Lydia Makaroff joined the European Cancer Patient Coalition (ECPC) in September 2016 as Director. She has ten years’ international experience in non-communicable disease research and policy development in academia, the pharmaceutical industry, and the non-profit sector. She conducted scientific research during her PhD at the Australian National University and as a senior post-doctoral fellow at the University of Washington Medical Center with support from the Australian Cancer Research Foundation and the Cancer Council. After working in Global Market Access at a pharmaceutical company, she joined the International Diabetes Federation as their Epidemiology and Public Health Manager. Her team quantified the global impact of diabetes and published research on prevalence, cost, and complications. She monitored national governments’ commitments to non-communicable diseases, provided advocacy tools to national associations, and wrote policy papers on strategies to improve access to medicines and reduce health inequalities. Lydia holds a PhD in immunology from the Australian National University and a Masters’ degree in Public Health from the University of Queensland.