Rao L. Divi, Ph.D.

Biography

Rao L. Divi, PhD, is a program director in the Environmental Epidemiology Branch (EEB) of NCI’s Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences. He leads a grant portfolio focused on the development, evaluation, and validation of innovative methods and technologies to strengthen epidemiologic data collection, study design, and analytic approaches across the cancer control continuum. His interest is centered on translating emerging technologies into population research, with particular emphasis on cancer immunoepidemiology, immune competence and resilience in health and cancer, and computational and AI-enabled approaches for cancer risk assessment and causal inference.

Dr. Divi plays a key role in advancing collaborative, large-scale research efforts. He represents EGRP in several major international and national consortia, including the International Lymphoma Epidemiology Consortium (InterLymph); the Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia Research Consortium (CRC); the Identification of Men with a Genetic Predisposition to ProstAte Cancer: Targeted screening in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers and controls (IMPACT) Consortium; and the Prevention and Observation of Surgical Endpoints and Modifiers of Cancer Risk in BRCA1/2 Mutation Carriers (PROSE-Modifiers Studies) (Collaborative Studies of BRCA 1/2 Mutation Carriers) Consortium. He also serves on the InterLymph Coordinating Committee, contributing to the strategic direction of one of the leading global collaborations in lymphoma epidemiology.

In addition, Dr. Divi serves on the management team of the NIH Point-of-Care Technologies Research Network (POCTRN), and as a science officer for two major POCTRN centers: Center for Innovation and Translation of Point-of-Care Technologies for Expanded Cancer Care Access (CITEC) and the Atlanta Center for Microsystems-Engineered Point-of-Care Technologies (ACME POCT). In these roles, he helps guide the development, evaluation, and translation of accessible diagnostic technologies designed to expand the reach of cancer detection and care, including in low-resource settings.

Dr. Divi also provides scientific leadership for multiple funding initiatives that support biomarker development, assay validation, and translational bioengineering. He is the co-program director and contact for several NIH funding opportunities, including the Bioengineering Research Grants (BRG) program (PAR-27-072), Academic-Industrial Partnerships (AIP) for Translation of Technologies for Diagnosis and Treatment (PAR-25-337), Assay Validation of High Quality Markers for Clinical Studies in Cancer (PAR-25-074 and PAR-25-075), Exploratory/Developmental Bioengineering Research Grants (EBRG) (PAR-25-321), and Revision Applications for Validation of Biomarker Assays Developed Through NIH-Supported Research Grants (PAR-24-304). Collectively, these programs help accelerate the development of robust technologies and biomarkers for clinical and population-based cancer research.

Dr. Divi joined EGRP in 2008 from NCI's intramural Laboratory of Cancer Biology and Genetics, where he had built a strong basic research program in molecular mechanisms of carcinogenesis, toxicology and biomarker science. From 2008-2026, he served as a program director in EGRP’s Methods and Technologies Branch, where he managed a portfolio focused on methods and technologies to improve epidemiologic data collection, study design, analytic methods, and validation of emerging technologies for application across the cancer control continuum. In his current role in EEB, he continues to advance research at the intersection of epidemiology, immunology, technology development, and data science.

Before transitioning to extramural science administration, Dr. Divi spent more than a decade as a research investigator in the Carcinogen-DNA Interactions Section of NCI’s Laboratory of Cancer Biology and Genetics. His research focused on elucidating the mechanisms underlying the genotoxicity and carcinogenicity of therapeutic agents and environmental carcinogens. A defining feature of his work was the identification of molecular biomarkers of exposure and biological effect, the development of robust analytical methods and technologies for their measurement, and the rigorous validation of these approaches through intra- and inter-laboratory collaborations. He subsequently applied these tools in collaborative studies of cancer risk in both human populations and experimental models, helping to bridge mechanistic cancer biology with population-based inference.

Prior to joining NCI, Dr. Divi was a scientist at the National Center for Toxicological Research, the research arm of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, where he investigated the antithyroid activity of pharmaceuticals and environmental toxicants. He also contributed to an International Atomic Energy Agency project examining the health effects of trace elements. Across his career, Dr. Divi has combined expertise in molecular biology, toxicology, epidemiologic methods, and translational technology development to advance rigorous, innovative, and impactful cancer research.