DCEG News Updates
The latest news and research findings from the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics.
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Air Pollution, Medicinal Herbs Linked to Lung Cancer Mutagenesis in Never Smokers
A global study of lung cancer from people who have never smoked identifies fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) linked to higher overall DNA mutational burden, increased prevalence of TP53 mutations, and shorter telomeres. Aristolochic acid from medicinal herbs leaves a mutational signature in the lung cancer genome.
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Mark Little Retires from the NCI
Mark Little is an internationally recognized expert in radiation biostatistics. He focused on the study of ionizing radiation and risk of cancer, cataracts, and cardiovascular disease, as well as and solar ultraviolet radiation and risk of basal cell carcinoma, hemopoietic malignancies and brain tumors.
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Biomarker for Diets High in Ultra-processed Foods
Researchers, led by Dr. Erikka Loftfield in the Metabolic Epidemiology Branch, have identified patterns of metabolites in blood and urine that can be used as an objective measure of an individual’s consumption of energy from ultra-processed foods. They used these data to develop a poly-metabolite score that could one day reduce the reliance on self-reported dietary intake.
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Stella Koutros Awarded Scientific Tenure by the NIH
In May 2025, Stella Koutros was awarded scientific tenure by the NIH and promoted to senior investigator in the Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch. Dr. Koutros is an internationally recognized expert in the design and conduct of epidemiologic investigations to evaluate occupational causes of cancer. Her work examines the carcinogenicity of occupation- and industry-based exposures as well as the etiology of bladder cancer, a disease substantially influenced by occupational, environmental, and genetic factors.
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Philip Rosenberg Retires from the NCI After 37 Years of Service
Philip Rosenberg, senior investigator in the Biostatistics Branch, retired from the NCI in 2025 after 37 years of service. He is an internationally recognized expert in statistical approaches to cancer surveillance and survival analysis and the creator of numerous statistical methods and tools, including the new age-period-cohort model and web tool, proportional hazards models for comparative age-period-cohort analysis, and methods to forecast the future burden of cancer.
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Stromal Disruption Predicts Aggressive Breast Cancer Risk and Poorer Survival
Investigators led by Dr. Mustapha Abubakar found changes in the architecture and composition of stromal tissue in the breast is associated with an increased risk of developing aggressive breast cancer among women with benign breast disease, and poorer rates of survival among women with invasive breast cancer.
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Trends in Early Onset Cancers
A research team led by Dr. Meredith Shiels analyzed cancer incidence and mortality rates for 33 cancers in different age groups in the United States. The study analyzed how cancer rates in people under 50 have changed over time compared to older age groups (70 to 79 years). The results could generate insights into risk factors that are particularly important in early age groups.
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Study of Oral Microbiome Describes the Mouth of America
A research team led by Dr. Christian Abnet characterized the composition, diversity, and correlates of the oral microbiome of US adults in a new cross-sectional study. They described the associations between age, sex, tobacco use, alcohol, BMI and other individual characteristics and different aspects of the oral microbiome. This is the first population representative description of a human microbiome, which that includes describing the the prevalence of different bacterial genera in the US population.
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Kathleen Stine Retires from the Radiation Epidemiology Branch
Kathleen Stine, program analyst in the Radiation Epidemiology branch, retired after nearly 41 years of federal service. She provided mission-critical administrative management for the branch.
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Hormuzd Katki Departs After 26 Years of Service
Hormuzd Katki, senior investigator in the Biostatistics Branch, accepted early retirement in April 2025. Dr. Katki is internationally recognized for his work to develop and apply quantitative methods to identify and answer the most pressing questions in cancer epidemiology. He translated these findings into tools for the prevention and early detection of cancer in individuals and populations, particularly for cancers of the cervix and lung, and developed metrics for evaluating risk models and biomarkers.
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Stephen Chanock Featured in NIH Intramural Blog
Dr. Stephen Chanock was featured in a post on the NIH Intramural Research Program "I Am Intramural" blog describing his research and celebrating his recent election to the National Academy of Medicine.
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Light Intensity Physical Activity Linked to Lower Cancer Risk
A new NIH study of 85,000 adults in the United Kingdom found that individuals who engaged in light- and moderate-to-vigorous-intensity daily physical activity had a lower risk of cancer than individuals who were more sedentary. Participants in the study wore accelerometers to track their total daily activity, its intensity, and daily step count. The researchers determined that a higher step count, at any pace, can help lower cancer risk.
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Self Collection for HPV Testing to Prevent Cervical Cancer: New Guidelines Published
New guidelines for clinicians advise on cervical cancer screening using self-collected vaginal samples. Self-collection expands screening options and has potential to increase access for individuals who have never been screened or are not receiving adequate screening.
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Prototype AI Program Detects Biomarkers that Could Predict Cervical Cancer Risk
The NIH Intramural Research program highlights Dr. Nicolas Wentzensen’s prototype artificial intelligence program that reviews cervical cell samples and detects proteins that could predict cervical cancer risk.
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Kiyohiko Mabuchi Retires from the NCI After 20 Years of Service
Kiyohiko Mabuchi, senior scientist in the Radiation Epidemiology Branch, retired from the National Cancer Institute in early 2025 after more than 20 years of service. Dr. Mabuchi investigated cancer and chronic disease risks associated with exposure to ionizing radiation and how radiation-related risks are modified by modes of exposure and other factors.
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Pacific Islander Adults Experience Significantly Higher Overall and Leading-Cause Death Rates than Asian American Adults in the U.S.
Health data of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander individuals have often been aggregated, but Jacqueline B. Vo, Jaimie Z. Shing, and colleagues observed significantly higher death rates among Pacific Islander individuals compared to Asian Americans between 2018 and 2020.
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Testicular Cancer Incidence Rising in the U.S., Especially Among Hispanic Men
Dr. McGlynn and colleagues found testicular cancer incidence rates among Hispanic men rose to the levels of rates among non-Hispanic White men in 2021, marking a significant development in the descriptive epidemiology of testicular cancer in the U.S.
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Charles Rabkin Retires After 35 Years of Service
Dr. Rabkin retired from the National Cancer Institute after 35 years of service. He received Public Health Service and Unit Commendation Medals for his studies of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and Kaposi sarcoma and the Outstanding Service Medal for the molecular epidemiology of Helicobacter pylori and HIV-related malignancies.
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Michael Sargen Appointed Lasker Clinical Research Scholar
Michael Sargen, M.D., has been promoted to Lasker Clinical Research Scholar, a tenure-track position in the Clinical Genetics Branch in December 2024. He is an expert in the clinical, histopathologic, and genetic characteristics of melanoma-prone families. He also uses epidemiologic and molecular approaches to investigate risk factors for sebaceous carcinoma and other rare cutaneous malignancies in children and adults.
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Hispanic/Latino Population Researchers Convene to Advance Health Equity
The objectives of the meeting, organized by the NIH Hispanic Health Research Scientific Interest Group, were to learn about existing research projects across the NIH and to promote trans-NIH research collaborations to address health disparities and inequities among Hispanic/Latino populations.