Invited International Speakers

Prof Wayne Grayson

Prof Wayne Grayson is a Principal Consultant Histopathologist at Ampath Laboratories in Johannesburg and an Honorary Professor in the School of Pathology at the University of the Witwatersrand. He obtained his undergraduate medical degree from the University of the Free State in 1989.

He completed his training in Anatomical Pathology at the South African Institute for Medical Research and the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, and became a Fellow of the College of Pathologists of South Africa in 1995. He subsequently obtained his PhD degree from the University of the Witwatersrand in 2000.

Prof Grayson’s main areas of interest include infectious diseases of the skin, HIV/AIDS-related skin pathology, and Kaposi sarcoma. He has authored several textbook chapters on these subjects, has published extensively and is an experienced international speaker. He serves on the editorial board of three international peer review pathology journals and is a section editor and contributing author of the recent fifth edition of the W.H.O. Classification of Skin Tumours.

He is the outgoing President of the International Committee for Dermatopathology and current Vice-President of the International Society of Dermatopathology. In 2021, Prof Grayson was the awarded the Neil Smith Medal by the British Dermatopathology Society for his contributions to Dermatopathology.

Prof Francois Jordaan

Prof H Francois Jordaan qualified as a medical doctor in 1972 (MBChB/US) and as a dermatologist in 1982 (MMed/US) and has followed an academic career since then. He was an associate professor, principal specialist and head of the Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Stellenbosch and Tygerberg Hospital, South Africa, from 2003-2013.

Prof Jordaan formally retired in 2013, but was appointed on a sessional basis by the University of Stellenbosch and PAWC from 2014 until July 2022. He remained actively involved in all aspects of dermatology - teaching, service, administration, research and outreach. Since the beginning of August 2025, he is continuing to act as a dermatopathology consultant for private pathology practices in the Western Cape, and as an active contributor to African Online Scientific Information Systems.

Prof Jordaan is a full member of the South African Academy for Science and Arts and an honorary member of the South African Society for Dermatologic Surgery and was awarded The Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Dermatology in August 2016.

He has published 72 manuscripts in peer-review journals, numerous articles in non-peer review journals, and presented papers, several as an invited speaker, and posters at national and international congresses. His main interests are dermatopathology, skin signs of systemic disease, skin signs of HIV/AIDS, cutaneous tuberculosis and paediatric dermatology.

Dr Tirelo Pitjadi

Dr Tirelo Pitjadi is a Histopathologist with a special interest in dermatopathology. He obtained his MBChB from the University of the Witwatersrand in 2006 and subsequently qualified as a Histopathologist in 2015.

Dr Pitjadi currently serves as a consultant in the Division of Histopathology at AMPATH Laboratories, where he forms part of a team of pathologists, entrusted with delivering quality dermatopathology services to regional Dermatologists, Plastic Surgeons, General Practitioners and their patients.

In addition to his clinical responsibilities, Dr Pitjadi is actively involved in academic education, as he serves as co-course Director of the Johannesburg Dermatopathology Symposium.

Dr Pitjadi has delivered numerous lectures and presentations at national and international scientific meetings. These include the Johannesburg Dermatopathology Symposia, congresses of the Dermatology Society of South Africa, meetings of the African Dermatopathology Society, and symposia of the International Society of Dermatopathology.

Dr Adam Botha

Dr Adam Botha is a Histopathologist, currently working as an Associate Pathologist at Lancet Laboratories in Johannesburg, since April 2025. He received his undergraduate medical degree (MBChB) from the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in 2009.

Following his Internship and Community Service, he worked both locally and abroad in rural Canada as a Family Practitioner, before returning to Wits / National Health Laboratory Services (NHLS) in South Africa to undergo specialist Anatomical Pathology training. This was completed at the end of 2019, with the attainment of a MMed (Anatomical Pathology) degree, and passing of the FCPath (Anatomical) CMSA Part II Examination.

Thereafter, Dr Botha held a lecturer post at Wits from January 2020 to April 2025 and rose to a Senior Pathologist post at the NHLS prior to moving to Lancet.

He has a special interest in Dermatopathology, but retains interest and expertise in all aspects of Histopathology.

Prof Nonhlanhla Khumalo

Prof Nonhlanhla Khumalo is a clinician scientist, academic leader, and social entrepreneur whose work has significantly advanced dermatology and skin health research in Africa. She obtained her MBChB from the University of Natal in 1989, later qualifying as a Dermatologist in 2003, and completing a PhD in Public Health at the University of Cape Town in 2007. Her specialist training at Churchill Hospital, Oxford, and Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town informed her globally grounded clinical perspective.

Prof Khumalo was appointed Associate Professor in 2009 and Full Professor in 2016, and served as Head of Dermatology at the University of Cape Town from 2012 to 2022. She currently holds the NRF SARChI Chair in Dermatology and Toxicology and co-directs the Medical Research Council Unit for Wound Healing and Keloid Translational Research.

She has supervised more than 30 masters/PhD students and published over 130 peer-reviewed papers. Her first landmark contribution was a systematic review of treatments for bullous pemphigoid, which led to her invitation to contribute to treatment guidelines for the British Association of Dermatologists. She pioneered the use of root-to-tip scanning electron microscopy to describe unique variations in scalp hair structure, laying the groundwork for research into hair biology.

Her institution-building legacy includes serving as the founding editor for the South African Journal of Child Health, initiating the first graduate program for Cosmetic Formulation Science (>100 graduates), and establishing the Hair and Skin Research (HSR)Lab, the first basic science laboratory for Dermatology in the country.

She recently secured funding to build a home at UCT for ARISE - the Africa Research Initiative for Skin Health - which will serve as a continental hub for research, training, and innovation. ARISE represents the culmination of the vision to create sustainable platforms that not only serve Africa but also increase the share of the global cosmetic and skin health market that is owned by, and directly benefits, Africans at home and in the diaspora.

Prof Charles Maimela

Prof Charles Maimela is the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Johannesburg (UJ). He is a Professor of law in the areas of Medical law and African Customary law and has published extensively in these fields of law.

Prof Maimela has also written on AI and the Law in how it shapes Curriculum Transformation of the teaching and research of Law in Universities today. He holds an LLB, LLM, and LLD all from the University of South Africa (UNISA) and has taught at three South African Universities before joining UJ on 1 September 2025.

As the former Editor of De Jure Law Journal and currently serves on the editorial board of the South African Journal for Human Rights (SAJHR). Furthermore, he is serving as Deputy Chairperson for the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) for the Research Outputs Evaluation Sub-Panel for Social Sciences, and is a member of the Council on Higher Education (CHE) on the Review Panel for Higher Education Qualifications Framework