Principal Investigator
Prof. Dr. Maria C. Katapodi
University of Basel
» Profil on dkf.unibas.ch
» CV (PDF)
More Information
Prof. Katapodi has more than 15 years experience caring for women affected by breast cancer and their families. She is interested in how women make decisions about genetic testing and cancer screening, how family members cope with hereditary cancer, and in increasing public awareness about use of genetic counseling and testing.
Scientific Collaborators
Souria Aissaoui
Genesupport AG
More Information
Dr Souria AISSAOUI (PhD), doctor in genetic counseling and predictive medicine, onco-genetic specialty (genetic counseling delivered for any genetic predisposition to cancer: breast, ovarian, colorectal, dermatological, etc…) with 15 years of experience, trained at the Hospices Civils de Lyon, Marseille and Paris (diploma – accompaniment of people with genetic diseases). Author of the book Le Conseil Génétique en Pathologie Humaine (Elsevier Masson 2017). Since 2019, Collaborator and Manager of the onco-genetic consultation of Genesupport (Switzerland) in the Geneva and Fribourg areas. Supervises the team (secretary and genetic counselor). Active member of the Tumorboards.
PD Dr. med. Nicole Bürki
University Hospital Basel (USB)
More Information
Nicole Bürki is in charge of the “Genetic counseling for familial breast and ovarian cancer” at the University Hospital in Basel since June 2013. She is an active member of the “Network for Cancer Predisposition Testing and Counseling” of the Swiss Group for Clinical Cancer Research (SAKK) and the SAKK Breast Cancer Group.
Prof. Dr. Maria Caiata Zufferey
University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI)
More Information
Maria Caiata-Zufferey is Professor in Qualitative Research in the Social and Health Sciences at the Department of Business Economics, Health and Social Care (DEASS) of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI), where she is also head of the Competence Center for Healthcare Practices and Policies. Maria Caiata-Zufferey holds a PhD in social sciences from the University of Fribourg, Switzerland. In the field of genetics, she is particularly interested in how women manage the uncertainty related to their genetic predisposition to develop breast and ovarian cancer, and in the role of communication in this situation.
Prof. Dr. Pierre O. Chappuis, MD
Hôpitaux Universitaire Genève (HUG)
More Information
Pierre Chappuis is onco-geneticist and responsible for the Breast Center at the Hôpitaux Universitaire Genève (HUG), Switzerland. Pierre Chappuis currently manages the HUG Breast Center, which opened in 2011 and since 2014 benefits from the quality label assigned to it by the Swiss Cancer League and the Swiss Senology Society. Furthermore, he is responsible for the oncogenetics program at the hospital, which focuses on onco-genetic consultations and a multidisciplinary consensus.
Muriel Fluri
University Hospital of Bern (Inselspital)
More Information
Muriel works as an Advanced Practice Nurse in genetic counselling at the Clinic of Medical Oncology, University Hospital of Bern, Inselspital and as a research assistant for the CASCADE study at the Department of Clinical Research, Faculty of Medicine at the University of Basel. Muriel Fluri holds a Master of Science degree in Nursing from the University of Applied Sciences Bern. She is interested in how people with a confirmed predisposition can be better cared for by an Advanced Practice Nurse.
Dr. med. Rossella Graffeo
Istituto Oncologico della Svizzera Italiana (IOSI)
More Information
Rossella Graffeo is a senior medical oncologist at the Istituto Oncologico della Svizzera Italiana (IOSI) and director of the oncogenetics service at the division of medical genetics. Her main clinical and research interests focus on breast cancer and genetic risk evaluation in young women.
Prof. Dr. med. Dr. phil Karl Heinimann
University Hospital Basel (USB)
More Information
Karl Heinimann is a Professor of Medical Genetics at the University Hospital in Basel and the Department of Biomedicine at the University of Basel, Switzerland.
Prof. Dr. Viola Heinzelmann-Schwarz
University Hospital Basel (USB)
More Information
Viola Heinzelmann-Schwarz is a specialist in gynecology and obstetrics, a subspecialist in gynecological oncology and the overall director of the gynecological clinic at the University Hospital Basel. After study visits in Tübingen, London (UCL), Dunedin / New Zealand and Zurich, Viola Heinzelmann-Schwarz completed her training as a gynecologist at the University Hospital of Zurich. She received her Venia Legendi (Privatdozentin) at the University of Zurich in 2007. From 2008 to 2012 she was sub-specialized in one of Australia’s largest gynecological cancer centers in Sydney. Her clinical and scientific focus is on gynecological carcinomas, especially ovarian cancer.
Dr. Helen Koechlin
University of Basel
More Information
Helen Koechlin is a post-doctoral researcher at the Division of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Psychology at the University of Basel, and affiliated with the Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School. She holds a PhD in Psychology from the University of Basel and her research is concerned with several topics within the field of child and adolescent psychology, among them the well-being of children of critically ill parents.
PD Dr. Christian Kurzeder, PhD
University Hospital Basel (USB)
More Information
Christian Kurzeder is the leader of the Breast Center, Head Physician of Senology and Deputy Head Physician of Gynaecologic Oncology at the University Hospital in Basel, Switzerland. Christian Kurzeder is member of the PHB Oncology Cluster, which has the goal to create a multidisciplinary center for translational research in Personalized Health medicine in the cancer field. In the most recent papers that he co-authored, he focuses amongst others on oncoplastic breast conserving surgery in connection to the treatment of breast cancer.
Ashley Machen
Hirslanden Clinique des Grangettes
More Information
Ashley Machen performs patient consultations at the Hirslanden Clinique des Grangettes as a Breast Cancer and Prostate Cancer Nurse Specialist. She is also the Administrative Director and Clinical Trial Coordinator for both the Breast Cancer and Prostate Cancer centers. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) from the University of Louisiana at Monroe (ULM) and a Bachelors of Arts (BA) in International Business and French from Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida USA. She is interested in understanding how her patients with a cancer diagnosis manage their increased risk of further cancers after discovering they carry a pathogenic variant.
Dr. Christian Monnerat
Hôpital du Jura
More Information
Christian Monnerat is the head physician of the Oncology Unit of the Hôpital du Jura, where he also provides oncogenetic consultations. In 1997, Christian Monnerat obtained his FMH title of Internal Medicine and his doctorate in medicine in 1998 with the Prize of the Faculty of Medicine of Lausanne. In 1999, he obtained his FMH title of medical oncology. In 2001, he won the European University Diploma in Clinical Research in Cancerology from the University of Paris XI and the Institut Gustave-Roussy, as well as the Master of Genetics with mention of the University of Paris V and the Hôpital Necker-Enfants malades.
Carla Pedrazzani
University of Basel
More Information
Carla Pedrazzani is a PhD candidate in Nursing Science at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Basel as well as lecturer and researcher at the Department of Business Economics, Health and Social Care (DEASS) of the University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI). Carla Pedrazzani holds a Master of Science degree in Nursing from University of Turin, Italy. She is interested in oncology nursing, in communication in hereditary cancers and in genetic nursing practice.
Prof. Dr. Nicole Probst-Hensch, MPH
Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)
More Information
Nicole Probst-Hensch is the Head of the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) and Professor in Epidemiology and Public Health at the Medical Faculty of the University of Basel, Switzerland. Nicole Probst-Hensch holds doctorates in pharmaceutical sciences and in epidemiology. After she had been appointed Assistant Professor at USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center in Los Angeles she came back to the Unversity of Zürich, where she achieved her habilitation in 2004. In Switzerland, she established the National Institute of Cancer Epidemiology and Registration (NICER), as its first director. At Swiss TPH, Nicole Probst-Hensch is responsible for the group working on Genetic Epidemiology of Non-Communicable Diseases.
Dr. med. Manuela Rabaglio
University Hospital of Bern (Inselspital)
More Information
Manuela Rabaglio is senior registrar at the Clinic of Medical Oncology, University Hospital of Bern, Inselspital where she is also head of the Quality Assurance Clinical Trial Unit. Manuela Rabaglio is the head of medical affairs at IBCSG, Bern and she received her professional qualifications in Switzerland and Portugal. Her current focus lies on genetic counseling and cancer prevention for breast cancer, gynecological tumors and other hereditary cancer syndromes.
Simon Wieser
ZHAW
More Information
Prof. Simon Wieser is a Professor for Health Economic at ZHAW and leads the health economic research team since 2006. His main research interests include the assessment and decomposition of healthcare spending, health economic evaluations, and the development of prospective payment systems.
Ursina Zürrer
Kantonsspital Winterthur
More Information
Ursina Zürrer is a senior physician for medical oncology at the Winterthur Cantonal Hospital and Head of the Genetic Counseling Clinic, a member of the management board of the Breast Center and the Gynecological Tumor Center. Her scientific interests lie in the detection of hereditary cancers and how this knowledge influences the treatment of affected patients and how it can prevent cancers in the family. She is also actively involved in research into new or tailored oncological treatments for breast cancer and gynecological tumors.