CPC Research Program Co-Leader
Tuesday, August 19, 2025
University of Illinois Cancer Center member Kristen Malecki, PhD, MPH, a Professor and Division Director of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences in the UIC School of Public Health, is the new co-leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control (CPC) Research Program at the Cancer Center.
She joins co-leader Lisa Tussing-Humphreys, PhD, MS, RD, a Professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Nutrition at the UIC College of Applied Health Sciences, in leading the CPC Program, 1 of 3 research programs at the Cancer Center. Cancer Biology and Translational Oncology are the other research programs.
Kristen Malecki, PhD, MPH
The goal of the CPC Program is to identify cancer risk factors, prevent cancer, and reduce cancer morbidity and mortality — by supporting optimal cancer treatment, adherence, and survivorship — to improve health outcomes. The focus is on tackling persistent cancer outcome disparities in populations served by the Cancer Center and UI Health. Collectively, research program leaders work to create collaborative team science opportunities among Cancer Center members.
Malecki’s translational environmental health research focuses on the examination of the combined impacts of chemical (air pollution, water pollution), physical and social stressors, and their influence on adult chronic diseases, aging and health disparities. The Tussing-Humphreys Lab uses epidemiological, clinical, social, behavioral, and molecular tools and assessments to understand the complex relationship between environmental exposures, including diet, and colorectal cancer risk disparities.
