Comings… Goings

Samsiddhi Bhattacharjee

In September, Samsiddhi Bhattacharjee, Ph.D., joined the Biostatistics Branch (BB) as a research fellow after receiving his doctorate in human genetics at the University of Pittsburgh. He also has a master’s degree in statistics from the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata. Working with Nilanjan Chatterjee, Ph.D., he will develop and apply statistical and computational tools for identifying genetic variants, networks, and pathways that affect susceptibility to human diseases.

Aileen Burke

Aileen Burke has joined the Hormonal and Reproductive Epidemiology Branch (HREB) as a predoctoral Cancer Research Training Award (CRTA) fellow. She received her B.S. in pharmacology from the National University of Ireland in Dublin in 2004. She subsequently held laboratory positions at NCI, where she was involved with research on protein-DNA interactions and cell signaling pathways. She is currently completing her M.P.H. in epidemiology at George Washington University. Her training as a molecular biologist and experience in laboratory research involving hormone pathways in cancer make her a valuable addition to the team of investigators clarifying the etiology of female cancers.

After completing a 10-month sabbatical in HREB, Maíre A. Duggan, M.D., has returned to her position as senior gynecologic pathologist and professor at the University of Calgary in Canada.

Kyoji Furukawa

As a special volunteer from the Radiation Effects Research Foundation (RERF) in Hiroshima, Japan, Kyoji Furukawa, Ph.D., has joined the Radiation Epidemiology Branch (REB) for six months. He is an expert in biostatistics and has a special interest in developing Bayesian analytical methods applicable to radiation risk estimates in the RERF cohort studies of atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With mentoring from Kiyohiko Mabuchi, M.D., Dr.P.H., he is studying radiation risk assessment in radiation-exposed cohorts.

Stephanie George, M.P.H., M.A., has joined the Nutritional Epidemiology Branch (NEB) as a predoctoral fellow under the Yale University/NCI Partnership Training Program. She will be working with mentors Demetrius Albanes, M.D., and Dr. Susan Mayne, from the Yale School of Public Health, to better explore the association between energy balance and breast cancer among breast cancer survivors and healthy individuals with a focus on evaluating specific aspects of diet, anthropometry, and physical activity.

Stephanie George

After a two-year research fellowship in REB, Kwang Pyo Kim, Ph.D., returned to Korea to take a position in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Kyung Hee University in September. During his time in REB, Dr. Kim served as the dosimetrist for studies of cancer risk among medical personnel providing fluoroscopically guided procedures and among patients undergoing computed tomography scans.

Michael F. Leitzmann, M.D., Dr.P.H., left NEB to direct the Institute of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine at the University of Regensburg in Germany.

Nancy Carter receives DCEG Special Appreciation Award from Joseph Fraumeni.

After a long career, including 32 years of federal service and 13 years in the private sector, Nancy Carter retired from the Epidemiology and Biostatistics Program (EBP) in June. She began her NIH career at the National Institute of Mental Health in the Child Psychiatry Branch and, after five years, moved to NCI, where she worked first in the former Environmental Epidemiology Branch. As the long-time secretary to Robert N. Hoover, M.D., Sc.D., Director of EBP, she brought her professional administrative skills and cheerful personality to bear upon every situation. She was directly responsible for the administrative oversight of every aspect of the program, including personnel, budget, travel, site visits, and contracts. In addition, she coordinated the diethylstilbestrol study group, including its annual meetings and conferences.

In August, Yan Li, Ph.D., left BB after two years as a research fellow to take a position as an assistant professor in the Department of Mathematics of the University of Texas at Arlington.

In June, Sheng Luo, Ph.D., left BB after a two-year stay as a predoctoral/postdoctoral fellow to take a position as an assistant professor in the Division of Biostatistics at the University of Texas School of Public Health in Houston.

Sandra Mora

In July, Sandra Mora joined the Infections and Immunoepidemiology Branch (IIB) as a program support assistant.

After a two-year visiting fellowship in REB, Evgenia Ostroumova, Ph.D., has returned to the Epidemiology Laboratory at the Urals Research Center for Radiation Medicine in Chelyabinsk, Russia. She worked with Martha S. Linet, M.D., M.P.H. (REB), and Susan S. Devesa, Ph.D. (BB), on an analysis of international variation in incidence of childhood hematopoietic malignancies. She will continue to work on a study of cancer risks for adults and people exposed in utero in the Techa River population with Elaine Ron, Ph.D. (REB). She also worked on the Ukrainian-American Chornobyl Thyroid Study, analyzing the dose-response relationship between iodine-131 and prevalent mild hypothyroidism.

After a year as a visiting scientist in the Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch (OEEB), Dong-uk Park, Ph.D., has returned to the Department of Environmental Health in the Korea National Open University in Seoul. During his stay, he pursued his interest in research on occupational exposures to metalworking fluids, lead, and asbestos.

Ju-Hyun Park

In September, Ju-Hyun Park, Ph.D., joined BB as a CRTA fellow after completing his doctorate in biostatistics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a predoctoral fellowship at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. He will be working with Dr. Chatterjee to develop Bayesian statistical approaches for flexible design and analysis of epidemiologic studies.

Cristina Poscablo, a predoctoral fellow in OEEB, has left to attend medical school at George Washington University. During her stay in OEEB, she assisted Lee E. Moore, Ph.D., on molecular and epigenetic studies of bladder cancer conducted in Argentina, Spain, and New England.

Lisa Prokop

Lisa Prokop has joined the Office of Communications and Special Initiatives as an NCI Health Communications Intern. She is currently a student at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she is pursuing an M.H.S. with a concentration in health communication. She is working with Alyssa Voss, M.P.H., and Jennifer Loukissas, M.P.P., in responding to press and congressional inquiries, preparing DCEG investigators for interactions with the media, and translating scientific findings into practical and accessible public health messages.

Edgar Simard, M.P.H., has joined IIB as a predoctoral fellow. He received a B.S. in public health from Southern Connecticut State University and an M.P.H. from the Emory University Rollins School of Public Health. He previously worked as an epidemiologist at CDC. He is currently a Ph.D. candidate in the epidemiology program at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey School of Public Health. For his dissertation research, he will be working with Eric A. Engels, M.D., M.P.H., to examine cancer among persons with late-stage AIDS.

Edgar Simard

In August, Dana M. Van Bemmel, Ph.D., M.P.H., left OEEB to join the NCI Center for Cancer Training as the Associate Director for the Cancer Prevention Fellowship Program. During her Cancer Prevention Fellowship in OEEB, she worked with Dr. Moore on molecular epidemiology studies of renal and bladder cancer, collaborated with various members of the Division, and worked on projects with investigators in the Division of Cancer Prevention and the Center for Cancer Research.

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