CPRTP Summer Program Alumni
The foundation of the Cancer Prevention Research Training Program is cancer prevention research and the cultivation of the mentoring relationship between students and professors. Our alumni play an essential role in the research and education missions of MD Anderson Cancer Center.
We are very proud of our 25+ year history of this short-term, NCI-funded research experience which has evolved from a 3 to 6-month program of trainees appointed monthly; to a structured 10-week program, now known as the CPRTP Summer Research Experience, as part of the MD Anderson Summer Experience.
Many of our short-term alumni go on to build careers as prominent leaders in the areas such as academia, cancer prevention, cancer research, administration, consulting, patient care, health communications, and global health, at institutions all over the United States.
Project:
Discrimination, Self-Rated Health, and Cancer Risk Behaviors Among an African-American Church-Based Sample
Primary Mentor:
Dr. Lorraine Reitzel*
Health Disparities Research
(*)Dr. Reitzel is a 2007 CPRTP Postdoc alumni and was a Professor of Health Disparities Research at MD Anderson from 2007 to 2013. She is now a Principal Investigator and Professor in the Department of Psychological, Health and Learning Sciences (PHALS) at the Univeristy of Houston.
(During the CPRTP summer program) I learned the importance of primary prevention.
There are great benefits in promoting primary prevention in communities
(and in doing so), we prevent people, particularly those of low
socio-economic status & who lack access to care, from being victims
of cancer.
CPRTP Short-Term & Summer Alumni
Alumni at MD Anderson
- Miranda Lee Baum, M.A., Senior Coordinator, Clinical Research Programs, Behavioral Science
- Karla Crawford, M.P.H., Research Dietician, Pediatrics Research
- Kristina Dahlstrom, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Head & Neck Surgery
- Bena E. Ellickaputhenpura, M.S., Physician Assistant, Infectious Diseases
- Kpola Elhor-Gbito, M.D., M.P.H., Assistant Epidemiologist II, Epidemiology
- Siedah Garrison, M.P.H., Senior Research Coordinator, Behavioral Science
- Maosheng Huang, Ph.D., Senior Statistical Analyst, Epidemiology
- Lynn Keerikattu, Pharm.D., Pharmacist, Dept. of Pharmacy
- Kathrin Milbury, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Behavioral Science
- Mala Pande, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Gastroenterology Research
- Altrivice Revis, M.B.A., Project Director, Office of the Division of Pediatrics Administration
- Stacie Scruggs, M.P.H., Director, Division Research Development, Office of the Vice President of Cancer Prevention
- Hui Zhao, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Health Services Research
Alumni at Texas Institutions
- Austin Brown, Ph.D., Instructor, Dept. of Pediatrics, Hematology-Oncology, Baylor College of Medicine
- Samira Kamrudin, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Co-Director MPH Program, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
- David Lopez, Dr.PH, Assistant Professor, Epidemiology, Human Genetics & Environmental Sciences, University of Texas School of Public Health
- Charles Minard, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Biostatistician, Baylor College of Medicine
- Melissa Fleschler Peskin, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Health Promotion and Behavioral Sciences, Univeristy of Texas School of Public Health
- Maria Chang Swartz, Ph.D., MPH, RD, LD, Assistant Professor, Department of Nutrition and Metabolism, University of Texas Medical Branch
Alumni at Other Institutions
- Eric Chi, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Dept. of Statistics, North Carolina State University (Raleigh, NC)
- Adolfo Cuevas, Ph.D., Tenure-Track Professor, Community Health, Tufts University (Medford, MA)
- Jessica Clague DeHart, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Division of Etiology, City of Hope (Duarte, CA)
- Aditi Hazra, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Epidemiology, Harvard School of Public Health (Boston, MA)
- Julie. A. Lord, M.D., Psychiatrist, Positive Psychiatry Private Practice (Seattle, WA)
- Rosenie Thelus Jean, Ph.D., Science Director, Pharmacovigilance Center, Office of the Surgeon General, Department of the United States Army (Washington, DC)
- Nynikka Palmer, Dr.PH, MPH, Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, (Division of General Internal Medicine at SFGH), Urology and Radiation Oncology, University of California San Francisco (San Francisco, CA)
- Siddhartha Roy, Dr.PH, MPH, Assistant Professor, The Pennsylvania State University, Hershey College of Medicine (State College, PA)
- Sarah Rush, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Health Sciences, James Madison University (Harrisonburg, VA)
CPRTP Predoctoral and Postdoctoral Alumni
Read about CPRTP Predoctoral and Postdoctoral Alumni.
Note: As of 2018, the NCI provides funding solely for the CPRTP Summer Research Experience. Our NCI predoctoral fellowship in cancer prevention concluded in 2018. Any future predoctoral fellowship opportunities will be communicated on this website.
Summer Program Rosters
Summer Alumni Perspectives
"I came to MD Anderson with a closed mind about my research capabilities, but that changed on the very first day." -Henry Henderson, Ph.D., 2017
"Both of my mentors were kind and taught me a lot about research and clinical care."-Mariana Henry, 2017
"(Originally) Ortho looked the most tantalizing and I didn’t think about Urology, GI, or Pathology! Being here changed all that!"-Noah Choi, 2018
"I've learned a great deal about myself and how I can make an impact in cancer prevention research."-Princess Ekpo, 2018
"(Cancer) Prevention is a mindset and by the end of the summer program, my entire view of cancer and prevention changed!"-Briana Brown, 2018
"My mentors provided guidance and helped me sort through the gray areas that arise when I set up my next stage career goals."-Dee Jordan, Ph.D., 2013
"The CPRTP has empowered me to pursue a career in cancer prevention with an emphasis on health disparities."-Siddhartha Roy, Ph.D., 2015