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Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program

October 2023 EGRP Cancer Epidemiology News

EGRP Cancer Epidemiology News

October 2023

Dr. Kathy Helzlsouer Retires from the National Cancer Institute

Kathy J. Helzlsouer, MD, MHS, associate director (AD) of the Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program (EGRP) will retire at the end of October. Dr. Helzlsouer has served as EGRP’s AD since October 2015, but she has served NCI, and the broader research community, in many ways throughout her decades-long career devoted to medical oncology and cancer research. Dr. Helzlsouer is internationally recognized for her expertise in cancer epidemiology, cancer genetic counseling, and clinical research, and she has published extensively in the fields of cancer epidemiology, cancer etiology and prevention, women’s health, and clinical and translational research. Dr. Helzlsouer’s clinical activities focused on cancer risk assessment and cancer survivorship.

As EGRP’s AD, Dr. Helzlsouer spearheaded the evaluation of the impact of cohort studies and their epidemiologic findings on clinical practice and public health. She led efforts to support the next generation of etiology and survivorship cancer epidemiology cohorts and directed the development of research resources, to help support and facilitate data sharing for population science research.

Dr. Helzlsouer represented NCI to a wide variety of national and state professional, academic, and public health organizations. She served on a variety of committees and working groups important to cancer epidemiology and the broader areas of cancer control and population sciences and was an instrumental leader for the Cancer MoonshotSM initiative. Among other activities, she provided leadership to the NCI Cohort Consortium, which comprises more than 65 epidemiology cohorts across the world. Dr. Helzlsouer also served as NCI’s representative to the Melanoma Research Program in the US Army’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program. She serves on the Executive Committee for the NIH/Johns Hopkins University Genetic Counseling Training Program and as an associate editor for The Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

Prior to serving as EGRP’s AD, Dr. Helzlsouer was the director of the Prevention and Research Center at Mercy Medical Center from 2004 to 2015. From 1988-2004, Dr. Helzlsouer was on the faculty at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHSPH), culminating in a tenured professor position in the Department of Epidemiology. During her time at the School of Public Health, she served as the director of the George Comstock Center for Public Health Research and Prevention, the home of the CLUE I and CLUE IIExternal Web Site Policy cohort studies. Dr. Helzlsouer was a lead investigator for the NCI Cohort Consortium’s Vitamin D Pooling Project on Rarer Cancers, which examined the association between vitamin D levels and multiple rare cancer cohort studies.

Dr. Helzlsouer has been involved with numerous national and state-level activities related to cancer risk assessment, genetic counseling, cancer etiology and prevention, and cancer survivorship. These include participation in NCI’s PDQ® Cancer Screening and Prevention Committee for more than 20 years; chairing the Maryland State Council on Cancer Control, service on numerous advisory boards, including the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study, the Maryland Cancer Registry, the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s Committee on Cancer Prevention and Control, the Executive Committee of the American Society of Preventive Oncology, and is a member of the American Epidemiological Society. She currently serves as Chair of the Medical Advisory Committee for the Center for Cancer Prevention and Control, MD Department of Health.

Dr. Helzlsouer is held in high esteem by NCI staff, junior investigators, and students for whom she has provided mentorship and career guidance. Dr. Helzlsouer has received numerous honors and awards, including the Martin D. Abeloff Award for Excellence in Public Health and Cancer Control for her service on the Maryland State Council on Cancer Control and an NCI Director’s Career Achievement Award for exceptional leadership and service in cancer control and population science.

Dr. Helzlsouer is a talented researcher and leader, who has made significant and lasting contributions to cancer control research, and she has contributed greatly to the support and development of the field and to the scientific workforce.

EGRP thanks Dr. Helzlsouer for her many years of dedicated service and lasting contributions to cancer control research and wishes her the best in retirement.

Funding Opportunities

  • RFA-CA-24-006, Translational Research Toward Development of a Kaposi Sarcoma Herpesvirus Vaccine (U01, Clinical Trial Optional)
  • PAR-23-308, Comprehensive Partnerships to Advance Cancer Health Equity (U54, Clinical Trial Optional)
  • PAR-23-309, Health and Health Care Disparities Among Persons Living with Disabilities (R01, Clinical Trials Optional)
  • PAR-23-303, Unveiling Health and Healthcare Disparities in Non-Communicable and Chronic Diseases in Latin America: Setting the Stage for Better Health Outcomes Across the Hemisphere (R01, Clinical Trials Not Allowed)
  • PAR-24-047, Revision Applications for Validation of Biomarker Assays Developed Through NIH-Supported Research Grants (R01, Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • Cancer Research Education Grants Program
    • PAR-23-276, Courses for Skills Development (R25, Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
    • PAR-23-277, Research Experiences (R25, Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
    • PAR-23-278, Curriculum or Methods Development (R25, Clinical Trial Not Allowed)
  • NOT-OD-23-179, Notice of Special Interest: Encouraging Small Businesses to Partner with Resource-Limited Institutions (RLIs) on Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program Applications
  • NOT-AG-23-050, Notice of Intent to Publish a Funding Opportunity Announcement for Consortium for Palliative Care Research Across the Lifespan (U54, Clinical Trial Required)

Prize Competitions

Grant Policy Notices

  • NOT-OD-24-010, Simplified Review Framework for NIH Research Project Grant Applications
  • NOT-OD-24-012, Online Briefing on NIH’s Simplified Peer Review Framework for NIH Research Project Grant Applications: for Applicants and Reviewers
  • NOT-OD-23-182, NIH Final Updated Policy Guidance for Subaward/Consortium Written Agreements
  • NOT-OD-23-185, Prior Approval Requests for Revisions to an Approved Data management and Sharing Plan Must be Submitted Using the Prior Approval Module
  • NOT-OD-24-007, NIH Operates Under a Continuing Resolution

Requests for Information

  • NOT-OD-23-183, Notice of Availability: Draft Scientific Integrity Policy of the National Institutes of Health (responses due by November 9, 2023)
  • NOT-OD-23-163, Request for Information: Inviting Comments and Suggestions on Updating the NIH Mission Statement (responses due by November 24, 2023)
  • NOT-CA-23-093, Identifying Opportunities to Generate Research Molecular Characterization Data for the Childhood Cancer Data Initiative (responses due by November 30, 2023)
  • NOT-OD-24-002, Developing Consent Language for Research Using Digital Health Technologies (responses due by December 12, 2023)
  • NOT-ES-23-016, Environmental Justice Research Gaps, Opportunities and Capacity Building (responses due by December 15, 2023)
  • NOT-OD-24-005, Best Practices for Sharing NIH Supported Research Software (responses due by February 1, 2024)

Training & Career Opportunities

Research Resources

News / Blogs

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Last Updated: 26 Apr, 2024