Neurology & Fertility Educational Forum

We are back in Houston for the 2nd Annual Innovators in Neurology and Fertility Educational Forum: inspiring hope, resilience, and an eye on the future.

Innovators in Neurology and Fertility Educational Forum

Time: 8:00 am - 4:00 p.m.

Location: Hilton Americas | Houston, TX

HelpCureHD’s Innovators in Neurology and Fertility Educational Forum attracts medical professionals from across the nation in neurology, research, and fertility sectors; families affected by Huntington’s disease – including our current and prospective grantees; medical students in the fields of neurology, research, fertility and pediatrics and many more.

Keynote Speaker

Alice D. Domar, Ph.D. is a pioneer in the field of mind/body medicine. She conducts ongoing ground-breaking research which focuses on the relationship between stress and various medical conditions, as well as the impact of lifestyle habits on mental and physical health.

Dr. Domar received her M.A. and Ph.D. in Health Psychology from Albert Einstein College of Medicine/Ferkauf School of Professional Psychology of Yeshiva University. Her post-doctoral training was at Beth Israel Hospital, Deaconess Hospital, and Children’s Hospital, all in Boston.

She is currently the Chief Compassion Officer at Inception, an associate professor in obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology, part-time, at Harvard Medical School, and a senior staff psychologist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.

Dr. Domar has compiled an impressive list of accomplishments as a best-selling author, media authority and sought-after public speaker. She is the author of numerous books, and is on the advisory board for Parents Magazine, Resolve, and Easy Eats. She has been on the Board of Experts for LLuminari and a columnist for Redbook and Health magazines. She was also a featured expert on the online social health network BeWell.com.
Three of her books have been finalists for the Books for a Better Life Award. She was also the Series Editor for a series of mind/body books by Harvard Medical Publications/Simon and Schuster. She is the narrator of the DVD’s “Stress and Relaxation Explained” and “Infertility Explained”, both of which won silver Telly Awards. Dr. Domar has appeared on the Today Show, Good Morning America, CBS This Morning, Dateline NBC, CNN, PBS, and the CBS and NBC Evening News, to name a few. She presents lectures and conducts workshops throughout the US and around the world and went on tour with Oprah in the spring of 2004 and 2005 with the LLuminari team. Dr. Domar was named to the prestigious list of 15 “Women to Watch in 2004” by Lifetime TV. One of her books was co-authored with Dr. Susan Love, called “Live a Little” (Three Rivers Press, 2011). Her latest book is “Finding Calm for the Expectant Mom” (TarcherPerigree, 2016).
She has been a keynote speaker and workshop leader at conferences worldwide and her clients have included PepsiCo, Bloomberg, Bank of NY/Mellon, General Electric, Johnson & Johnson, NECA, Merck, Ferring, and EMD Serono.

2024 Speakers

We will start the day with an early morning yoga session, complimentary breakfast, featured speakers, and breakout sessions with esteemed neurologists, researchers, fertility specialists & pharmaceutical advancements from experts across the Nation. More speakers, 2024 sponsors, 2024 Rising Star honorees, and a full agenda coming soon!

Dr. Furr Stimming is a Professor of Neurology and Memorial Hermann Endowed Chair at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, McGovern Medical School. She is the Founder and Director of the Huntington’s Disease Society America (HDSA) Center of Excellence at UTHealth, McGovern Medical School. She serves as the Neurology Clerkship Director and has received the Dean’s Excellence in Teaching award every year since 2009. She has received the Dupont Master Clinical Teaching Award and the prestigious Leonard Tow Award in Humanism and Excellence in Teaching. She is a member of the Academy of Master Educators and a McGovern Society leader, and a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology. She has been named a Super Doctor by Texas Monthly and a Top Doctor by Houstonia magazine for multiple years. She completed her postgraduate training, including a Neurology residency and Movement Disorders fellowship at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.
Dr. Furr Stimming actively engages with the Parkinson’s and Huntington’s disease community. She is the Chair of the Medical Advisory Board for the Houston Area Parkinson’s Society and a member of the local HDSA affiliate, and frequently volunteers for both nonprofit organizations. She is currently the President of the Houston Neurologic Society and Chair of the Education Committee for the Texas Neurologic Society, and a member of the HDSA Board of Trustees. Dr. Furr Stimming is passionate about advancing care for individuals living with Huntington’s disease.

Dr. Amber Cooper is double board certified in both Obstetrics and Gynecology and Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. She is Chief Medical Officer of Genomics and Laboratory Science with Kindbody where she also serves as Medical and IVF Practice Director in the St. Louis region. She is Associate Professor with Wayne State University School of Medicine as well as Adjunct Assistant Professor within the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women’s Health at St. Louis University.
She received a medical degree from Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine. She also holds a Master of Science in Clinical Investigation and some additional training in translational research and graduate genetics. Ever since graduating first in her medical school class she has continued to achieve numerous honors, teaching, patient satisfaction, and surgical awards, and has numerous publications.
She has been actively involved in the American Society for Reproductive Medicine and has served on the Board of Directors of the Society of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility in the US. She is President on the executive board of the Midwest Reproductive Symposium International. In addition, she sits on many scientific advisory boards and has been the principal investigator of several research studies and trials.
Her ongoing clinical studies and interests surround ovarian aging, genetics, fertility preservation in cancer, autoimmune and genetic conditions, access to care, and diminished ovarian reserve/primary ovarian insufficiency (POI).

- Leslie Dunnington, MS, CGC is a genetic counselor and Assistant Professor in the Division of Medical Genetics at McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. She serves as the Assistant Director of External Rotations for the UT Genetic Counseling Program. Leslie received her B.S. in Biology with a minor in Genetics from Texas A&M University in 2008 and her Master of Science in Genetic Counseling from the University of Texas Genetic Counseling Program in 2010. Leslie specializes in Huntington’s disease and enjoys working in the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston HDSA Center of Excellence. She also sees adults and children with other genetic condition focusing primarily on movement and neurodegenerative disorders and cancer.

Program director, Dorothy Roach, M.D., earned her medical degree in 1980 from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School in Dallas. She completed her internship and residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston in 1984. She continued her training with intensive study and research in the subspecialty of Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility by completing her fellowship at the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta in 1988. Dr. Roach is board certified in both Reproductive Endocrinology and in Obstetrics & Gynecology. She started her infertility specialty practice in north Houston in 1990 and started the IVF program there in 1992.
Dr. Roach has been on Texas Monthly’s annual Texas Super Doctors list every year since 2004.

Rebecca Fuller is the Science Director and Lead of the Clinical Outcomes Unit. Rebecca has over 15 years of experience conducting cognitive research with people with movement disorders and psychiatric illness. Prior to joining CHDI Rebecca was a Clinical Scientist at Bracket, a company that supports clinical trials by providing solutions for scale management, electronic Clinical Outcomes Assessments (eCOA), rater training and quality assurance. As a faculty member at the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C., Rebecca taught cognitive psychology and neuroscience courses at the graduate and undergraduate level in addition to conducting independent research and supervising student research. She was appointed by the Governor of Maryland to serve as a commissioner on the Community Services Reimbursement Rate Commission, an independent agency within the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene which is concerned with issues regarding community services for individuals with psychiatric or developmental disorders, with particular emphasis on topics such as the rates paid to providers, measurement of quality and outcomes, uncompensated care and updating rates. She earned her PhD from the Institute of Neurology, University College London, University of London and completed postdoctoral fellowships at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics and at the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, University of Maryland School of Medicine. Rebecca is currently an adjunct associate professor of psychology at the University of Maryland, University College. She joined CHDI in 2016.

Dr. Sung is originally from Houston, TX and completed his undergraduate degree in Neuroscience from Vanderbilt University. He completed medical school at UT-Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas and completed neurology residency and movement disorders fellowship at UAB. He joined faculty in the UAB Department of Neurology, Division of Movement Disorders and has the rank of Professor with Tenure. He is the Director of the UAB Huntington's Disease Clinic, which is one of only 5 level 1 Huntington's Disease Society of America (HDSA) Centers of Excellence in the country and has received the HDSA Excellence in Care Award in 2017. He has received the UAB Patient Experience Excellence Award each year since its inception in 2019. Dr. Sung also serves as Co-Director of the UAB School of Medicine Neuroscience Module and is the Director of the Birmingham VAMC Deep Brain Stimulation Program. He serves on the National Board of Trustees of HDSA, currently serving as Chair of the Board from 2021-23.

Dr. Hickman is the Medical Director and Co-Founder of CCRM Houston. He holds Clinical Associate Professor Appointments at both the Weill Cornell Medical College in conjunction with Houston Methodist Hospital as well as Texas A&M School of Medicine. He is a Board-Certified Reproductive Endocrinologist by American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and is the President-Elect of the Society for Assisted Reproductive Technology. Additionally, Dr. Hickman has been named a “Top Doctor in Reproductive Endocrinology” by U.S. News and World Report, a “Top Doctor” and “Top Doctor for Women” by H-Texas Magazine and a “Texas Super Doc” by Texas Monthly Magazine.
After graduating from Brigham Young University, he received his M.D. from St. Louis University School of Medicine. His residency in Gynecology and Obstetrics and subspecialty training in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility were performed at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Hickman then served as program director and medical director of the Air Force’s in vitro fertilization program at Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas before co-founding Houston IVF (now known as CCRM Houston) with Dr. William Schoolcraft of CCRM. At CCRM Houston, he led the team that helped his patient become the first in Texas to achieve a pregnancy resulting in live birth using cryopreserved eggs.
Dr. Hickman is a Fellow of the ACOG, a Member of the ASRM, a Member of the Society for Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, and is the former Webmaster and Registry Committee Chair of the SART. He is the former American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Delegate to the American Medical Association-Resident Fellow Section and former ASRM delegate to the AMA Young Physician Section. Additionally, Dr. Hickman serves as an Oral Board examiner for the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology where he examines doctors when they apply for board certification.

Kendra M. Anderson, PhD is a Neuropsychologist with
UTHealth Houston Neurosciences Neurocognitive Disorders Center. She is also an Assistant Professor of Neurology for the McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston
Dr. Anderson has clinical interests in neuropsychology and neurocognitive disorders and sees patients at the UTHealth Houston Neurosciences Neurocognitive Disorders Center. She is a strong advocate for cultural diversity and social justice in health care.
After graduating cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas, she earned her PhD in counseling psychology from the University of Central Arkansas and went on to complete a postdoctoral fellowship in clinical neuropsychology in the Department of Neurology at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston. In addition to her faculty appointment at the medical school, she is an outpatient clinical neuropsychologist at the Neurocognitive Disorders Center. She also serves as a consult neuropsychologist for UTHealth Houston’s Huntington’s Disease Society of America (HDSA) Center of Excellence, an interdisciplinary team that provides comprehensive care to individuals and families living with Huntington’s disease.
Dr. Anderson’s research focuses on neuropsychological and neurocognitive disorders and addresses health disparities in these patients. She is an active member of the American Psychological Association; the National Academy of Neuropsychology; and the Houston Neuropsychological Society, of which she is president-elect and founder of the mentorship program. She co-founded and serves as secretary of the Society for Black Neuropsychology.
Dr. Anderson is a co-author of works dedicated to addressing social justice and advocacy in neuropsychology, and her research has also been published in The Annals of Behavioral Medicine, Race and Social Problems, The Clinical Neuropsychologist, and the Journal of Psychosocial Oncology, among others.

Jenna Heilman has spent the past 15 years leading both for for-profit and non-profit entities, with the main focus specifically dedicated to supporting patients and caregivers impacted by rare disease. As the Executive Director of HDYO, Jenna leads the mission to help support, educate and empower young people (35 and under) and their families impacted by HD. She believes the best way to make an impact is through building relationships to understand how we can make a difference together while bringing hope and inspiration to the HD community.