Top 50 Industry Voices in Biotech Twittersphere -- 2012

November 26, 2012 | By Ryan McBride

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Paul Levy (@paulflevy)--Former hospital CEO Organization: Formerly Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Followers: 7K-plus Profile: Levy has been an influential player in the Boston healthcare scene for a long time. Last year he resigned from his big hospital job as CEO of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center under a bit of a cloud because his personal relationship with a female employee had been publicly criticized. Though he's no longer running the large hospital, he remains an advocate for putting patients first in the healthcare system.
Michael Gilman (@michael_gilman)--Embedded entrepreneur at big biotech company Organization: Biogen Idec Followers: Nearly 2K Profile: As true a biotech insider as you'll find on this list, Gilman has been tweeting about his experiences in the industry for a while with sharp wit and a sense of humor. His tweets have stayed provocative since he sold his company Stromedix to Biogen Idec ($BIIB) and joined Biogen as a senior R&D executive earlier this year, and his comments provide a unique day-in-the-life feel.
Daphne Zohar (@daphnezohar)--Biotech and healthcare entrepreneur Organization: PureTech Ventures Followers: 2K Profile: Zohar founded the venture creation firm, PureTech Ventures, from which many life sciences companies and Appeering (the outfit that provided FierceBiotech with this list) have sprung. In the physical world and, with Appeering, the social media world, Zohar has deftly marshaled people and resources to create new businesses from big ideas and technologies.
Shannon Brownlee (@shannonbrownlee)-- Pharmaceuticals critic and author Organization: New America Foundation Followers: 1.5K Profile: Brownlee seems unlikely to be found keynoting a meeting for pharma lobbyists. Her book, Overtreated, questioned whether prescription meds are actually causing more health and economic harm than good. Lots of people think this way, and it's a good reminder for industry that only truly novel and game-changing therapies will gain wide acceptance.
Dr. Yoni Freedhoff (@yonifreedhoff)--Obesity doc and blogger Organization: University of Ottawa Followers: 7K Profile: Freedhoff is an outspoken advocate for weaning ourselves off of the rich and sugary diets that have led to obesity, which plagues about a third of the U.S. population and can lead to diabetes, heart problems and multiple diseases. There's been plenty of antiobesity drug development in recent years, but doctors haven't given up on dieting as a way to drop weight.
Chris Hogg (@cwhogg)--Health 2.0 advocate and data junkie Organization: 100Plus Followers: 3K-plus Profile: Hogg has jumped from the biotech sphere to the digital health realm with his company 100Plus, which aims to provide a data-driven approach to enlighten patients about their health futures. Based in the San Francisco Bay area, he previously held gigs at biotech outfits such as Gilead Sciences ($GILD) and CV Therapeutics, according to LinkedIn.
Dr. Anas Younes (@dranasyounes)--Lymphoma expert from top cancer center Organization: M.D. Anderson Followers: 6K-plus Profile: Younes is among the globally recognized team from M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Texas. He tweets about cancer and other health-related topics. And bet that biopharma folks are paying attention; M.D. Anderson is one of the leading hubs for the No. 1 market in the industry, cancer treatments.
Andrew Goodwin (@bioduediligence)--Biotech analyst, scientist Organization: BiotechDueDiligence Followers: 2K-plus Profile: Goodwin has the scientific chops and background in biotech investing to hold his own with some of the top biopharma commentators on Twitter. He writes for his own website, BiotechDueDiligence, and serves as an analyst for the biotech stock analyst firm Chimera Research Group. He's also got a Ph.D. in cellular and molecular medicine from Johns Hopkins, according to his online bio, giving him skills that he's put to work as a pharmacologist for the FDA.
Dr. Ves Dimov (@DrVes)--Physician, blogger Organization: University of Chicago Followers: 10K-plus Profile: Dimov is an allergist and internist who serves as an assistant professor of medicine and pediatrics at the University of Chicago. He appears to be a prolific tweeter and author, writing his CasesBlog and penning more than 130 publications. I didn't know about him until I saw Appeering's list, but I'm following Dimov now.
Dr. Bertalan Mesko (@berci)--Physician-entrepreneur Organization: Webicina.com Followers: 20K-plus Profile: Mesko, based in Budapest, is immersed in social media for pharma and healthcare in general. The physician and geneticist co-founded a company, Webicina, that aggregates medical social media from Facebook, Twitter and other sources for users in pharma and other healthcare stakeholders. He tweets about eClinical technologies, the activities of his company and other healthcare topics.