Precision Medicine: Promoting Knowledge Exchange and Collaboration between Kuwait and the United States

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Advancing precision medicine - sometimes referred to as personalized medicine - relies on active collaboration among domestic and international scientific organizations to accelerate the translation of research into clinical practice by bringing together complementary expertise, resources, and perspectives. To further knowledge exchange between Kuwait and the United States in this field, the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences launched a collaborative series of workshops designed to investigate interdisciplinary approaches between biological and material sciences, engineering disciplines, and data science to achieve meaningful solutions in precision medicine.

The first workshop in the series was held between February 2 and 3, 2025, in Kuwait. The sessions explored advancements in point-of-care technologies and the unprecedented impact of artificial intelligence on the evolving landscape of precision medicine in the United States and Kuwait. Workshop discussions also highlighted how precision health research is revolutionizing the understanding and treatment of chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, which is prevalent in both countries. This Proceedings of a Workshop-in Brief provides a high-level summary of key discussions held during the February 2025 workshop.

Publication information

14 pages · 8.5 x 11 ·
ISBN Ebook: 0-309-99450-0
DOI: https://doi.org/10.17226/29197

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National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2025. Promoting Knowledge Exchange and Collaboration Between Kuwait and the United States: Precision Medicine: Proceedings of a Workshop—in Brief. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

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Salman K. Alsabah

Dr. Salman K. Alsabah is a distinguished surgeon and a leading authority in bariatric and metabolic surgery. He earned his medical degree from Kuwait University and completed his residency in General Surgery at McGill University, Canada. Additionally, he holds a Fellowship in minimally invasive Surgery from McGill University and a Master’s of Management from McGill University’s Desautels Faculty of Management. His advanced education includes a Master's in Clinical Services Operations from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Alsabah is currently the President of the Authority for Medical Responsibility (AMR) in Kuwait and has previously served as the founding Chairman of Surgery and the Director of Surgical Research at Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah Hospital. He was also an Associate Professor and Assistant Vice Principal for Research and External Collaboration at Kuwait University. He has been a visiting professor at Harvard University’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His clinical focus encompasses Metabolic/Bariatric Surgery, Minimally Invasive Surgery, Advanced Endoscopy, Medical Law, and Health Policy. He has over 130 publications and five books to his name. He is a board member, founder, and past President of the Gulf Obesity Surgery Society, founder and President of the Kuwait Association of Surgeons (KAS), and past Governor and President of the American College of Surgeons.

Fawaz G. Haj

Dr. Fawaz G. Haj is a Professor of Nutrition and Internal Medicine at the University of California Davis. His research program investigates the molecular mechanisms underlying metabolic homeostasis, including obesity, type 2 diabetes and its complications. They employ genetic, pharmacological, biochemical, and metabolomics approaches to decipher the role of protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) and soluble epoxide hydrolase in metabolic regulation. Dr. Haj has over 25 years of experience studying the regulation of physiological processes and pathophysiological counterparts. During his D.Phil. at the University of Oxford, he studied the role of receptor PTPs in physiology and neurobiology. At Harvard University and EMBL, he investigated the role of tyrosine phosphorylation and dephosphorylation in cell signaling, obesity, and diabetes. As a P.I at the University of California Davis, for the past 17 years, he has been privileged to conduct research in a highly collaborative and outstanding scientific environment. Dr. Haj’s laboratory includes dedicated team members who are committed to the development of mechanism-based therapies to combat chronic metabolic diseases.

Hutan Ashrafian

Dr. Hutan Ashrafian is a clinician-scientist, entrepreneur and active surgeon translating novel technologies and therapeutics in healthcare and policy. He leads the STARD-AI and QUADAS-AI global guideline initiatives for AI diagnostic accuracy. He runs the collaboration with Imperial College London, NHS Hospitals and Google on an AI algorithm for Breast Screening and with NICE on health technological assessment (HTA) classifications for AI. He was awarded the Royal College of Surgeons Arris and Gale Lectureship, the Hunterian Prize, the Wellcome Trust Research Fellowship and an NIHR Clinical Lectureship. He has authored >550 publications and 12 personally authored books. He has several eponymous medical signs named after him including the Ashrafian sign for aortic regurgitation and described his own procedure - the Ashrafian Thoracotomy. He is currently the Lead for Applied Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data at the Institute of Global Health Innovation at Imperial College London and Chief Scientific Officer of Preemptive Health at the largest global venture incubator – Flagship Pioneering, which generated Moderna. He co-founded the company Oxford Medical Products. He completed a PhD in computational physiology and metabolic surgery at Imperial College London where he was also Chief Scientific Adviser at the Institute of Global Health Innovation, this was followed by an MBA with distinction at Warwick Business School.

Stacey Gabriel

Dr. Stacey Gabriel is the executive vice president for Platforms and Scientific Execution at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. Prior to her current role, she led platform development, execution, and operation for the Genomics Platform, beginning with the Broad Institute’s founding in 2003. She is also an institute scientist and serves on the institute’s Executive Leadership Team. Gabriel is widely recognized as a leader in genomics technology and application to foundational research programs. Her early work was foundational to the International HapMap Project. She has led the Broad Institute’s contributions to numerous flagship resource building programs in human genetics including the 1000 Genomes Project, The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), and the TOPMed program. She is principal investigator of the Broad Institute All of Us (AoU) Genomics Center, and serves on the AoU Program Steering Committee. Gabriel received her B.S. in molecular biology from Carnegie Mellon University and Ph.D. in human genetics from Case Western Reserve University.

Ahmad Nabeel

Dr. Ahmad Nabeel is a distinguished researcher and physician at St Mary's Hospital, part of Imperial College London, where he is also pursuing a PhD in the Department of Surgery and Cancer. With a master’s degree in surgical innovation from Imperial (2nd top university in the world - QS ranking 2025), and a passion for integrating artificial intelligence into healthcare, his notable invention, the Klens surgical vision system, has the potential to transform surgical safety and efficiency. As a judge on "Stars of Science," Dr. Nabeel evaluates and nurtures innovations across various domains, fostering the development of novel digital solutions. His recognition includes the Innovators Under 35 award by MIT Technology Review and several international accolades. An advocate for educational and technological progress, Dr. Nabeel's contributions are part of Kuwait’s official school curriculum, promoting knowledge in medical science and innovation. As an ambassador for Kuwait Vision 2035, he advocates for the advancement of national technologies. His work and perspectives have been featured in many international and scientific media, including Bloomberg’s "Advancements with Ted Danson." Dr. Nabeel’s commitment extends to public health initiatives, exemplified by his development of the HealthPass contact- tracing app during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Susan J. Sumner

Dr. Susan J. Sumner is a professor in the departments of nutrition and pharmacology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA. Her research includes evaluating genetic, molecular, and environmental determinants of health to reveal biomarkers for the early detection and diagnosis of disease, to monitor treatment and intervention, and to inform the development of intervention (nutritional, pharmacological, exposure reduction) strategies. Dr. Sumner’s research activities in precision health include domain areas of maternal and child health, liver and kidney disease, addiction, cancer, osteoarthritis, and aging. She is the PI of the NIH Common Fund Metabolomics and Clinical Assay Center for the Nutrition for Precision Health study, a PI in the NIEHS Human Health Exposure Analysis Resource program and holds R-level grants on biomarkers of cardiovascular disease, and mechanisms of ALDH1L1 polymorphisms. Dr. Sumner earned a Ph.D. in Chemistry at North Carolina State University and conducted postdoctoral research at NHLBI/NIH.

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Precision Medicine: Promoting Knowledge Exchange and Collaboration between Kuwait and the United States - Workshop Series

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Promoting Knowledge Exchange and Collaboration Between Kuwait and the United States: Precision Medicine: Proceedings of a Workshop—in Brief

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