EGRP Bulletin - Winter 2008-2009
Visiting Scholars Seminar Series
The EGRP Visiting Scholars Seminar Series brings outstanding scientists in the extramural population sciences community to NCI to share their latest research and facilitates an exchange of ideas on ways to continue moving the science forward. If you are visiting NCI on the day of a seminar, you are welcome to join us.
The following seminars will be held on Mondays from noon to 1 p.m. in Executive Plaza North (EPN), 6130 Executive Boulevard, Conference Room H, Rockville, MD. To obtain a visitor's pass prior to the seminar, contact Leah Sansbury, Ph.D., M.S.P.H., Visiting Scholars Seminar Series Coordinator, and Program Director, Modifiable Risk Factors Branch, tel.: 301-496-9600, e-mail: sansburl@ mail.nih.gov.
Schedule of Upcoming Seminars
| Date and Time | Location | Speaker |
|---|---|---|
| December 8, 2008 Noon–1:00 p.m. |
Executive Plaza North 6130 Executive Blvd. Conference Room H |
John Boice, Jr., Sc.D. Professor, School of Medicine, Vanderbilt University Scientific Director, International Epidemiology Institute |
| January 12, 2009 Noon–1:00 p.m. |
Executive Plaza North 6130 Executive Blvd. Conference Room H |
Johanna W. Lampe, Ph.D., R.D. Full Member and Associate Division Director, Cancer Prevention Program, Division of Public Health Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center |
| February 9, 2009 Noon–1:00 p.m. |
Executive Plaza North 6130 Executive Blvd. Conference Room H |
Christopher I. Amos, Ph.D. Professor, Department of Epidemiology The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center |
| March 9, 2009 Noon–1:00 p.m. |
Executive Plaza North 6130 Executive Blvd. Conference Room H |
Anna R. Giuliano, Ph.D. Chair, Department of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics Program Leader, Risk Assessment, Detection, and Intervention Program H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute |
| April 6, 2009 Noon–1:00 p.m. |
Executive Plaza North 6130 Executive Blvd. Conference Room H |
(Speaker to be announced.) |
| May 4, 2009 Noon–1:00 p.m. |
Executive Plaza North 6130 Executive Blvd. Conference Room H |
(Speaker to be announced.) |
Earlier Presentations
Marianne Berwick, Ph.D., M.P.H., Associate Director for Population Sciences and Co-Leader of the Population Science Program at the University of New Mexico's Cancer Center, delivered the first 2008-2009 Visiting Scholar Seminar Series presentation at NCI on September 8, 2008, titled "Sun Exposure and Melanoma: A Two-Edged Sword." Dr. Berwick reviewed changes in melanoma incidence and mortality over time, along with environmental and genetic risk factors for melanoma. She indicated that sun-induced melanomas seem to differ genetically from those that are not sun-induced and are associated with lower mortality rates. Dr. Berwick also discussed recent findings related to associations between an individual's vitamin D status and risk of melanoma.
Dr. Berwick and her colleagues have received EGRP funding to study whether the survival of those diagnosed with melanoma is affected by various risk factors for melanoma. Dr. Berwick, whose laboratory also is investigating DNA repair pathways and vitamin D receptor pathways, closed her presentation by emphasizing the need for greater scientific understanding about the relationship between sun exposure, vitamin D status, and melanoma risk before definitive public health messages regarding sun exposure and vitamin D are developed.
Christine B. Ambrosone, Ph.D., Chair of the Roswell Park Cancer Institute's Department of Cancer Prevention and Control, delivered the second 2008-2009 Visiting Scholar Seminar Series presentation at NCI on October 6, titled "Pharmacogenetics and Molecular Epidemiology in a Cooperative Group Setting." In her presentation, Dr. Ambrosone suggested that molecular epidemiology has helped to open the "black box" for many epidemiologic associations, using the example of breast cancer, genetic variability, and tobacco to illustrate how the blending of subgroups may dilute effects and blur relationships. Dr. Ambrosone also explained that cancer treatments can react differently among individuals and lead to increased or decreased toxicity within the body, which is why an understanding of metabolic pathways and how they differ among individuals is a critical element when treating various cancers.
One of Dr. Ambrosone's current projects is the exploration of antioxidant supplement use, genetic polymorphisms, and outcomes associated with breast cancer chemotherapy. Dr. Ambrosone and colleagues will investigate whether the use of antioxidants has an impact on toxicities as well as overall survival within a therapeutic breast cancer clinical trial.
