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Meet the MECFA Team

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President and CEO - Turkey

Christine Noke
BBA, MBA

Christine is focused on driving systemic change across CF communities through non-profit work as well as creative activations. The mission across MECFA—which currently includes over 250 members and covers 14 countries—is united behind the deeply held belief that compassion and dedication can change the lives of CF patients.

Christine has dedicated her life’s work to advancing CF care in developing countries. She is the former Executive Director for CF Worldwide where she spent 14 years focused on developing CF care in some of the poorest countries in the world. Now living in Turkey, she has married her passion for helping people with CF with her love of the region and founded MECFA.

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Sebnem Tuna

Executive Assistant - Turkey

Sebnem Tuna
BA

Sebnem is the Executive Assistant at MECFA working closely with the Executive Board and Medical and Scientific Committee.  As executive assistant Sebnem responsible for providing comprehensive support to the CEO, Board of Directors, and Executive Team and managing the organization’s office operations, including working remotely with MECFA member clinicians on mutiple projects. Sebnem support MECFA with her ability to anticipate needs, think critically, and offer solutions to problems with a high level of professionalism and confidentiality. 

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MECFA Medical and Scientific Committee Member - Oman

Hussein Al Kindy
Professor of Pediatric Pulmonology

Prof. Hussein Al Kindy is a founding member of MECFA and Director of the Pulmonology Department and CF Center at the Sultan Qaboos University Hospital in Muscat, Oman. Hussein was one of the first Middle East Pulmonologist to focus on cystic fibrosis and its prevalence in Oman and the region. Working with the Oman Respiratory Society, Hussein organized the first MECFA annual conference in Muscat Oman. Hussein has recently taken on a new role at MECFA chairing the humanitarian relief committee and leading the Giving Breath Campaign.

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Vice President and MECFA Medical and Scientific Committee Member - Turkey

Bulent Karadag
Professor of Pediatric Pulmonology

Prof. Bulent Karadag is a founding member of MECFA and a leading CF specialist in Turkey. He is also the chairman of the MECFA Education program, organizing two MECFA annual conferences in Turkey. He is the director of the Marmara Pulmonology Department and CF Center. Through his and his team's hard work and commitment, they have created a CF center striving to meet international standards of care. Bulent is leading the MaMi project, a pilot program between Marmara CF Center and the Michigan CF Center to develop a state-of-the-art CF Center and education hub in Turkey.

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MECFA Medical and Scientific Committee Member - Qatar

Ibrahim Janahi
Professor of Pediatric Pulmonology

Prof. Ibrahim Janahi is a founding member of MECFA and Director of Pediatric Pulmonology and the CF Center at Sidra Hospital in Doha, Qatar. Ibrahim is chair of the MECFA research committee and actively involved in CF research in Qatar.  Ibrahim plays an important role in creating a network between Qatar corporate sponsors and MECFA. Ibrahim and his network are working with MECFA to lobby the Palestine MoH to ensure patients receive essential therapies. He is spearheading the MECFA research grants program and actively seeks to have MENA CF patients enrolled in clinical trials.  

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MECFA Medical and Scientific Committee Member - Jordan

Muna Kilani
Associate professor of Pediatric Pulmonology

Pediatric pulmonologist and CF specialist in Jordan, leading the QI project with Harvard at Prince Hamzah hospital in Amman, establishing the first state CF Center in Jordan,  and acting on behalf of the MOH to bring in CF medications and therapies to Jordan. Dr Kilani is also taking part in evaluating the MECFA diagnostic program. Dr Kilani has a strategic role in lobbying the Jordan MOH for care and therapies for patients across the country and contributed to the Giving Breath Campaign to donate nebulizers to 100 CF patients in Jordan. 

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Board Secretary --USA

Jill Jarvis
BA
 

Jill is currently Vice President of Product Management at an e-commerce fashion marketplace start-up. In addition to her background in product management, Jill has worked at a non-profit organization and has experience in pharmaceutical grant management and administration of continuing medical educational programs. Her entry into the Cystic Fibrosis world began as a college intern for Cystic Fibrosis Worldwide, supporting content development and editorial functions for its newsletter and assisting at annual international conferences.


As secretary of the executive board, Jill oversees relationships with banking and consultants managing MECFA state and federal filings, and supervises all financial transactions. Jill also plays a role in program development advising the executive team and staff on administrative and business development.

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MECFA Medical and Scientific Committee Member - Palestine

Nisreen Rumman
Pediatric Pulmonologist

Dr Nisreen Rumman is a founding member of MECFA and the leading CF specialist in Palestine. Through her years of dedication and commitment to CF patients in the West Bank and Gaza, she has been able to create a CF Center in the Caritas Baby Hospital staffed with a well trained CF interdisciplinary team. She has visited Gaza CF patients and is working to establish a CF team at the Gaza state funded pediatric hospital. Nisreen is actively lobbying the MoH for essential therapies in collaboration with MECFA.

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International Advisory Committee

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MECFA Advocacy Committee

Dr. Preston Campbell

Served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation from 2015 - 2019.

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MECFA Education Program Committee

Prof. Ahmet Uluer


Director, Adult Cystic Fibrosis Program; Director, Weitzman Family Bridges Adult Transition Program
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School

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MECFA Advocacy Committee

Ilknur Gorgun

 

Ilknur completed her master's degree at the Institute of Education and worked as a teacher for several years. Ulknur became a CF mother in 200 when her year-old daughter was diagnosed. She resigned from teaching and established KİFDER (Turkey CF family charity. Ilknur is currently the chairman of KiFDER and leads new program development. Elected to the board of the CF Europe in 2015 and is still a member of the board.

 

Ilknur together with the volunteers and friends continues to carry KİFDER forward, keeping patient perspective in the focus, and ensuring that CF patients and their relatives live longer and have a good quality of life in Turkey.

 

Through her work with KiFDER and CF Europe, Ilknur has vast experience in advocating on behalf of patients and families. She has now joined the MECFA advocacy committee to help families and patients across the region.  

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MECFA Advocacy Committee

Elizabeth Holden

Has more than ten years' experience in grassroots advocacy and organizing, with a focus on health policy and civil rights issues. Currently, she serves as Manager, Policy & Advocacy at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, where she works with the CF community across the country to advance policies that help to improve access to highly specialized CF care and advance research and drug development. 

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MECFA Diagnostic Committee

Dr. Susanna McColley

 

Associate Chief Research Officer for Clinical Trials and Director of Clinical and Translational Research at Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute, Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago.

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MECFA Education Program Committee

Fadi Asfour, MD

Dr. Asfour received his Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery degree from Jordan University of Science and Technology. Dr. Asfour completed his pediatric residency at the Women and Children´s Hospital of Buffalo, and his pediatric Pulmonary Fellowship at Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles. Dr. Asfour is board-certified in pediatric pulmonology.

 

Dr. Asfour is currently a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Utah and is in the Division of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine at Primary Children´s Hospital. Dr. Asfour’s clinical interests include cystic fibrosis, quality improvement, patient experience, team well-being, and global access to care. Dr. Asfour currently serves as the medical director of quality improvement at Primary Children’s Hospital. In November of 2022, Dr. Asfour was named the inaugural holder of the Barbara Chatfield Endowed Chair for cystic fibrosis in the University of Utah.

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MECFA Education Program Committee

Prof. Samya Nasr

Professor of Pediatrics

Director, Cystic Fibrosis Clinical Center

Specialties: 

Pediatric Pulmonology, Pediatrics

Area of Practice: 

Cystic fibrosis, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, lung diseases, and bronchial asthma.

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MECFA Diagnostic Committee

Dr. Alexander Elbert

 

Senior director of the Patient Registry program at the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. He received his degree in Chemical Engineering from Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute and Ph.D. in material science from the Institute for Superhard Materials.

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