Cancer affects virtually everyone – through taking actions to prevent cancer, undergoing cancer screening, being treated for a diagnosed cancer, taking care of a loved one who has cancer, experiencing the effects of cancer survivorship, or losing someone to cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, there were over 10 million Americans with a history of cancer alive in 2002. They estimate that 1,399,790 new cases were diagnosed in 2006, and that 564,830 Americans will die of cancer this year, making cancer the second leading cause of death. The estimated overall costs for cancer in 2005 were $209.9 billion, including $74.0 billion for direct medical costs, $17.5 billion for indirect costs, and $118.4 billion for morbidity costs.
As alluded to above, there is an entire continuum of care associated with cancer, including prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, recurrence, and end-of-life. Here at Hopkins GIM, researchers are investigating issues all across the cancer continuum. Through collaborations with our colleagues in the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, the Bloomberg School of Public Health, and across the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, we are investigating questions related to challenges such as determining the appropriate populations to target for genetic testing, addressing the health-related quality of life and supportive care needs of patients undergoing treatment, determining appropriate follow-up care for cancer survivors, and ensuring quality palliative care for patients at the end of life. Information about the faculty working in this research area and their projects is provided below.
Frederick L. Brancati, MD, MHS
Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology; Director, Division of General Internal Medicine; Core Faculty, Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology, and Clinical Research
Research Interests: Type 2 diabetes, hyperinsulinemia, and related conditions as risk factors for cancer incidence and mortality
To see publication abstracts: PUBMED
Jeanne M. Clark, MD, MPH
Associate Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology; Core Faculty, Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology, and Clinical Research
Research Interests: Obesity and diabetes and risk of and screening for related cancers; cancer screening behaviors in obese individuals; nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and risk of and screening for hepatocellular carcinoma
To see publication abstracts: PUBMED
Sydney Dy, MD, MSc
Assistant Professor, Health Policy & Management, Oncology, and Medicine; Physician Leader, Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center Palliative Care Initiative
Research Interests: Quality of cancer care; palliative care; physician-patient decision-making; cancer health services research
To see publication abstracts: PUBMED
Daniel Ford, MD, MPH
Professor of Medicine; Vice Dean for Clinical Investigation, School of Medicine; Core Faculty, Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology, and Clinical Research
Research Interests: smoking cessation, tobacco control, and epidemiology of smoking-related cancers
To see publication abstracts: PUBMED
Gail Geller, ScD, MHS
Professor of Medicine; Heath, Behavior and Society; Health Policy; and Pediatrics; Core Faculty, Berman Institute of Bioethics
Research Interests: Informed consent; physician-patient communication and decision-making under conditions of uncertainty; ethical and psychosocial issues in cancer genetics; end-of-life care; provider well-being; research ethics; complementary and alternative medicine; qualitative research methods
To see publication abstracts: PUBMED
Claire Snyder, PhD
Assistant Professor of Medicine, Oncology, and Health Policy & Management; Co-Chair, Johns Hopkins Cancer Outcomes & Health Services Research Interest Group
Research Interests: Quality of cancer care; patient-reported outcomes assessment; patient functioning and well-being; primary care for cancer survivors
To see publication abstracts: PUBMED
Jessica Yeh, PhD
Assistant Scientist, Epidemiology; Core Faculty, Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research
Research Interests: Methods in epidemiology and controlled trials; clinical research mentorship; diabetes and novel complications; obesity
To see publication abstracts: PUBMED
