About Us

Our Purpose

The Neuroendocrine Tumor Translational Research Organization (NETTRO) exists to advance translational research for neuroendocrine tumors, beginning with pituitary tumors as a critical point of entry. While often benign, pituitary tumors are biologically complex and can offer insight into more aggressive NETs, including those of the pancreas, lung, and gastrointestinal tract. By bridging the patient experience with scientific discovery, NETTRO seeks to improve treatment outcomes, accelerate innovation, and foster a collaborative approach across the neuroendocrine tumor community.

Our Story

I was diagnosed with Cushing's Disease in 2020, but I had lived with the symptoms for years - anxiety, weight gain, chronic fatigue, insomnia, bone fractures and high blood pressure just to name a few and even had to quit my career. After surgery to remove the pituitary neuroendocrine tumor (PitNET), I suffered an adrenal crisis that went untreated and a recovery I wasn’t prepared for. It was frustrating to realize that such a difficult journey was more typical than rare. Despite treatment, I remain on more prescription medications and autoimmune disorders than before I was diagnosed.

My personal, lived experience was enough for me to take action so that others diagnosed after me would not have to bear the same burdens. I volunteered for the Cushing’s Support and Research Foundation and eventually identified an underserved space for pituitary tumor diseases and founded the Neuroendocrine Tumor Translational Research Organization (NETTRO). By sharing information, breaking down silos between bench-and-bedside, we can provide truly translational research to bring a better quality of life for patients.

I ask you to join me in building our community for a chance to change the trajectory of PitNET diseases for every patient who comes after me.
- Gretchen Jordan, Founder and President, NETTRO

Our Core Values

Patient Partnership

The people living with pituitary neuroendocrine tumors (PitNETs) are not study participants. They are collaborators. Their experiences, priorities, and quality of life must inform the questions researchers ask, the endpoints they measure, and the outcomes they pursue. We bring patient voice into the scientific process early and keep it there throughout.

Collaboration Over Competition

NETTRO exists to strengthen the PitNET community, not to compete within it. We connect patients, researchers, clinicians, and industry partners around shared goals, and we measure our success in part by how well we help others succeed.

Patient-Centered Research

Good science is not enough if the people it is meant to help were never part of shaping it. We advocate for a standard of translational research that is built around patient experience and quality of life from the very beginning, not added on at the end.

Equity of Access

Understudied does not mean unimportant. We work toward a future where patients with rare PitNETs have the same access to research, information, and advocacy as those with more common diseases.

Board of Directors

Gretchen Jordan

Board President, Founder

Gretchen Jordan is a Cushing’s disease patient and a dedicated advocate for pituitary health and translational research. After a successful career in advertising, logistics and global supply chain software, she made the life-changing decision to step away from corporate life to undergo treatment for Cushing’s disease. This experience inspired her passion for supporting patients, caregivers, and clinicians navigating rare pituitary disorders.

She has served as Associate Director of the Cushing’s Support and Research Foundation and now volunteers with the Minnesota Rare Disease Advisory Council (MN RDAC) as a patient advocacy organization leader and their Patient Journey Taskforce. Gretchen also chairs the Community Engagement and Patient Advocacy Committee for the NIH grant-funded BioPitNeT project, which is building an open-source biorepository and research platform to advance pituitary neuroendocrine tumor science and patient-centered care. She serves as a member of the Global Adrenal Testing Consortium.

A fun fact: before her patient advocacy career, Gretchen worked for the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx basketball teams, where she once hosted 5,000 Girl Scouts for a sleepover in the arena. She now lives in downtown Minneapolis with her husband, enjoys cooking and travel, and taking walks with the neighborhood dogs.

Erica Webb

Vice-President

Erica has spent decades leading marketing across Fortune 50 companies, global enterprises, highly regulated and founder-led organizations. She specializes in brand transformation, AI-enabled strategy, and building high-performing teams that people actually want to be part of. Throughout it all, she fell in love with advocacy work and making a real difference.

Giving back is core to who she is. Serving on the Board of Directors of NETTRO, Erica helps to set the organization's strategic priorities. She also serves as a Board Member and Governance Committee Chair at the Governor's Prevention Partnership in Connecticut, and as Communications Director for the Wayzata Athletic Booster Board in Minnesota. She also founded the Jeanne Webb Memorial Library Fund in honor of her late mother's love of reading. Advocacy isn't something she does on the side, it's woven into everything she does.

When she's not working, you'll find her cheering on the Timberwolves, Vikings, and Indiana Hoosiers, watching her son play football, baking and cooking with her daughter, and spending quality time with her sweet pup. Erica loves a good conversation and connecting people who should know each other. If you haven't met her yet, you're missing out!

Regina Duval

Secretary

Regina is a seasoned healthcare leader with a Master's degree in Data Science who has built her career making complex health system data useful. She has translated large volumes of information into clear insights that help organizations run better and serve their communities more effectively. She brings that same precision and purpose to advancing NETTRO's mission in the neuroendocrine tumor rare disease space.

Throughout her career, Regina has led healthcare data organizations at scale, building the standards, structures, and oversight systems that ensure data is accurate, trustworthy, and put to good use. She has used advanced analytical methods to identify trends, measure how far programs are reaching, and surface gaps to allow leadership and stakeholders to make informed decisions with confidence. Her work has also included modernizing outdated technology systems and expanding digital infrastructure in ways that are both safe and sustainable.

Regina has designed and executed comprehensive training strategies, successfully equipping over 1,500 healthcare professionals with the skills to navigate new digital tools and systems. This reflects her core belief that technology only creates real value when the people using it feel capable and supported.

On a more personal note, Regina is an avid learner and passionate advocate who enjoys traveling with her husband and caring for her three pets. She currently resides in Willmar, Minnesota.

Bridget Houser, CPA

Treasurer

Bridget was diagnosed with Cushing's Syndrome in 2019. After undergoing a partial lobectomy to remove the ectopic Cushing’s tumor from her lung, her doctors discovered that the tumor was also cancerous, a bronchial carcinoid tumor. Interviewed by the Washington Post about her experience with Cushing’s Syndrome, she began her advocacy journey by actively sharing with other patients and volunteering in the disease space.

As a CPA with over 12 years experience in both public and private accounting in various roles including Controller, Bridget currently works as the Operations Manager at Platania Financial. She oversees and optimizes the firm's internal processes, as well as supporting the seamless delivery of client service. She also holds her Series 7 and 66 licenses.

Outside of her professional life, Bridget brings the same energy and intention to the things she loves most. She is a certified yoga instructor, a practice that reflects her commitment to physical and mental well-being, something she understands deeply as someone who has navigated a serious and complex illness. She is also a devoted wife, mother of three, and proud dog mom who finds balance and joy in the everyday moments with her family.

Christine Yedinak M.N., F.N.P., D.N.P.

Director, Endocrinology

Christine (Chris) has dedicated her career to advancing pituitary and endocrine care around the world. She completed her education at the University of Southern Queensland in Australia and earned her Doctorate at Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU). She is a Board-certified family nurse practitioner, adjunct professor and Director, Graduate Certificate of Endocrinology at Mount Marty University in Yankton, SD.

For more than 20 years, Chris conducted clinical research and provided clinical diagnosis and chronic disease management to pituitary patients at OHSU’s Northwest Pituitary Center as an Associate Professor of Neurological Surgery, Division of Skull Base and Cerebrovascular, School of Medicine. She has served as President of the Endocrine Nurses Association U.S.A., President and co-founder of the Federation of International Nurses in Endocrinology. She also serves in leadership roles with the American Association of Clinical Endocrinology and continues to shape endocrine care through research and international presentations. She has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters, is co-editor of Advanced Practice in Endocrinology Nursing, and has participated in the development of clinical guidelines.

Now semi-retired, Chris lives in Oregon with her husband, Martin, and spends more time enjoying family and outdoor activities.

About NETTRO

Our Mission