Sarah Jackson Becomes an Independent Research Scholar
, by DCEG Staff
In May 2021, Sarah S. Jackson, Ph.D., postdoctoral fellow in the Infections and Immunoepidemiology Branch, was inducted into the NIH Independent Research Scholar Program, sponsored by the Office of Intramural Research. The program aims to build the workforce diversity of independent research scientists by supporting participants with funding and mentorship, with the expectation that participants will be highly competitive for tenure-track investigator positions either within or outside of NIH.
Dr. Jackson joined the Infections and Immunoepidemiology Branch (IIB) in May 2018 as a postdoctoral fellow where she focuses on sex differences in cancer incidence and cancer risk and outcomes among transgender and non-binary individuals. She is currently working with Jill Koshiol, Ph.D., senior investigator, IIB, utilizing the Biliary Tract Cancers Pooling Project (BiTCaPP) to study sex-specific risk factors for biliary tract cancer.
Together with Meredith Shiels, Ph.D., tenure-track investigator, IIB, Dr. Jackson describes health disparities in cancer burden among transgender individuals. Their findings, based on an analysis of data from the National Cancer Database, were published in March 2021, in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.
In recognizing Dr. Jackson, the committee noted her “scientific achievements and commitment to a diverse workforce.”