DCEG News Updates
The latest news and research findings from the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics.
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Jacqueline Vo, assistant clinical investigator in the Radiation Epidemiology Branch, was selected for the competitive 2023 NIH Distinguished Scholars Program.
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Using data from the HIV/AIDS Cancer Match Study, Dr. Jennifer McGee-Avila and colleagues determined that for people with HIV, the risk of liver cancer has declined in recent years, but the rate of liver cancer compared to the general population remains elevated.
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A team of nurses, data analysts, and experts in health promotion from Mississippi visited the NCI last week—the first in-person meeting of the STRIDES study team in three years. STRIDES: Studying Risk and Improving Disparities of Cervical Cancer in Mississippi is led by Megan Clarke, Ph.D., M.H.S., Earl Stadtman investigator in the Clinical Genetics Branch, and partners at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) and the Mississippi State Department of Health.
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In the summer of 2023, 30 interns from 12 states and the District of Columbia, came to do research in every branch of DCEG as well as in the Trans-Divisional Research Program.
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It may be worthwhile for some individuals between ages 65 and 69 to get tested for HPV, findings from a Danish study suggest. Specifically, the testing may help prevent cervical cancer among those who haven’t had cervical cancer screening for at least 5 years.
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Sanford Dawsey retired in August 2023 after 35 years of service to the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Dawsey is best known for his research on methods of prevention and control of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), including etiologic studies of ESCC in high-risk populations and the development of clinically useful techniques for the early detection and treatment of ESCC precursor lesions and early invasive tumors.
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Dr. Mark Purdue and colleagues found that higher levels of PFOS, a specific PFAS, in blood collected from U.S. Air Force servicemen was associated with higher risk of developing testicular cancer.
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Dr. Oscar Florez-Vargas, research fellow in the Laboratory of Translational Genomics was selected as a 2023-2025 Human Genetics Scholar by the American Society of Human Genetics.
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Follow the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics on LinkedIn for research stories, career and fellowship opportunities, and more.
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The Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study (DEMS) II extends the follow-up of the original study by 18 years. Researchers in the Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch observed lung cancer risk remained elevated 20 or more years after diesel exhaust exposure ceased; reported novel association between diesel exhaust exposure and death from non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
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Dr. Jiyeon Choi, Earl Stadtman investigator in the Laboratory of Translational Genomics, discusses her lab's research on the influence of genetics on lung cancer risk in NIH’s Intramural Research Program blog, I am Intramural.
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Investigators in the Infections and Immunoepidemiology Branch, led by Dr. Zhiwei Liu, tenure-track investigator, compared two approaches for Epstein-Barr virus screening for early detection of nasopharyngeal carcinoma: antibody and DNA-based approaches. Their findings were published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
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Dr. Sarah Jackson was appointed Earl Stadtman tenure-track investigator in the Infections and Immunoepidemiology Branch in July 2023. She studies sex differences in cancer incidence and survival as well as cancer risk, screening, and outcomes. Also in 2023, she was selected for the competitive NIH Distinguished Scholars Program.
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Sung Duk Kim, Ph.D., staff scientist in the Biostatistics Branch, and collaborators at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and Merck, received the 2023 Statistical Partnerships Among Academe, Industry & Government (SPAIG) award for the depth, breadth, and statistical rigor of their collaboration and its impact on the conduct of clinical trials.
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Dr. Aubrey Hubbard, postdoctoral fellow in the Integrative Tumor Epidemiology Branch, was featured in a community story by NCI Childhood Cancer Data Initiative.
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Cari Kitahara, senior investigator in the Radiation Epidemiology Branch, received the 2nd Annual Rosalind Franklin Society Award in Science for her publication entitled, Trends in the Management of Localized Papillary Thyroid Carcinoma in the United States (2000–2018), published in Thyroid.
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Dr. Wayne Lawrence and colleagues found a rapid rise in death rates due to unintentional poisoning (drug overdoses) and firearm homicides in the U.S. from 1999-2020. Rates of death from external causes further accelerated in 2019 and 2020, after the onset of COVID-19.
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In 2023, Dr. Blanche Alter received the Wallace H. Coulter Award for Lifetime Achievement in Hematology from the American Society of Hematology for her work which revolutionized research for inherited bone marrow failure syndromes.
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Dr. Aimée Kreimer was recognized for outstanding mentorship in 2022. Read an excerpt from the nomination prepared by her trainees.
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Research projects in DCEG span the globe. Studies in Latin America have allowed us to develop data-rich and well-powered studies to investigate often highly lethal cancers that occur with lower frequency in the U.S. Studying populations in Latin America is particularly important for cancer prevention in the U.S., given the growing number of Americans who identify as Latino and the small proportion of Latino individuals within existing studies.