Mr Panos Englezos
Panos Englezos is a graduate of London University in Economics and accounting, and Chairman and Chief Executive of a group of companies which he established in 1961. In 1969, he promoted the establishment of the Cyprus Thalassaemia Association and was elected its first president, a post he held to June 1995. In 1986 TIF was established. He was elected TIF's chairman, and is regarded as a 'founding Father'. He has travelled extensively promoting TIF's objectives, mainly establishing Thalassaemia associations, promoting improved medical care, international research and prevention programmes. He chaired and actively participated in all TIF's conferences between 1986 and 2001. He has received several awards for his pioneer role in the fight against thalassaemia in Cyprus and the world, such as the District Governor's Appreciation by Lions International Gold Medal for continuous and long-term services in fighting for patients with thalassaemia in 1982, the Greek Haematological Society and Greek Thalassaemia Association's Silver medal "Kilikas" in 1993, the King Abdulazis University Award for contribution in establishing a thalassaemia association in Saudi Arabia in 1993, the Gold Medal of the Cyprus Thalassaemia Association in 1996 and the Rotary Paul Harris Fellow for outstanding contribution to society in 1997, among others.
Mr Englezos has held important public offices, including the chair of the Cyprus Telecommunications Authority, the Rotary Club Nicosia, the Cyprus Publishers Association, the Pancyprian Thalassaemia Association, and the Cyprus Tourism Organisation.
Currently, Mr Englezos is the President of the Board of the Thalassaemia International Federation and of the Pan-European Blood Safety Alliance, as well as Honorary President of the Pancyprian Thalassaemia Association, and Member of the Board of the European Patients Forum.
Dr Androulla Eleftheriou
Dr Androulla Eleftheriou obtained her graduate and postgraduate degrees in Biochemistry, Microbiology and Virology. She has been awarded a number of scholarships by the Cyprus government, the World Health Organization and the Fullbright Commission. Her postdoctoral fellowship was completed at the Centre for Disease Control in Atlanta, GA, USA. Dr Eleftheriou has also recently obtained a Diploma in Business Management from the University of Leceister, UK.
From 1990 until August 2006, she was Head of the Virus Reference Centre of the Cyprus Ministry of Health – a centre she was closely involved in establishing. Since 2005 she has held the post of director of the Cyprus WHO Collaborating Centre. She worked with TIF on a voluntary basis since 1993 as a Scientific Coordinator of TIF's educational programme, and since 2006 she has served the Executive Director of the Federation. She regularly acts as a WHO consultant on issues related to her field of expertise.
Through her work with TIF, Dr Eleftheriou has carried out numerous projects of local, national, regional and international scope, working closely with international experts, local health professionals and thalassaemia associations worldwide. She is involved in many joint activities and projects, e.g. the ENERCA and DOMAINE EU co-funded projects, the European Patient Forum's Policy Advisory Board, and the Pan-European Blood Safety Alliance whose Secretary she is since 2005. This year she was appointed member of the European Union Committee of Experts in Rare Diseases, and of the Executive Committee of the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA).
She is the author of a number of publications of TIF, as well as of a several publications written in collaboration with WHO and other international bodies on a wide range of scientific topics. Dr Eleftheriou is the Chief Editor of TIF Magazine, issued quarterly and distributed to 2,500 subscribers in more than 40 countries worldwide.
Dr Michael Angastiniotis
Born in Famagusta, Dr Michael Angastiniotis graduated in Medicine from the University of Aberdeen (Scotland) in 1966, and obtained his DCH (Diploma in Child Health) in Paediatrics in 1976 from the Royal College of Physicians of Glasgow. He received his graduate training in Paediatrics in Scottish Hospitals and Oxford and he returned to the U.K. for various courses, such as Thalassaemia (Biochemistry-Prenatal diagnosis), Genetics, and Haematology/Oncology. Dr Angastiniotis has been a member of the Thalassaemia Control Programme from the outset (1971-72) and is Vice President of the Cyprus Society for Spastic Children. He is the Chairman of the Medical Records Committee and of the Committee for the Computerization of the Health Service. Dr Angastiniotis is also Special Advisor and Consultant for the control of Haemoglobinopathies in the Eastern Mediterranean region. He is member of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, and of the WHO Expert Advisory Panel on Human Genetics. He has published a great number of scientific articles, several of which on the topic of Haemoglobinopathies and Thalassaemia in particular.
Until retirement, Dr Angastiniotis was Director of the Paediatric Department of Archbishop Makarios III Hospital and the Thalassaemia Centre. Since 2004, he has been employed by TIF as Medical Advisor.
Dr Matheos Demetriades
Dr Matheos Demetriades obtained his BSc in Molecular Biology from the Department of Genetics in Queen Mary College (London), his MSc in Applied Molecular Biology and Biotechnology from University College (London) and his PhD in "Behavioural Analysis of Biorhythms in the melanogaster subgroup of Drosophila" from the University of Leicester in 1997. He worked as Medical Representative of F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd (Switzerland), Pharma Division, in Cyprus, and as Technical and Marketing Manager in Human Nutrition and Health for the F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd (Switzerland) in the Vitamins and Fine Chemicals Division for Middle East Office in 1998-99. Dr Demetriades has collaborated in the editing of the TIF magazine since 2001. From 2002 till 2005, he was Scientific Collaborator of TIF, and since 2005 he has been employed by TIF as Project Coordinator, developing and organising Projects abroad regarding the control and prevention of Thalassaemia.
Mrs Mikaela Panayiotou
Mikaela Panayiotou holds a BA with double major in Psychology and Sociology by the University of Indianapolis (USA), and an MA in Gender, Culture and Development by the University of Sunderland (UK). She has also completed a Course on Development Studies in Vietnam by the Oslo University College (HiO) & the Norway-based Centre for Multicultural and International Studies (SEFIA). She has been employed Project Coordinator of TIF since 2005. She is involved in the coordination and organisation of TIF's educational events (workshops, conferences and meetings) on a local, regional and international level which relate to the update and support of patients, parents and health professionals around the world on the clinical management of thalassaemia.
Mrs Phoebe Katsouris
Phoebe Katsouris has obtained a BSc (Honours) degree from the University of London and a postgraduate diploma in Planning from the Architectural Association School of Planning. She has a vast experience in top public sector positions. From 2006 to 2010 she held the post of Director – General of the Cyprus Tourism Organisation, a semi-government organisation regulating the sector and leading the process of strategic change, through product development, branding, marketing and quality assurance. Her fields of expertise include the development, implementation and evaluation of policies procedures and organisational structures, human resources, PPP projects as well as communication strategies. Since 2004 she has been an active member of the Tourism Advisory Committee (TAC) of the European Commission, as well as the UNWTO. From 2007 to 2010 she served as the elected president of the Commission for Europe of UNWTO.
Ms Maria Peletie
Maria Peletie obtained her BA (Hons) in Public Relations (Marketing) from Philips College, Cyprus, in 1997. She has long experience in public relations, office management, finances and business communications, skills she dedicates to helping thalassaemia patients in the framework of her work at TIF.
Previous experience includes work as Director's Personal Assistant, marketing officer, Office Administrator and Insurance & Financial Consultant in international and Cypriot companies. Since 2009, she is TIF's Office Administrator and personal assistant to TIF's Executive Director.
Ms Lily Cannon
Lily Cannon holds a BSc in Psychology from Lancaster University, and an MSc in Forensic Psychology from the University of Central Lancashire. Academically orientated, Lily has also acquired an MA in Human Resource and Knowledge Management from Lancaster University. Whilst in the UK, she worked under a voluntary basis at St Helen’s Women’s Aid, Therapeutic Services with victims and perpetrators of domestic violence. In addition, she was involved in the setting up of the National Committee of the European Youth Parliament in Cyprus, participating both as an organiser and a chair in recent national sessions. Since December 2010, Lily has been a member of the Staff of TIF, in charge of the newly-founded Cyprus Alliance for Rare Disorders.
Ms Michelle Theodoulou
Michelle Theodoulou holds a BSc in Health Policy Administration and in Speech Language Pathology and an MA in Health Services Research. She has been working with TIF since 2009, in charge of creating the Medical Electronic Files and Data processing of the Thalassaemic Patients at the Thalassaemia Centre of Makarios III Hospital in Nicosia. In April 2010, she moved to TIF's Headquarters Offices as Project Officer. Her main duties are communication and affiliation between the Federation and its members. She also continues the coordination and supervision of the electronic program and data processing of Thalassaemic patients, helping update other Thalasaemia Centres, one in Limassol and one in Nicosia's occupied area in that area.
Ms Maria Apostolidou
Maria Apostolidou holds a BA in Sociology, with specialization in criminology, from the Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences in Athens. She has long experience in public relations and writing for newspapers. She has been a member of the Staff of TIF since January 2011, and divides her working hours between the Thalassaemia Centre in Makarios hospital in Nicosia, working on TIF’s electronic thalassaemia specific patient registry project, and TIF headquarters. She speaks English, French and Greek.
