David E. Nelson Joins NCI Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program
The OIA would like to welcome Dr. David E. Nelson, new Director of NCI's Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program (CPFP). Dr. Nelson brings to NCI an extensive career in international public health collaboration and applied research in a number of areas, including alcohol, tobacco, and other risk factors; health services; communication; survey methodology; and injury prevention.
Previously, Dr. Nelson worked as the Senior Scientific Advisor with the Alcohol Team at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In this position, he conducted epidemiologic research on public health approaches to reduce excessive alcohol use among adolescents and adults, and mentored junior scientists. Prior to beginning his position with the Alcohol Team, he spent many years as an epidemiologist and health communication scientist in CDC’s Office on Smoking and Health. He also led the Behavioral Surveillance Branch at CDC, which houses the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), the largest telephone health survey in the world. From 2000-2002, he was a Senior Health Scientist in the NCI Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch, where he spearheaded efforts to develop the Health Information National Trends Survey.
With a medical degree from Oregon Health Sciences University, a master’s degree in public health from the University of Michigan, and a master’s degree in communication from the University of Delaware, Dr. Nelson has served as an author on 90 articles. Additionally, he was lead editor of the book Communicating Public Health Information Effectively: A Guide for Practitioners, which was published by the American Public Health Association in 2002. Dr. Nelson is also the lead author of a forthcoming book, Making Data Talk, with coauthors Brad Hesse and Bob Croyle from NCI’s Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences. This book will be published by Oxford University Press in early 2009.
The NCI CPFP provides postdoctoral training opportunities in cancer prevention and control for individuals from a multiplicity of health sciences disciplines. For additional information on the CPFP, including application instructions, please visit http://www3.cancer.gov/prevention/pob/.
