Anna Wu, PhD

Professor Emerita

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Overview

Dr. Wu’s research focuses on the epidemiology of cancer with emphasis on understanding the increase of various (e.g., breast, ovarian, colon) cancers among Asian migrants to the US. A unifying theme of my research is to identify modifiable lifestyle and environmental factors to reduce the risk of specific cancers and to improve outcomes among those diagnosed with cancer. In addition to observational epidemiologic studies, I have conducted a series of controlled intervention studies to investigate the short-term effects of dietary (e.g., soy, green tea) and hormonal (e.g., oral contraceptives) agents on breast-tissue (e.g., mammographic density) and circulating sex hormones and other biomarkers.
Since 2014, I began to use the well-established Multiethnic Cohort (MEC) to address research questions on environmental exposures (e.g., air pollution, endocrine disrupting chemicals) that have been challenging to study. In addition, I am participating in two multicenter survivorship studies on breast cancer and ovarian cancer.

Education and Training

  • University of California, Los Angeles — PhD — 1983 — Epidemiology

Publications

  • Characterization of Additive Gene-environment Interactions For Colorectal Cancer Risk. Epidemiology. 2025 01 01; 36(1):126-138.. View in PubMed
  • Racial and ethnic differences in epithelial ovarian cancer risk: an analysis from the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium. Am J Epidemiol. 2024 09 03; 193(9):1242-1252.. View in PubMed
  • Pre-diagnosis tea and coffee consumption and survival after a diagnosis of ovarian cancer: results from the Ovarian Cancer Association Consortium. Br J Cancer. 2024 Oct; 131(6):1043-1049.. View in PubMed
  • Two genome-wide interaction loci modify the association of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs with colorectal cancer. Sci Adv. 2024 05 31; 10(22):eadk3121.. View in PubMed
  • Integrative multi-omics analyses to identify the genetic and functional mechanisms underlying ovarian cancer risk regions. Am J Hum Genet. 2024 06 06; 111(6):1061-1083.. View in PubMed
  • Association between Airport Ultrafine Particles and Lung Cancer Risk: The Multiethnic Cohort Study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2024 05 01; 33(5):703-711.. View in PubMed
  • Exposure to outdoor ambient air toxics and risk of breast cancer: The multiethnic cohort. Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2024 06; 259:114362.. View in PubMed
  • Genetic risk impacts the association of menopausal hormone therapy with colorectal cancer risk. Br J Cancer. 2024 06; 130(10):1687-1696.. View in PubMed
  • The Association of Alcohol Outlet Density With Alcohol Intake: The Multiethnic Cohort. J Stud Alcohol Drugs. 2024 Jul; 85(4):453-462.. View in PubMed
  • Racial and Ethnic Differences in the Population-Attributable Fractions of Alzheimer Disease and Related Dementias. Neurology. 2024 02 13; 102(3):e208116.. View in PubMed