Medical advisory board

Prof. Slebos is Head of Pulmonary Medicine and Tuberculosis at University Medical Center Groningen and Professor of Interventional Pulmonology. Specialized in interventional bronchoscopy, he is one of the pioneers of the minimally invasive endobronchial treatment for COPD patients with severe emphysema. His areas of interest include severe COPD, lung failure, benign and malignant central airway pathology, innovative treatments for interventional bronchoscopy.

Dr. Shah is Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the National Heart & Lung Institute – Faculty of Medicine, and the lead clinician for lung cancer services at Royal Brompton Hospital and the Chelsea & Westminster Hospital. He is involved in the development of new bronchoscopic techniques for early detection and therapeutic interventions in lung cancer, using a combination of intra-operative imaging, novel devices and robotics to approach peripheral lung nodules. His current research interests also include the role of innovative treatments in COPD, from chronic bronchitis to emphysema, and airway diseases.

Dr. Bhadra leads Interventional Pulmonology clinic at CHI Memorial Medical, focusing on minimally-invasive procedures for treatment of lung and airway conditions, including lung cancer and severe emphysema. His interests include research, diagnostic and therapeutic interventions for thoracic oncology patients and benign lung disease. As a leading bronchoscopist in the United States, he utilizes cutting-edge technology to navigate the intricacies of the airway and lungs. Dr. Bhadra was the first in the world to use digital tomosynthesis

Dr. Polverino is Head of the Respiratory Infections Research Unit at Hospital Vall d’Hebron (VHIR, Barcelona), with research focused on bronchiectasis, cystic fibrosis, antimicrobial resistance, and respiratory infections in immunocompromised patients. She plays an active leadership role within the European Respiratory Society and is co-chair of the EMBARC registry, author of the first European Guidelines for Bronchiectasis, and principal investigator in numerous clinical trials.

Prof. Flume is a Distinguished Professor of Medicine and Pediatrics and Associate Vice President for Clinical Research at the Medical University of South Carolina. He serves as the Powers-Huggins Endowed Chair for Cystic Fibrosis (CF) and oversees a large CF center, as well as large clinical programs dedicated to patients with bronchiectasis and non-tuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infections. He leads an intensive clinical research program for CF, bronchiectasis, and NTM, and is co-principal investigator for the South Carolina Clinical & Translational Research Institute.​

Prof. Bourdin is Head of Pulmonology and Professor of Respiratory Medicine at Hôpital Arnaud de Villeneuve, University of Montpellier, France, leading a research group focused on innovative treatments for asthma, COPD, IPF, and pulmonary hypertension. His scientific work explores COPD pathophysiology, severe asthma treatment, and iPSC biology, and he has served as Principal Investigator in major clinical trials, including COBRA and RAMSES.​

Prof. Dr. Erik van der Heijden, MD, PhD is a pulmonary physician and research group leader of interventional pulmonology at the Radboud University Medical Center Nijmegen (The Netherlands) and President of the European Association for Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology (EABIP). His primary clinical and research focus is the development of novel, image guided diagnostic and therapeutic transbronchial procedures and interventions for peripheral pulmonary lesions. He has more than 20 years of experience in pulmonary medicine and thoracic oncology. He is the program director of the national reference-, training and expert center for advanced image-guided navigation bronchoscopy and member of the multidisciplinary team at the Radboudumc center for central airway diseases. He leads the Radboudumc interventional pulmonology program, a high-volume tertiary referral center for advanced endoscopic procedures and training. His work has been instrumental in the adoption and implementation of cone beam CT guided navigation bronchoscopy in the Netherlands and is internationally recognized for its clinical impact and innovation.