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Infectious Agents

Viral and bacterial infections are known to cause a number of different malignancies in populations worldwide. DCEG carries out multidisciplinary studies of carefully selected populations in the United States and abroad, with the goal of clarifying the relationship of infectious agents, especially viruses, to human cancer and other conditions. DCEG has concentrated on HIV, human papillomaviruses (HPV), hepatitis viruses, and Epstein-Barr virus.

In response to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, a collaborative group of epidemiologists, geneticists, and data scientists accelerated the discovery of outcomes and risk factors for patients infected with SARS-CoV-2. Learn more about our COVID-19-related research.

Hepatitis Viruses

  • Hepatitis Viruses and Liver Cancer 
    DCEG investigators conduct interdisciplinary collaborative studies that integrate epidemiology, virology, and human genetics to study chronic hepatitis virus infection, the cause of most hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), the third leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide.

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Vaccines

  • Costa Rica HPV Vaccine Trial (CVT) and Long-Term Follow-up
    A randomized, controlled phase III trial of a vaccine to prevent human papillomavirus (HPV) 16 and 18 infections and their associated cervical lesions in Costa Rica.
  • ESCUDDO Efficacy Trial
    A study to determine if one dose of the HPV vaccines works as well as giving two doses of these vaccines to young women.
  • PRIMAVERA Immunobridging Trial
    A non-inferiority trial comparing immunogenicity from one dose of bivalent HPV vaccine in girls to three doses of quadrivalent vaccine in women.
  • PRISMA Efficacy Trial
    A study to determine if one dose of HPV vaccine is sufficient to reduce the risk of HPV infection in women, compared to no vaccine—the standard in the majority of the world.
  • Study of HPV Vaccine Efficacy at Extracervical sites
    A study to determine the impact of HPV vaccination in preventing infections in the oral, vulvar, and anal regions.

HPV Clinical Screening and Management

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)

  • HIV/AIDS Cancer Match Study
    HIV/AIDS cancer match study examines cancer risk among people living with HIV infection in the United States.

Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV)

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