 | |
 |
Our Faculty
The Department of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC has been pivotal in advancing the field.
The Department is known for its strong research, excellence in teaching and commitment to promoting community health
through education.Thanks to the foresight of its founders, the Department has become world renowned for its research, faculty and vision.
This large cohort study is currently being conducted in the multiethnic populations of Los Angeles and Hawaii.
The total population enrolled in this study includes approximately 32,000 African Americans, 50,000 Latinos,
57,000 Japanese, 48,000 Caucasians, 13,000 Hawaiians, and 8,000 Filipinos.A mailed questionnaire was used to collect information on the normal consumption of approximately 175 foods and beverages
as well as information of ethnicity, certain medical diagnoses, physical activity, and for women, reproductive factors and use of estrogen.
The dietary component comprises the major portion of the questionnaire and covers all the major sources of
nutrients for each of the ethnic populations.
The university's seal displays three torches, representing the arts,
the sciences, and philosophy.
In heraldic language,
the torch is a symbol
of learning. In the background is the
setting sun,
representing the
West and (in heraldic symbolism)
power and life.
Embracing the torches
and sun is a California poppy, the USC
flower and heraldic
symbol of growth. Completing the seal
is the school motto.
Dr. Brian E. Henderson, the study director, has been a Professor at the U.S.C. School of Medicine since 1970. From 1983 until
1994 he served as Director of the Kenneth Norris Jr. Comprehensive Cancer Center at U.S.C. and in 1992 he became a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences. Dr. Henderson is internationally known for his research work on cancer causes and prevention.
Brian E. Henderson,
Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine, and Kenneth Norris Jr. Chair in
Cancer PreventionFor his pioneering research and distinguished service to USC, Henderson was awarded the1 999 Presidential Medallion
by President Steven B. Sample during convocation ceremonies on March 9."It's a real honor to be recognized by the university for my contributions.
It's not just a personal recognition, but also a tribute to the work of my
colleagues in the Department of Preventive Medicine and the Cancer Center,"
said Henderson."I am extremely grateful to the University for allowing me the opportunity to pursue an academic life.
I have a great passion for scientific discovery," he added.For Henderson, who has been at the university for nearly 30 years, it marks recognition of a long and distinguished career.
Henderson is a world-recognized authority in cancer epidemiology, and he has conducted ground-breaking
research on the influence of hormones and genetic factors on the causation of cancers of the breast, ovary,
endometrium and prostrate.As the director USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center from 1983 through
1993, Henderson guided USC/Norris to a position of national prominence in
cancer research and treatment and has received many top honors.In
recognition of his scientific achievements, he was inducted into the Institute
of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences in 1992.Additional honors include the University of Chicago's Distinguished Service
Award and the Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Foundation Award. A native
Californian, Henderson graduated from UC Berkeley and the University of
Chicago School of Medicine. He completed his internship and residency at Massachusetts General Hospital.His early research was in virology. He spent six years in the Arbovirology Unit
at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta, then traveled to Africa,
to study yellow fever. Upon his return, he accepted a faculty position with
USC in 1970 and began his studies in cancer epidemiology.
Ronald K. Ross , M.D.
Professor Department ChairDr. Ross is a cancer epidemiologist whose research activities involve primarily identifying causes of cancer and developing
strategies for preventing cancer.
His research centers around hormonally related cancers, especially breast,
ovary, endometrium, and prostate. He has done extensive research on the
chronic health risks and benefits associated with hormone replacement therapy,
including cancer effects, heart disease, and osteoporosis. He is currently
working on strategies for preventing prostate cancer by blocking the
activity of a prostatic enzyme, 5-alpha reductase. His research is also heavily involved in international collaborative
efforts to identify dietary causes of cancer, especially with researchers in the People's Republic of China.
His other main research interest is related to bladder cancer, and he is
working especially to understand why some populations with a high
prevalence of smoking (the major risk factor for bladder cancer) have a low incidence of bladder cancer.
He is exploring whether genetically determined differences in the metabolism of arylamines, a bladder carcinogen in
cigarette smoke, might explain these observations.
Research Interests:
Epidemiology of hormone related cancers; international collaborative efforts to identify dietary causes of cancer, especially
with researchers in the People's Republic of China.
Malcolm Pike
Flora L. Thornton Chair in Preventive Medicine at the USC School of Medicine
Dr. Pike's research interests are concentrated on the cause and prevention of female cancers.
Current major research efforts include:
(1) development of a hormonal contraceptive designed to significantly reduce breast cancer in
young women;
(2) studies of the effects of diet on risk of female cancers in a
large multi-ethnic cohort ( African-Americans, Japanese-Americans, Latinas,
Native-Hawaiians, Whites);
(3) studies of the genetics of hormonal factors of
importance in the cause of female cancers in the multi-ethnic cohort and in case-control studies; and
(4) studies designed to find improved forms of menopausal hormone replacement therapy.
Daniel O. Stram
Associate Professor Preventive Medicine (Division of Biostatistics) School of Medicine
My research is on general biostatistical issues in epidemiology, and I am a long time collaborator on a number of important
prospective (cohort) studies of cancer and other diseases. These include the Atomic Bomb Survivors Study,
the Multiethnic Cohort Study, and the Children's Health Study. I participate in many other projects in the Preventive Medicine Department
at USC. I have particular interest in measurement error issues in dosimetry for radiation epidemiology and in dietary assessment for
nutritional epidemiology. I have recently begun working on association-based testing for the influence upon cancer risk of genomic
variation in candidate genes using nested case-control studies within the MEC, with special emphasis on haplotype-based risk
estimation and haplotype-tagging SNP selection. See the publications and software development list below, for further information.
Juergen K. Reichardt
Associate Professor Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Institute for Genetic Medicine, Preventive MedicineAs human geneticists and biochemists we wish to understand how the human genome in conjunction with the
environment produces the multitude of human phenotypes. We are particularly interested in the contribution of
human genetic variation to common, complex significant public health problems. We also have an interest in
understanding the genetics of human metabolism and genetic variation thereof.This laboratory has a longstanding tradition of characterizing human galactose-metabolic enzymes and associated diseases.
We are currently also investigating two complex disease phenotypes with significant public health impact: various cancers and
heart disease. Our strategy is to dissect these diseases through a step-wise, "candidate gene" approach. Our choice of candidate
genes for these diseases was dictated by the hypothesized involvement of particular metabolic pathways in pathogenesis.
In prostate cancer we are currently investigating three androgen metabolic genes since androgens have been reported to
regulate cell division in the prostate. We have focused on the steroid 5a-reductase type II (SRD5A2) locus and are currently
exploring also the HSD3B2 and HSD17B3 genes.
Gerhard A. (Gerry) Coetzee
Associate Professor Molecular Microbiology & Immunology, Urology, Preventive Medicine
Conceptually it is possible to distinguish between two types of genetic alterations associated with cancer,
namely germline and somatic. Some single inherited genetic traits (germline) that are necessary and sufficient
to cause cancer are rare and have low population risks. More common are multiple susceptibility genes
(oligogenic) each with a low absolute risk, but with potentially high population risks, especially in combinations.
One major goal of our work is to understand the oligogenic nature of prostate cancer (PCa), which likely involve
more than one gene combined with environmental exposures, in complex gene-gene and gene-environmental
interactions. The well-known androgen dependence of prostate cancer has led to the postulate that androgens
and genes associated with the androgen response of prostate cells, might contribute to the development of this
form of familial disease. We have shown that the polymorphic androgen receptor (AR) contributes significantly to
PCa predisposition and have defined high-risk alleles. We have furthermore discovered a new mechanism that
"fine-tunes" the functions and effects of androgens in the prostate, which entails novel protein-protein interactions
of the polymorphic androgen receptor with specific partners during the process of target gene transcription.
On the other hand, somatic genetic changes at the AR locus contribute to the progression of PCa to androgen i
ndependence. Recent studies suggest that resistance to androgen ablation is not due to loss of androgen sensitivity,
but develop as a consequence of a deregulated androgen-signaling axis due to amplification or mutation of the AR gene,
or even ligand independent activation of the AR by growth factors and cytokines. A second major goal of our work is to
understand how gain-of-function somatic mutations of the androgen receptor affect phenotype and how this knowledge
can be used to develop better therapy designs for advanced androgen independent cancers.
This website created and maintained by Sophia Gomez
University of Southern California, Department of Preventive Medicine
©2004
