the Himalayan Institute of Medical Sciences in India and an MBA from Darden at UVA. He joined CANCER FUND due to the fund’s focus on impact more than just returns, and to help its founders navigate the very complex and daunting systems of healthcare, both in the US and globally. Besides oncology, his interests include robotics, longevity, space-tech, and crowdfunding, and he is always on the hunt for better tacos.

ANDRE HARRELL
venture partner

After nearly 30 years of commercial healthcare experience, with 15 years of that in the oncology space, André has just about seen it all when it comes to cancer. Having experienced working with hospice, top teaching hospitals, and various pain management outlets, André’s passion for contributing to the defeat of cancer is unwavering. 

However, what has really inspired André to become more active in the oncology space is the need to find, assist, and help develop our most talented founders/CEOs. These are the brilliant minds who’ve come up with innovative and effective ways to close the gap on defeating the #1 most insidious disease. And they can’t do it alone. 

André has held key leadership roles with Fortune 500 companies such as McKinsey & Company, Johnson & Johnson Inc., Hewlett Packard, BASF, SC Johnson, Bristol Myers Squibb, Nestle SA, and Novo Nordisk. 

André’s most recent role before stepping out on his own was Chief Commercial Officer for Norbrook Laboratories. André was responsible for a $700 million global budget for this company based in Newry, Ireland.

Currently, André is President/CEO of AH2 Management, which has several portfolio companies under its management. 

MARA PERNICK, MBA
director of community development

Mara is dedicated to the mission of CANCER FUND and is herself a cancer survivor. She is honored to be a part of the team as, together, we find innovative ways to fight cancer.

Mara is a Partner at Innovative Connections, a public affairs company specializing in strategic messaging and issue advocacy. Mara has more than 20 years of experience in providing advisory and consulting services to publicly traded and privately held companies. Mara began her career in Washington DC, working on legislative issues for a member of the U.S. Senate. Mara is dedicated to supporting entrepreneurs, innovators, and emerging companies and has worked on several initiatives aimed at strengthening Arizona’s innovation ecosystem.

Mara is an Arizona native and is a member of Valley Leadership, Class 40. Mara received an MBA from George Mason University and a BA from the University of Arizona.

JEFF BELLE
venture partner

Jeff’s passion for supporting early-stage cancer research stems from the diagnosis of a family member who participated in multiple successful clinical trials, which eventually became standard of care in treatment for Neuroblastoma. Having witnessed the toxic side effects of existing treatments, he became a fundraiser and advocate in support of early-stage research and development for rare and under-funded cancers.

Jeff comes to CANCER FUND after an early career in investment banking and publishing, followed by two decades at Amazon, a period in which he held a number of executive roles in the US and UK, contributed to the development of systems and processes that facilitated the company’s ability to scale, and launched and led multiple successful global businesses. In addition to his work with Cancer Fund, Jeff currently serves as a board member, advisor and volunteer for several media organizations and institutions focused on access to education. Based in Seattle where he lives with his wife and two children, Jeff enjoys the outdoors, baseball season, and exploring the Pacific Northwest. He holds a BBA in Finance from the University of Notre Dame.

BEN MAUREY
venture partner

Ben brings 5+ years of experience as an oncology strategy consultant to The Cancer Fund. He has worked with many of the largest pharmaceutical companies, helping them to understand different oncology landscapes, develop their commercialization strategy, and design their clinical trials for the best chance at registrational and launch success.

Before The Cancer Fund, Ben was deeply involved with childhood cancer organizations such as Endure to Cure and The B+ Foundation, after watching a fellow soccer player battle AML (Leukemia) in the ICU for 167 days. Since that childhood experience, Ben has been committed to making the lives of cancer patients better and hopes his time at The Cancer Fund will allow him to help advise and bring forth medicines to extend patients’ lives and improve quality of life.

MARK GARLAND
ambassador

Mark is a serial entrepreneur who has founded several businesses. He is the owner and president of Garland Insurance & Financial Services, which provides commercial insurance and risk management solutions. He is the founder of Paramount Healthcare Services, which provides group benefits for businesses of all sizes. He is also the founder of Paramount Business Services, which helps owners, executives, and entrepreneurs solve complex business challenges.

Mark holds a Bachelor’s degree in Finance and Economics and is currently completing his Master’s degree in Leadership. He plans to pursue a doctorate in Organizational Behavior with an emphasis on Strategic Leadership. He embraces the idea of Servant Leadership.

In 2020, Mark lost his son to mental illness. This tragedy bolstered his commitment to living a life of meaning and helping others. He was drawn to the CANCER FUND’s mission because he lost his maternal grandmother and paternal grandfather to cancer. He wants to unite with like-minded individuals focused on making the world a better place.

Mark is a disabled Veteran, having served in the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division. He enjoys being a dad, hunting, camping, and practicing martial arts. He also enjoys being a caregiver to his rescue animals, including a horse, a donkey, and four dogs.

DOUG NISSINOFF, MS
venture analyst

Doug has dedicated his entire career to the life sciences and is passionate about making healthcare better. He has acted as an executive consultant for numerous Biotech, Pharma, and MedTech companies that continue to positively impact and revolutionize the way that we think about healthcare.

Doug got his start in the industry by working directly with patients as a Clinical Research Coordinator. He eventually went on to work in Biotech Investor Relations in New York City before moving back to South Florida to spearhead the expansion of a European life sciences consultancy to the U.S.

Having witnessed family and friends experience the difficulties of cancer, Doug was determined to make a positive impact in the cancer space. He was inspired by CANCER FUND’s goal to support the commercialization of promising cancer research for therapies, diagnostics, and prevention. He has eagerly joined the team and looks forward to the future of this partnership.

Doug is a native South Floridian. He holds an MS in Biotechnology from Georgetown University and a BS in Biological Sciences from Florida State University.

PATRICK STEPANEK
ambassador

Cancer has touched many people in Patrick’s life, and he works with passion to bring innovative lifesaving solutions to the forefront of an investor’s options in the modern investing space. As an Ambassador with CANCER FUND, Patrick works to connect investors with innovative cancer cures and treatments.

Patrick is an Ohio native living in the mountains of Colorado. After graduating from Ohio State with a finance degree, he traveled to every state in the contiguous United States creating an online audience of over 1 million hikers, nature enthusiasts and environmental conservationists. Patrick has been building this brand for over 8 years and gained deep experience in Digital Marketing, E-Commerce and entrepreneurship.

Patrick is an investor in stocks, cryptocurrency, real estate, regulation crowdfunding and venture capital.  

Patrick is also the author of two best-selling books, Utopian Logic and 100k Miles. He spends every second not working in the outdoors either skiing or hiking. Having traveled to every national park on the west coast he is a great person to ask for a recommendation while traveling. Though he has a traditional undergrad in finance, his true experience comes from having worked over a dozen jobs in different industries.

ALEX CORONADO
associate

Alex, a Boise, Idaho native, grew up around many families affected by cancer, including his own family, as his ‘favorite aunt’ had breast cancer. Alex believes investing can impact cancer and joined CANCER FUND to help advance innovations with the potential to help patients and families facing similar struggles.

Alex is a serial entrepreneur and lead five startups with one exit before transitioning into venture capital. He brings startup and private equity experience to CANCER FUND and has a deep interest in healthcare innovation.

YOUR NAME HERE
venture partner

Interested in joining CANCER FUND? We’re looking for passionate people to help grow our investor community, expand and evaluate our innovation pipeline, and help manage our portfolio. Click here to learn more about our Venture Partner role.

YOUR NAME HERE
ambassador

Interested in joining CANCER FUND? We’re looking for cancer survivors, patients, caregivers, and friends and family that share our passion to support cancer innovations. Click to learn more about our breast cancer ambassador and men’s cancer ambassador roles or contact us below to discuss other ambassador roles.

YOUR NAME HERE
screening committee member

If you are passionate about cancer and innovation, we invite you to join our virtual screening committee to help us select our investments.

YOUR NAME HERE
investment committee member

If you’re an experienced early-stage investor, angel investor, proven founder, or executive in our space and want to have a real impact by helping guide our investment decisions, let’s talk.