Auckland Northland Board Members

Candace is an experienced company director, senior executive, and strategic advisor with deep expertise in biotech, health and financial technologies.  She currently serves on the board of the Bioeconomy Science Institute of New Zealand and is a Governor on the University of Auckland Council.

With more than 18 years of governance experience across listed companies, government agencies, start-ups, and not-for-profits, Candace brings a strong strategic lens and a deep commitment to social impact.  As Chair of the Cancer Society Auckland and Northland, she is focused on ensuring equitable access to cancer care, advancing community outreach, and supporting the organisation’s role as a trusted provider of evidence-based health information and patient support.

Candace is a Chartered Member of the NZ Institute of Directors and a Member of the Australian Institute of Corporate Directors. She holds a Master’s degree in Business from Massey University and an MBA in BioPharma from Rutgers University.  She is passionate about improving health outcomes for all New Zealanders to reduce the burden of cancer in our communities.

Julian is a professional economist and management consultant with 20 years' financial management and advisory experience in the management consulting, energy, infrastructure and financial services sectors.

Julian is President and Chairman of the Cancer Society of New Zealand, Co-Chair of the Governance Group of the Centre for Cancer Research at the University of Auckland (Te Aka Mātauranga Matepukupuku, the largest cancer research centre in New Zealand), a member of the Cancer Trials New Zealand Advisory Group (University of Auckland), and is a trustee of the Davis Carr Cancer Society Endowment Trust.

Ken has significant experience in the New Zealand building, construction and development sectors, including 25 years at Fletcher Building and its predecessor companies.  He is also a Director of Metlifecare and is currently the GM of Property at Todd Property Group.

MBChB, MRCP, FRACP

Fritha’s main role is as Director of Te Pūriri o Te Ora Regional Cancer and Blood Service where she is also the SRO for the Integrated Cancer Programme. This programme aims to improve outcomes for whānau experiencing cancer by changing models of care for cancer treatment bringing these into the community and closer to home. She also works as a medical oncologist and treats patients with a number of different cancers with a main focus in genitourinary cancer. Fritha is a Director of Canopy Cancer Care and sits on the Canopy Healthcare Group Board. 

Fritha is a graduate of the University of Auckland School of Medicine, having previously studied at Otago University. During her advanced training she worked in the United Kingdom at the Royal London and St Bartholomew’s hospitals, the Royal Free Hospital London, and at Cancer Research UK in Oxford. While in the United Kingdom she completed a certificate in palliative care and symptom management from the University of Wales. She is a key contributor to on-going scientific research in genitourinary cancer, with involvement in current trials.

Fritha is committed to carefully considering all the issues that face a person and their family as they go through a diagnosis of cancer and their treatment plan. While she has a strong scientific background, communication and empathy are an important part of Fritha’s care.

Fritha is the mother of three children and is a keen gardener and crossfitter.

Dr Lawrence specialises in caring for patients with gastro-intestinal cancers. He also has a special interest in caring for patients with cancers in the pancreas and biliary system, neuroendocrine tumours, cancer molecular profiling and cancer genomics.

Ben graduated from the University of Otago with a BSc with first class honours and an MSc with Distinction. He then completed his medical degree at the University of Auckland in 2003 and registered as a specialist in 2011.

He has been recognised with several prizes and scholarships. In 2008 he was awarded the Gavin and Ann Kellaway Medical Research Fellowship to support his time as a Drug Development Scholar at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) in Scottsdale Arizona, USA. In 2009 he was awarded the Murray Jackson Clinical Fellowship and completed his two-year Research Fellowship at Yale University in Connecticut, USA.

Ben returned to Auckland in 2012 to work as a medical oncologist at Auckland Hospital and also to take up a position as senior clinical research Fellow at the University of Auckland.

With a distinguished career spanning nearly four decades, Sally has most recently served as a Senior Health Advisor in the Public Health Service of Te Whatu Ora.  She is now channelling her extensive expertise into various governance roles.  Sally’s professional journey includes a decade at the Ministry of Health, impactful contributions to non-government organisations such as the Heart Foundation and Cancer Society, and significant experience as a health sector consultant.  Her governance experience on multiple boards has further enriched her understanding of the health sector.  This diverse background equips Sally with a deep insight in the intricacies of public health and the strategies needed to drive meaningful improvements.

Louisa is an award-winning communications consultant, as well as co-owner and director of leading New Zealand communications agency, Pead.  She has built her career working with technology, finance, health, and publicly-listed companies, and has a strong background in issues management.

She leads Pead’s Corporate and Digital Marketing teams.  Her work shaping and safeguarding reputations, including those in the charity sector, has provided her with valuable insights and experience that align with the mission of the Cancer Society NZ.

Alexis (Ngāti Porou & Ngāti Hāmoa – Alafua, Apia) is an Aotearoa NZ registered physiotherapist of almost 20 years and an organisational development practitioner with extensive experience in Māori and Pacific workforce and leadership development, and increasing organisational capability to dismantle institutional racism, eliminate healthcare inequities, and build culturally safe practice.

A 2022 HRNZ Mana Tangata award winner, Alexis currently works as the Regional Cancer Network Programme Manager serving to transform non-surgical cancer care across the Northern Region. Alexis serves as a member of the Physiotherapy Board of NZ and enjoys being of service to her community through school governance roles. She is also an Honorary Research Fellow (Oncology) at the University of Auckland and a physiotherapy academic lecturer.

Te piko o te māhuri, tērā te tupu o te rākau - The way in which the young sapling is nurtured (bent), determines how the tree will grow - opportunities to improve systems, policy and processes from an operations and governance perspective to effectively uphold Te Tiriti o Waitangi is a passion area for Alexis, particularly in the pursuit of achieving equitable and equal outcomes in health and education for hapori Māori and Pacific communities. Of utmost importance, Alexis is a proud mum to three sons Elijah, Ephrem and Emmett.