Current Fellows in the Metabolic Epidemiology Branch

Dr. Abar, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, is working on lifestyle-related modifiable risk factors, mainly diet, and causal determinants of colorectal cancer risk, under the mentorship of Dr. Erikka Loftfield.

Dr. Bhattacharjee, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, is conducting research on H. pylori infection-related premalignant and malignant gastric lesions, under the mentorship of M. Constanza Camargo, Ph.D.

Dr. Freeman, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, investigates the role of sleep timing and circadian disruption in health outcomes—specifically, the association between sleep and circadian exposures and cancer risk. In addition, he conducts methodologic studies to better understand the variability in key exposure metrics in this area of study, and to develop new modeling approaches for investigating behavioral exposures that may lead to circadian disruption and increased cancer risk. His mentor is Charles Matthews, Ph.D.

Dr. Gutiérrez-Torres, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, is analyzing the impact of occasional smoking on cancer risk and mortality in the United States and worldwide. Her mentor is Dr. Christian Abnet.

Dr. Herrera Ossa, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, is studying the association between the human microbiome and cancer risk, especially cancers of the lung, colorectum, head/neck, and breast.

Mr. Kebede, pre-doctoral fellow and iCURE scholar in MEB, investigates moderate to vigorous physical activity and breast tumor microenvironment. His mentors are Charles Matthews, Ph.D., M.S., Melissa Treoster, Ph.D, M.P.H, and Jonine Figueroa, Ph.D, M.P.H.

Dr. Lawrence is a research fellow in the Metabolic Epidemiology Branch. He investigates racial/ethnic cancer disparities under the mentorship of Neal D. Freedman, Ph.D., M.H.S., and Meredith Shiels, Ph.D., M.H.S.

Dr. Nalini, visiting postdoctoral fellow in MEB, studies metabolomics and exposure biomarkers in cancer and other chronic diseases, within collaborations between NCI and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the International Hundred K+ Cohort Consortium. His mentors are Arash Etemadi, M.D., Ph.D., and Christian C. Abnet, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Ms. Shreves, predoctoral fellow in MEB, is currently pursuing a D.Phil. through the NIH Oxford Cambridge Program. As an NIH Oxford Scholar, she works with Dr. Charles Matthews (MEB) and Oxford mentors Drs. Aiden Doherty and Ruth Travis to investigate what types of physical activity are associated with lower cancer incidence.

Ms. Traore, Medical Research Scholar and predoctoral fellow in the Metabolic Epidemiology Branch, is investigating risk factors for esophageal squamous cell carcinoma in Malawi under the mentorship of Christian Abnet, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Dr. Watts, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, is investigating the role of physical activity in relation to cancer, under the mentorship of Steven C. Moore, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Dr. Yano, Independent Research Scholar and research fellow in MEB, conducts methodologic and etiologic studies of the human oral microbiome as well as studies of risk factors for esophageal and gastric cancer. Her mentors are Christian Abnet, Ph.D., M.P.H., Rashmi Sinha, Ph.D., and Emily Vogtmann, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Dr. Zhang, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, investigates dietary factors, metabolomics, as well as genetic components of these exposures in the etiology of pancreatic cancer in cohort studies, under the mentorship of Rachael Stolzenberg-Solomon, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.D.

Dr. Zouiouich, postdoctoral fellow in MEB, conducts methodologic studies of the microbiome and etiologic studies of the association of the microbiome with different cancer types. His mentors are Rashmi Sinha, Ph.D., Emily Vogtmann, Ph.D., M.P.H., and Erikka Loftfield, Ph.D., M.P.H.