Medical Advisory Board

Scientific Director

Kelley Argraves is deeply involved in the mission of Sara’s Cure. Kelley found a passion for science early in her schooling, but a direction into research emerged after she graduated from college and met her husband, Scott. Scott was starting his own lab and encouraged Kelley to go to graduate school and join him at the bench. After obtaining her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at The George Washington University, Kelley relocated from Maryland to Charleston and set up her own lab next door to Scott’s at the Medical University of South Carolina. In 2013, after many happy and productive years in collaboration, Scott was diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor, glioblastoma. Unfortunately, Scott did not survive long after diagnosis, but Kelley and their two kids were surrounded with love and support by their best friends, Lennie and Denny Woods. After a few years researching solo, Kelley began to explore other career directions. Simultaneously, Sara Woods was diagnosed with CCS and it became clear that since there were no known treatments for this aggressive and rare cancer, they had to come together to push for research for treatments and a cure. Kelley has dedicated herself to making a difference for Sara and the others diagnosed with CCS.

Rashmi Chugh is a medical oncologist at University of Michigan Rogel Comprehensive Cancer Center, specializing in the care of patients with sarcoma and connective tissue tumors. Her research focus is in the development of new therapies for patients with sarcoma. She serves as the co-lead of the Connective Tissue Research Team, co-Medical Director of the Michigan Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology Program, Associate Division Chief of Clinical Services for the Division of Hematology/Oncology, and is a member of the Scientific Steering Committee for the Sarcoma Alliance for Research through Collaboration. She received her medical degree at Washington University in St. Louis followed by her internal medicine and hematology/oncology training at University of Michigan.  

Board of Directors

Dr. Ferguson is a pediatric oncologist at Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis, IN specializing in the treatment of various sarcomas with a specific focus on soft tissue sarcomas.  He currently serves as the Medical Director of both the Solid Tumor Program and also the Precision Genomics Program at Riley Hospital for Children.  Dr. Ferguson attended the University of Notre Dame and obtained a B.S. in Premedical Studies.  He obtained both a Master’s of Science in Cellular and Integrative Physiology and his Medical Degree at Indiana University School of Medicine.  Dr. Ferguson additionally completed an NIH T32-funded Pediatric Clinical Pharmacology Fellow due to his interests in novel therapies and additionally a second Master’s of Science in Clinical Investigation both at Indiana University School of Medicine.  His research looks into utilizing clinical tumor and germline genomics to investigate novel combinatorial therapies in patient-derived mouse models of various pediatric sarcomas.  Dr. Ferguson additional serves as the Chair of the Professional Development Committee for the American Society of Pediatric Hematology Oncology (ASPHO) as his other passion is aiding fellows and junior faculty to help develop their careers.

Paul Huang is Head of the Molecular and Systems Oncology Laboratory at The Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) in London, UK. He received his PhD in Biological Engineering from  Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2008.  He is currently a tenured Faculty member within the Division of Molecular Pathology and holds a Cancer Research UK Career Establishment Award. His laboratory focuses on understanding aberrant signaling networks and drug resistance in sarcomas, with the goal of developing biomarkers and new therapies for these rare diseases.  Paul is the Deputy Director of the Joint Royal Marsden-ICR Sarcoma Research Centre, one of the largest sarcoma research centres in Europe. He also serves as Vice Chair of the Pathology & Translational Research Committee of the EORTC Soft Tissue and Bone Sarcoma Group.  He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology in 2020.

After studying literature at Harvard, Medicine at Johns Hopkins, Orthopaedic Surgery at the University of Iowa, and Musculoskeletal Oncology at the University of Toronto, Kevin brought his wife and four children to Salt Lake City, Utah. While a faculty surgeon, he spent five years in a mentored position in the laboratory of Mario Capecchi. Now holding the L.B. and Olive S. Young Presidential Endowed Chair for Cancer Research in the Department of Orthopaedics, Dr. Jones provides surgical care for the full range of neoplastic diseases that afflict the musculoskeletal system in children and adults. His laboratory in the Department of Oncological Science at the Huntsman Cancer Institute studies the epigenetic regulation of transcription, using mouse models of translocation-associated sarcomas, especially synovial sarcoma, alveolar soft part sarcoma, and clear cell sarcoma.

Matteo Trucco is a Pediatric Oncologist at the Cleveland Clinic, specializing in the care of children, teenagers and young adults battling bone and soft tissue cancers. He also directs the Children’s Cancer Innovative Therapy Program where he and colleagues design, develop and conduct clinical trials seeking more effective and less toxic treatments for childhood cancers. Dr. Trucco earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and Medical Degree from Temple University School of Medicine. He completed his Pediatrics Residency at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital and his Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Fellowship from Johns Hopkins and the National Cancer Institute. In addition to his roles at the Cleveland Clinic, he is a vice chair of the National Pediatric Cancer Foundation’s Sunshine Project consortium, partnering with other top pediatric cancer centers to develop clinical trials, and he is a member of the advisory board for a number of foundations dedicated to improving therapies for childhood cancers.

I earned my medical degree from the University of Kansas School of Medicine, then completed internal medicine residency at Loyola University Medical Center back in Chicago. I returned to Kansas City again for my hematology/oncology fellowship at the University of Kansas Medical Center.

I am certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine with subcertifications in hematology and medical oncology. In my clinical practice, I have subspecialized further into medical management of bone and soft tissue tumors, while also being involved in ongoing education/coaching/mentoring of first and second year medical students. I have a lovely wife and three active sons, and enjoy outdoor sports, barbecuing, traveling and reading.