Research Faculty

Biographical Info

Bio:

I grew up near the NIH campus in Bethesda, MD and had my first job there (aside from a paper route) while in junior high school.  Flash forward a few years and I can probably be best described as a physician epidemiologist with a special interest in prostate cancer.  Between my original stint at NIH and my current job, I have worked as a rural family physician, an occupational/environmental health investigator at the New Jersey Department of Health, a Project Director at the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, and a faculty member in preventive medicine.  After receiving my doctoral degree in cancer epidemiology in 1994, I began to focus my work on the relationship of dietary and hormonal factors to the development and progression of breast and prostate cancer.  Since coming to the Department of Pathology at UIC in 2006, my interests have expanded to include research into the development of tissue-based biomarkers, and most recently, the use of digital imaging techniques to improve our capacity to derive quantitative data from histological images.  This has led to numerous collaborations related to a wide range of diseases.  My own lab focuses on exploring novel ways to apply computer vision and image processing to extract information with clinical predictive value from prostate biopsy and surgical specimens.  In addition to my own research, I serve as Academic Director of the Research Histology and Tissue Imaging Core facility at UIC, and as leader of the Carcinogenesis and Chemoprevention Program in the UIC Cancer Center.  Working with an incredibly diverse and talented group at UIC, I am also privileged to be involved in the Prostate Cancer Working Group, which is building a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary unit aimed at ameliorating the burden of this disease in underserved communities surrounding our institution.  Finally, I am a long-term member and supporter of Physicians for a National Health Plan (http://www.pnhp.org/) – Medicare for all.

Clinical and Research Interests:
Prostate cancer biomarker development
Molecular epidemiology of cancer
Digital microscopy and image analysis

Research Focus:
Biochemical factors in the etiology of prostate and breast cancer
Diet-hormone interactions in cancer etiology
Development of new biomarker tools for molecular epidemiology and cancer chemoprevention
Phase II cancer chemoprevention trials with surrogate endpoints
Antioxoidant depletion and risk of hepatocellular cancer

Research Programs:
Innovative Diagnostics
Prostate
Tissue Imaging

Education:
1971: BA (Biology) – Swarthmore College (Pennsylvania)
1975: MD – University of Pennsylvania
1980: MS (Epidemiology & Biostatistics) – University of Pennsylvania
1994: ScD (Epidemiology) – Harvard University (Cambridge, MA)

PostGraduate Training:
Residency
1975-1976: Family Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical Center (Worcester, MA)

Fellowship
1978-1980: Postdoctoral fellow, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
1991-1993: Research Fellow, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School (Boston, MA)

Board Certifications:
American Board of Preventive Medicine
American College of Preventive Medicine (Fellow)

Awards and Honors:
National Research Service Award, National Institute for Environmental Health Services

Recent Publications:
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