Behnoosh Momin, DrPH, MS, MPH

Biography

Behnoosh Momin, DrPH, MS, MPH, is a program director in the Environmental Epidemiology Branch (EEB) of the Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program (EGRP) in NCI's Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS). In her role, she supports epidemiologic research on modifiable risk factors and cancer in diverse populations to advance the prevention and control of cancer; identifies scientific gaps and develops novel research opportunities; leads and participates in cross-disciplinary collaborations across NIH, and in public, private, and academic sectors; and mentors cancer prevention fellows.

Dr. Momin is involved in several cross-NCI efforts and trans-NIH scientific initiatives, including the Cohorts for Environmental Exposures and Cancer Risk, the Liver Cirrhosis Network, Cancer Epidemiology Cohorts: Building the Next Generation of Research Cohorts, and the Community Partnerships to Advance Science for Society (ComPASS): Health Equity Research Hubs. She also serves as NCI’s lead for the Environmental Health Disparities Centers Program.

Dr. Momin is the scientific contact across research areas including Interventions to Address Disparities in Liver Diseases and Liver Cancer (R01 - Clinical Trials Optional), with an interest in environmental exposures (e.g., alcohol, infections, chemical exposures) as it relates to liver cancer prevention. She is the scientific contact for the Justice Community Opioid Innovation Network (JCOIN) U24 Community Engagement Research Resource Center, where her interests include the integration of HCV/HIV screening, treatment, and mitigation of the social determinants of health for the incarcerated population. Dr. Momin also serves as the scientific contact for the Environmental Health Disparities Centers Program with a focus on environmental health disparities, social determinants, and environmental justice and cancer research. She is also interested in the built and neighborhood environment and its relation to cancer control, and serves as the scientific contact for Understanding the Intersection of Social Inequities to Optimize Health and Reduce Health Disparities: The Axes Initiative.

Dr. Momin is engaged in several NIH/NCI working groups including the Health Disparities Research Network; NIH-wide Environmental Justice Research; Policy Research; Alcohol and Cancer; and the Environmental Health and Implementation Science working groups. She also serves as the founder and co-chair of the NCI-wide Environmental Justice and Cancer working group. Dr. Momin serves on two federal interagency groups including the Climate Change and Human Health group, which is part of the U.S. Global Change Research Program, as well as the Cancer Cabinet’s Screening and Prevention Task Force to reduce disparities in ubiquitous carcinogenic chemical exposures.

Before joining NCI, Dr. Momin was a health scientist for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Division of Cancer Prevention and Control’s Comprehensive Cancer Control Branch, Scientific Support and Clinical Translation Team. Her role involved providing scientific expertise to a diverse range of studies. Notably, under the Obama-Biden administration, she served as a project lead on an American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)-funded research study aimed at identifying promotional and cessation interventions for tobacco control to reduce cancer rates. Dr. Momin was presented with the CDC and ATSDR Honor Award for Excellence in Public Health Protection for her work by former CDC Director, Dr. Thomas Frieden. She is also the recipient of CDC’s Special Act Award for her contributions to create strategies related to creating communities of practice to focus on efforts to address the social determinants that influence health and inequities in health.

Dr. Momin is involved with numerous cancer epidemiology research initiatives, including co-founding CDC’s tobacco related cancers workgroup and leading liver cancer research demonstration projects, with a focus on underserved and high-risk populations across US states, tribes, and territories funded under the National Comprehensive Cancer Control Program. She served as co-chair of the vaccine preventable cancers workgroup on the Comprehensive Cancer Control National Partnership, in which NCI is one of 19 federal and national partners providing strategic direction to the cancer control coalitions.

During her career, Dr. Momin’s voluntary interests include serving on the Editorial Board for Frontiers in Oncology, Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention and a peer reviewer for other cancer prevention and control journals. She has also served as a student supervisor for CDC’s Student Workforce and Experience Program (SWEP). Dr. Momin has delivered presentations at several national conferences and moderated sessions.

Select Publications

See a list of articles published by Dr. Momin in PubMed.