Leaders in innovation

Stavchansky is Executive Director and Global Head of Pharmacy Services at Fortrea, based in Dallas, Texas. With over 20 years of experience in pharmacy practice—primarily in research and development—he leads global pharmacy operations across Fortrea’s Clinical Research Units in North America and the UK. As member of the Clinical Pharmacology Services leadership team, he provides strategic and scientific guidance for Phase I/Ib clinical trials, applying his specialist knowledge to drug development, GMP pharmacy services, On-Site Manufacture (OSM) of investigational drug product to clinic dose administration, and the transition from pre-clinical to first-in-human trials. He has therapeutic experience in cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity, asthma, and more. A registered pharmacist in Texas, Marcus also serves as adjunct faculty at the University of Texas and Texas Tech University.

Carla Sterk is a pharmacist by training and a registered Qualified Person (QP) with more than 30 years of experience in global regulatory affairs, including the last 11 years at Fortrea and its legacy organizations, Labcorp Drug Development and Covance. She previously held regulatory roles at large and mid-sized CROs and consultancy firms.

As an Executive Regulatory Strategist, Carla has extensive experience in global regulatory strategy for oncology products, supporting multiple development programs and regulatory agency interactions with the FDA, EMA and national competent authorities. Her experience includes resolving clinical holds, developing comprehensive development plans and target product profiles, securing orphan drug and expedited program designations and designing regulatory strategies for early access programs.

She has worked across a broad range of investigational products, including small molecules, biologics, biotech products and advanced therapies in oncology and other therapeutic areas such as immunology and dermatology, with experience in abbreviated and repurposed drug pathways.

Darby Thomas, PhD, is the Scientific Director of Cell & Gene Therapies. She earned her PhD in Molecular Virology from Baylor College of Medicine, performed postdoctoral training at the University of Pennsylvania, followed by 17 years in industry prior to joining Fortrea (formerly Labcorp) in 2021.

Dr. Thomas has broad experience in adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapy with roles in CMC, discovery, translational development, and patient advocacy for several AAV-focused companies with an emphasis on rare neurological and metabolic diseases and ophthalmology. She also has translational experience developing plasmid-based gene therapies, lentiviruses, as well as gene-modified cell therapies for the treatment of rare skin disorders.

Dr. Thomas provides specialized scientific expertise providing leadership and guidance to integrated global teams, as well as internal and external consultation and training on cell and gene therapy programs.

Carrie Thompson is a Director in Strategic Delivery & Growth for Infectious Diseases and Critical Care and is based in Sheffield, UK. Carrie has over 18 years of clinical research experience, 14 of which with Fortrea. Her experience working in CROs and investigator-led settings, includes Phase I-III clinical trial execution, delivery and strategy. Carrie’s therapeutic experience spans multiple areas, including hematology, rare diseases and IBD. For the last six years, Carrie’s therapeutic focus has been infectious diseases, specializing in CHB with expertise in hybrid and platform study designs, overseeing operational delivery at a global level. 

Carrie earned her MSc degree in Clinical Research at the Welsh School of Pharmacy, Cardiff, S. Wales and completed an executive MBA programme at York St John University, UK in 2022.Sonia is a certified Green Belt in Six Sigma and has been certified as a Project Management Professional (PMP) since 2003 and remains an active member of the Project Management Institute. She earned her master’s degree in operational management from the University of Washington. She joined our company in 2006.

Dr. Todorova is a board-certified neurologist with over 15 years of clinical and research experience in neurodegenerative disorders and demyelinating diseases. She obtained her PhD degree with a thesis on Quality of life in patients with Parkinson’s disease and was involved in academic and clinical research. Dr. Todorova worked as a Clinical Research Fellow at King's College Hospital, London and during this period she was involved in academic research focused on non-motor symptoms and continuous drug treatment in Parkinson's disease. She contributed to 14 publications in international medical journals, as well as 16 abstracts/ oral presentations in medical conferences.

She has been an Investigator in more than 20 clinical drug trials in Parkinson’s Disease, Alzheimer disease, Multiple Sclerosis and Migraine.

Her pharmaceutical industry expertise is focused on the neurosciences across Phase I-IV of clinical development, mainly in Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and Multiple sclerosis.

Based in Brussels, Belgium.

Yulianna Tymovska, MD, PhD, is Senior Medical Director based in Brisbane, Australia. Dr. Tymovska has 20 years of clinical experience, specializing in Oncology (extensive clinical experience in breast, head and neck cancer, melanoma, and gynecology malignancies diagnostic and treatment, as well as research in mechanisms of tumors resistance to anti-cancer treatment and immune oncology). 

Dr. Tymovska has more than 15 years of clinical research experience as a clinical trial investigator and medical director (monitor) providing medical expert oversight and monitoring of clinical trials, contribution and scientific expertise to study design, and regulatory documents, work in cross functional team on all phases of the studies and trials including feasibility assessments, design process, education efforts, and management of medical information. 

Dr. Tymovska earned her medical degree and completed clinical oncology postgraduate training in Bogomolets National Medical University, Kyiv, Ukraine, and PhD training in Kavetsky IEPOR of NAS of Ukraine. She joined our company in Jan 2023.

Dr. Sunu Valasseri is a Senior Medical Director within Clinical Pharmacology Services at Fortrea, with approximately 16 years of experience in Phase I clinical research. He provides medical oversight and safety monitoring for early phase clinical trials, with experience across more than 150 studies, including First-in-Human, drug–drug interaction, bioequivalence, thorough QT, and radiolabeled studies.

Prior to joining Fortrea, Dr. Valasseri served as a Principal Investigator at Labcorp’s Leeds facility, leading multiple First-in-Human programs with a strong focus on subject safety and regulatory compliance. He holds an MBBS, a Diploma in Pharmaceutical Medicine (UK), and an MSc in Pharmacology, and is actively involved in medical appraisal and academic activities.

• 33 years in industry with experience in pharmaceutical and medical device product development 
• 28 years in Project Management roles 
• Career spans both CRO and Pharma/Biologics/Med Device roles 
• Project Manager/Project Director on two Fortrea home hemodialysis studies 
• Experienced in set up and conduct of hemodialysis studies

Veerle Van De Velde, MD, currently works as a Global Project physician in the IGM therapeutic area (TA). In this role, she is responsible for overseeing global trials, mostly in rare respiratory indications. Tasks include protocol development and feedback, team training, site communication, data review and interpretation, DMC and adjudication support, data review meetings, assistance with CSR writing. Drawing on more than 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical and CRO industry, Dr. Van De Velde gets involved in business development activities and may also act in a consultant role as part of a molecular development team. 

Dr. Veerle Van De Velde obtained her medical degree in 1995 and worked as a sub-investigator in the Respiratory Department of the University Hospital in Ghent. She started her career in drug Development in the respiratory area in a hospital setting and spent four years doing clinical research in Phase II, III, and IV trials in asthma, COPD, respiratory infections and pulmonary oncology under the guidance of Prof R.A. Pauwels. As a sub-I, Dr. Van De Velde was responsible for recruiting patients, administering patients’ project-specific procedures, compiling CRF data, collecting adverse event information, and timely reporting to sponsors and ethics committees. She has experience in both basic and clinical research, with expertise in rare respiratory disease and IPF. Later, she worked as a project physician in a variety of indications and was responsible for overseeing global clinical trials, medical data review and team training both internally and externally.

Dr Vanja Vucetic is a board certified Clinical Pharmacology specialist and licensed Medical Doctor, educated at the University of Belgrade, Serbia. With over 18 years of experience in clinical pharmacology and global clinical research, developed expertise in medical monitoring, protocol development, and safety oversight across Phase I–IV clinical trials. Focused on early phase development and complex, multi therapeutic programs, and managed studies in diverse therapeutic areas including cardiometabolic disease, neuroscience, oncology, gastroenterology, and immunology.

Liang Wan, MD, PhD, is a Medical Director for Fortrea in Shanghai, China. He serves as lead project physician on clients’ drug development projects, provides medical/scientific expertise to project teams, reviews protocols and medical data, and is responsible for medical and safety monitoring on assigned projects. 

Dr. Wan has more than 25 years of experience as a physician, research clinician and medical director with therapeutic experience in oncology, gastroenterology, and hematology. Before joining Fortrea, he was Medical Director for IQVIA in Shanghai, serving as Global or Regional Medical Advisor on assigned projects. He began his career as a surgeon and clinical investigator at Shanghai Jiao Tong University Rui Jin Hospital. Dr. Wan joined our company in May 2019.

Friedrich (Fritz) Wieser, MD, is an OB/GYN who received his MD from the Vienna Medical University (Vienna, Austria). After completing his gynecology residency at the Dept. of Gynecology at the University Hospital in Vienna, he did a fellowship in Reproductive Medicine at UCSF in San Francisco, CA. 

Dr. Wieser has over 20 years of clinical and research experience in a broad range of indications including endometriosis, fibroids, menopause, contraception, gynecological cancer and medical devices. 

Before joining Fortrea as Medical Director, Dr. Wieser was a Global Medical Director at Merck KGaA (Darmstadt, GE) and served as Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia. During that time, Dr. Wieser served as an NIH-funded investigator and sub-investigator for many gynecology studies and lead several global women’s health programs.

Dong Yang is Head of Regulatory Affairs at Fortrea China with more than 20 years of experience in drug development and regulatory affairs, supporting IND-, NDA-, and BLA-enabling programs. A board-certified Regulatory Affairs Professional (RAC Global), he leads regulatory strategy and execution, providing scientific review, gap analysis of submission dossiers, and guidance on clinical development planning in collaboration with clients and regulatory agencies.

Dong has led more than 50 regulatory agency interactions, consultation meetings, and key opinion leader engagements across multiple therapeutic areas. His experience includes IND and NDA/BLA submissions, HGRAC filings, and CIQ applications. In addition, he leads Fortrea’s regulatory contributions to the NMPA 14th Five-Year Regulation and Guideline Update and Maintenance Program, supporting evolving regulatory frameworks in China.

Reigetsu Yoshikawa, MD, PhD, is a Senior Medical Director for Fortrea in Osaka, Japan. She contributes to the development of medical strategies and execution of clients’ clinical programs and provides medical/scientific expertise to project teams. Dr. Yoshikawa has more than 30 years of experience as a physician, medical director/advisor, and professor of medicine in Japan. 

Before joining Fortrea, she was Senior Medical Advisor for Eli Lilly and previously served as Senior Medical Lead for Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma in Japan. Dr. Yoshikawa has served on the editorial boards of several peer-reviewed journals and has authored or co-authored dozens of articles, presentations, and abstracts. She joined our company in January 2021.

Ryan Zantua, MD joined Fortrea in 2020 where currently he works as a medical lead for several respiratory studies.

Dr. Ryan Zantua is a board-certified pulmonologist and received his medical degree at Far Eastern University in the Philippines in 1995. He went on with his residency in Internal Medicine and Fellowship in Pulmonary Medicine at St. Luke’s Medical Center in the Philippines. He did additional training on Pulmonary Physiology at National Jewish Health in Denver, Colorado and was an international scholar in Pulmonary Medicine at Cleveland Clinic in Ohio.

Prior to joining the industry, he established a successful practice for 12 years at St. Luke’s Medical Center, where he headed a tertiary pulmonary laboratory for 8 years. His practice was focused on pulmonary diseases and critical care, with particular interest in COPD and Bronchial Asthma. In 2014, he joined Advance Medical/Best Doctors/Teladoc Health in Boston, Massachusetts in a Medical Director role, where he established professional relationships with key opinion leaders and experts in a variety of specialties around the globe with his main function of providing medical opinions and telemedicine to their extensive clientele. His introduction to the CRO industry was thru ICON in 2019 where he served as Medical Director for Pulmonary for more than a year, heading their respiratory studies including COVID -19. Currently, he is the study physician for several pulmonary studies, focusing on COPD, Bronchial asthma and IPF.

Kiki Zhang, is the Senior Director of Digital Strategy at Fortrea, based in Shanghai, China. Her area of expertise within Fortrea lies in Digital and Mobile Health solutions, where she specializes in exploring the feasibility, compliance, and localization of digital technologies and solutions tailored for the APAC/China region. She supports clients and CRO study teams in developing the digital health solutions that are fit-for-purpose and practical for local implementation.

Kiki has over 20 years of professional experience in the clinical research industry, with expertise spanning Data Management, Project Management, Client Success and she possesses extensive experience with electronic clinical systems, encompassing the design and maintenance of Electronic Data Capture (EDC), electronic Clinical Outcome Assessment (eCOA), Medical Imaging, Randomization and Trial Supply Management (RTSM/IRT), and Clinical Trial Management Systems (CTMS). This deep understanding of eClinical systems allows her to provide invaluable insights and guidance, ensuring that the digital health solutions developed are robust, compliant, and user-friendly.

Robin Zhang, PhD is an Associate Director of China Regulatory Submissions at Fortrea with 20 years of experience in regulatory affairs and project management within the pharmaceutical industry. He oversees a broad range of China regulatory submissions, including IND submissions and maintenance, HGRAC filings, CDE clinical trial registrations and import/export permit applications.

Robin also serves as a member of the China Regulatory Intelligence Committee, supporting regulatory monitoring and stakeholder engagements.

He has played a key role in implementing eCTD publishing in China at Fortrea, supporting tool deployment, system maintenance, and team training to strengthen in-house eCTD capabilities.

Prior to joining Fortrea in 2020, Robin was Director of a global research and development center at a major Chinese pharmaceutical company, leading regulatory affairs and global development programs. He holds both a BS and a PhD in Chemistry and Chemical Biology from Nankai University.