Joseph Leo Wiemels, PhD

Professor of Population and Public Health Sciences

Director of the PhD Program in Epidemiology

Websites

Children's Cancer Research Lab at USC

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Overview

The causes of most human cancers are unclear, but appear to be related to miscues in normal tissue developmental pathways, mutations (genetic and epigenetic) in critical genes caused by errors, infection, and chemicals, and a failure of recognition and removal of tumors by the immune system. Dr. Wiemels studies these factors as potential causes of hematopoietic and brain tumors. Large population-based studies of human cancer in California populations form a basis for examining the origin of these cancers, with a focus on future prevention. This type of research is highly collaborative, and Dr. Wiemels works with several epidemiologists, geneticists, clinicians, biologists, and statisticians.

Education and Training

Kenyon College, Gambier, OH — BA — 05/1988 — Biology
University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley CA — PhD — 05/1997 — Toxicology
Institute of Cancer Research, London, UK — Postdoctoral — 1999 — Molecular etiology of leukemia

Research Funding

Cytomegalovirus as an etiologic and clinico-pathogenic factor in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia
NIH · R01CA268494 · Jun 21, 2022 – May 31, 2028 · Role: Principal Investigator
Immune epigenetic biomarkers of survival in glioma epidemiology
NIH · R01CA207360 · Aug 1, 2017 – Jul 31, 2022 · Role: Co-Investigator
Brain Tumor Epidemiology in the Era of Precision Medicine
NIH · R13CA221308 · Jun 27, 2017 – May 31, 2018 · Role: Principal Investigator
Brain Tumor Epidemiology Consortium
NIH · R13CA206359 · Apr 1, 2016 – Mar 31, 2017 · Role: Principal Investigator
Genetic Susceptibility to Pediatric Glioma inIndividuals and Diverse populations
NIH · R01CA194189 · Sep 9, 2015 – Jan 31, 2021 · Role: Principal Investigator
Perinatal immune development and risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia
NIH · R01CA175737 · Aug 1, 2014 – Jul 31, 2021 · Role: Principal Investigator
Impact of low IL-10 levels at birth and leukemia risk
NIH · R01CA185058 · Jun 1, 2014 – May 31, 2020 · Role: Principal Investigator
Varicella virus antigens in glioma etiology and survival
NIH · U01CA182371 · Mar 6, 2014 – Jan 31, 2019 · Role: Principal Investigator
Genome-Wide Association Study of Childhood Leukemia by Hispanic Status
NIH · R01CA155461 · Jul 1, 2011 – Apr 30, 2017 · Role: Principal Investigator
Meningioma: Risk Factors and Quality of Life
NIH · R01CA109745 · Jun 26, 2006 – Apr 30, 2011 · Role: Principal Investigator
BACKTRACKING TRANSLOCATIONS IN CHILDHOOD LEUKEMIA
NIH · R01CA089032 · Mar 2, 2001 – Aug 31, 2008 · Role: Principal Investigator

Research Keywords

cancer, leukemia, brain cancer, genetics, epigenetics, environment, immunity, development

Publications

Gene-Temperature Interactions and Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. medRxiv. 2026 Jul 10.. View in PubMed
Epigenome-wide association analysis of prenatal organophosphate ester flame retardant exposure in maternal blood implicates maternal immune and neuronal epigenetic alterations. Environ Int. 2026 Jul 03; 214:110393.. View in PubMed
Demographic, birth, parental characteristics, and the risk of early-onset colorectal cancer: A population-based nested case-control study in California. Cancer. 2026 Jul 01; 132(13):e70458.. View in PubMed
RAG-mediated structural variation and its impact on relapse risk in acute lymphoblastic leukemia. medRxiv. 2026 May 22.. View in PubMed
Prenatal Smoking Exposures and Epigenome-Wide Methylation in Newborn Blood. Environ Health Perspect. 2026 Jul 07; 134(3):289-302.. View in PubMed
Targeted and non-targeted analyses of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances in newborn dried blood spots and risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2026 Apr 14.. View in PubMed
Author’s Response to the Commentary by Raitoharju E et al. on “Epigenome-wide analysis across the development span of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia: backtracking to birth”. Mol Cancer. 2026 Apr 10; 25(1).. View in PubMed
Adductomics of Newborn Dried Blood Spots Detects Constituents of Maternal Smoking During Pregnancy and Associated Oxidative Stress Exposure. Antioxidants (Basel). 2026 Mar 25; 15(4).. View in PubMed
The impact of periconceptional folate on the DNA methylome of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Leukemia. 2026 Jun; 40(6):1189-1202.. View in PubMed
Spatial analysis of residential location at birth, PFAS in public water, and childhood cancers in Southern California (2000-2019). J Expo Sci Environ Epidemiol. 2026 Jul; 36(4):629-639.. View in PubMed
Relationship between genetically determined telomere length and childhood glioma risk. Acta Neuropathol Commun. 2026 Feb 10; 14(1).. View in PubMed
Residential proximity to active and abandoned oil and gas development and risk of childhood Ewing sarcoma in California. Environ Health. 2026 Jan 14; 25(1):12.. View in PubMed
Impact of infection and microbial exposures on pediatric cancer. Curr Probl Pediatr Adolesc Health Care. 2025 09; 55(9):101819.. View in PubMed
The relationship of dietary folate, folic acid, and childhood cancer. Curr Probl Pediatr Adolesc Health Care. 2025 09; 55(9):101820.. View in PubMed
Molecular Reactivity in Maternal Pregnancy Blood and Neonatal Dried Blood Spots Is Associated with the Risk of Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2025 Nov 03; 34(11):1979-1988.. View in PubMed
The impact of Indigenous American-like ancestry on the risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Hispanic/Latino children. HGG Adv. 2026 Jan 15; 7(1):100534.. View in PubMed
Genome-wide association study of childhood B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia reveals novel African ancestry-specific susceptibility loci. Nat Commun. 2025 Oct 22; 16(1):8974.. View in PubMed
Investigating the causes of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia through mutational epidemiology. Curr Probl Pediatr Adolesc Health Care. 2025 09; 55(9):101818.. View in PubMed
Predictors of LexisNexis residential history availability and registry data concordance for childhood cancer research. JNCI Cancer Spectr. 2025 Sep 01; 9(5).. View in PubMed
Maternal prenatal infection and childhood leukaemia: a Childhood Cancer and Leukemia International Consortium (CLIC) meta-analysis. Int J Epidemiol. 2025 Aug 18; 54(5).. View in PubMed
The Interrelationship between Preconception Folate Nutritional Intake and Child Genetic Liability in the Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2025 Aug 01; 34(8):1415-1424.. View in PubMed
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substance concentrations during pregnancy and at birth and risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Environ Res. 2025 Nov 15; 285(Pt 3):122436.. View in PubMed
Carcinogenicity of hepatitis D virus, human cytomegalovirus, and Merkel cell polyomavirus. Lancet Oncol. 2025 Jun 26.. View in PubMed
Prenatal Smoking Exposures and Epigenome-wide Methylation in Newborn Blood. Environ Health Perspect. 2025 Jun 06.. View in PubMed
Perinatal Exposures to Ambient Fine Particulate Matter and Outdoor Artificial Light at Night and Risk of Pediatric Papillary Thyroid Cancer. Environ Health Perspect. 2025 May; 133(5):57026.. View in PubMed
Microbiome and pediatric leukemia, diabetes, and allergies: Systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS One. 2025; 20(5):e0324167.. View in PubMed
The impact of Indigenous American-like ancestry on risk of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Hispanic/Latino children. medRxiv. 2025 Apr 10.. View in PubMed
Glioma mutational signatures associated with haloalkane exposure are enriched in firefighters. Cancer. 2025 Mar 15; 131(6):e35732.. View in PubMed
Pre- and Postnatal Exposures to Residential Pesticides and Survival of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancers (Basel). 2025 Mar 14; 17(6).. View in PubMed
Perinatal exposure to ambient fine particle air pollution and risk of childhood ewing sarcoma in a population-based case-control study in California (1988-2015). Environ Health. 2025 03 07; 24(1):6.. View in PubMed
Association of immunoglobulin E levels with glioma risk and survival. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2025 Mar 01; 117(3):545-553.. View in PubMed
Human genomic regions of systemic interindividual epigenetic variation are implicated in neurodevelopmental and metabolic disorders. medRxiv. 2025 Feb 12.. View in PubMed
A first-born twin has a higher risk of acute leukemia in a population-based assessment of cancer in twins in California, and a lower than anticipated rate of twin concordance. Haematologica. 2025 Oct 01; 110(10):2463-2468.. View in PubMed
Prenatal exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from contaminated water and risk of childhood cancer in California, 2000-2015. Environ Epidemiol. 2025 Feb; 9(1):e365.. View in PubMed
The Influence of DNA Repair Genes and Prenatal Tobacco Exposure on Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Gene-Environment Interaction Study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2025 Jan 09; 34(1):100-107.. View in PubMed
Cesarean delivery and blood DNA methylation at birth and childhood: Meta-analysis in the Pregnancy and Childhood Epigenetics Consortium. Sci Adv. 2024 11 29; 10(48):eadr2084.. View in PubMed
Epigenome-wide analysis across the development span of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia: backtracking to birth. Mol Cancer. 2024 10 23; 23(1):238.. View in PubMed
Association of immunoglobulin E levels with glioma risk and survival. medRxiv. 2024 Sep 23.. View in PubMed
Early-life tobacco exposure is causally implicated in aberrant RAG-mediated recombination in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Leukemia. 2024 Nov; 38(11):2492-2496.. View in PubMed
Folate Metabolism and Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Genetic Pathway Analysis from the Childhood Cancer and Leukemia International Consortium. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2024 Sep 03; 33(9):1248-1252.. View in PubMed
High ambient temperature in pregnancy and risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia: an observational study. Lancet Planet Health. 2024 07; 8(7):e506-e514.. View in PubMed
Evaluation of the genetic basis of familial-associated early-onset hematologic cancers in an ancestral/ethnically diverse population. Haematologica. 2024 07 01; 109(7):2085-2091.. View in PubMed
Early-life tobacco exposure is causally implicated in aberrant RAG-mediated recombination in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Res Sq. 2024 Jun 20.. View in PubMed
Genetic variation near GRB10 associated with bone growth and osteosarcoma risk in canine and human populations. Cancer Epidemiol. 2024 Oct; 92:102599.. View in PubMed
Genome-wide assessment of genetic risk loci for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Japanese patients. Haematologica. 2024 04 01; 109(4):1247-1252.. View in PubMed
A noncoding regulatory variant in IKZF1 increases acute lymphoblastic leukemia risk in Hispanic/Latino children. Cell Genom. 2024 Apr 10; 4(4):100526.. View in PubMed
Maternal Prenatal Use of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Illicit Drugs and Associations with Childhood Cancer Subtypes. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2024 03 01; 33(3):347-354.. View in PubMed
Effect of parental adverse childhood experiences on intergenerational DNA methylation signatures from peripheral blood mononuclear cells and buccal mucosa. Transl Psychiatry. 2024 02 12; 14(1):89.. View in PubMed
A Pregnancy and Childhood Epigenetics Consortium (PACE) meta-analysis highlights potential relationships between birth order and neonatal blood DNA methylation. Commun Biol. 2024 01 09; 7(1):66.. View in PubMed
Backtracking to the future: unraveling the origins of childhood leukemia. Leukemia. 2024 02; 38(2):416-419.. View in PubMed
Gene-Environment Analyses Reveal Novel Genetic Candidates with Prenatal Tobacco Exposure in Relation to Risk for Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2023 12 01; 32(12):1707-1715.. View in PubMed
Impact of pinworm infection on the development of murine B-cell leukemia/lymphoma in the presence and absence of ETV6::RUNX1. Haematologica. 2023 12 01; 108(12):3480-3484.. View in PubMed
Evaluating genomic polygenic risk scores for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia in Latinos. HGG Adv. 2023 10 12; 4(4):100239.. View in PubMed
Analysis of DNA methylation at birth and in childhood reveals changes associated with season of birth and latitude. Clin Epigenetics. 2023 09 11; 15(1):148.. View in PubMed
Multi-ancestry genome-wide association study of 4069 children with glioma identifies 9p21.3 risk locus. Neuro Oncol. 2023 09 05; 25(9):1709-1720.. View in PubMed
Association between county-level socioeconomic status and the incidence of and surgical treatment for pituitary adenoma. J Neurosurg. 2024 03 01; 140(3):724-734.. View in PubMed
Effect of Parental Adverse Childhood Experiences on Intergenerational DNA Methylation Signatures. Res Sq. 2023 Jun 26.. View in PubMed
Birth characteristics and risk of Ewing sarcoma. Cancer Causes Control. 2023 Oct; 34(10):837-843.. View in PubMed
Mendelian randomization study of birthweight, gestational age, and risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM. 2023 09; 5(9):101058.. View in PubMed
Evaluating Genomic Polygenic Risk Scores for Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia in Latinos. medRxiv. 2023 Jun 12.. View in PubMed
Antibodies to varicella-zoster virus and three other herpesviruses and survival in adults with glioma. Neuro Oncol. 2023 06 02; 25(6):1047-1057.. View in PubMed
Association between birth characteristics and incidence of pituitary adenoma and craniopharyngioma: a registry-based study in California, 2001-2015. Cancer Causes Control. 2023 Sep; 34(9):757-768.. View in PubMed
High Ambient Temperature in Pregnancy and Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. medRxiv. 2023 May 19.. View in PubMed
Infections and Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Is the Sum Worth More than the Parts? Evidence from Birth Characteristics. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2023 03 06; 32(3):292-294.. View in PubMed
One-Carbon (Folate) Metabolism Pathway at Birth and Risk of Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Biomarker Study in Newborns. Cancers (Basel). 2023 Feb 05; 15(4).. View in PubMed
Evaluation of Maternal Infection During Pregnancy and Childhood Leukemia Among Offspring in Denmark. JAMA Netw Open. 2023 02 01; 6(2):e230133.. View in PubMed
Systemic interindividual epigenetic variation in humans is associated with transposable elements and under strong genetic control. Genome Biol. 2023 01 12; 24(1):2.. View in PubMed
Outdoor artificial light at night, air pollution, and risk of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia in the California Linkage Study of Early-Onset Cancers. Sci Rep. 2023 01 11; 13(1):583.. View in PubMed
Does Cytomegalovirus Play a Role in Pediatric Lymphoblastic Leukemogenesis? JAMA Netw Open. 2023 01 03; 6(1):e2250226. Wiemels JL , Wiemels JL . View in PubMed
Meta-Analysis of DNA Methylation Datasets Shows Aberrant DNA Methylation of Thyroid Development or Function Genes in Down Syndrome. Thyroid. 2023 01; 33(1):53-62.. View in PubMed
Periconceptional folate intake influences DNA methylation at birth based on dietary source in an analysis of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia cases and controls. Am J Clin Nutr. 2022 12 19; 116(6):1553-1564.. View in PubMed
Incorporation of DNA methylation quantitative trait loci (mQTLs) in epigenome-wide association analysis: application to birthweight effects in neonatal whole blood. Clin Epigenetics. 2022 12 01; 14(1):158.. View in PubMed
Birth characteristics and risk of meningioma in a population-based study in California. Neurooncol Adv. 2022 Jan-Dec; 4(1):vdac173.. View in PubMed
Investigating DNA methylation as a mediator of genetic risk in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Hum Mol Genet. 2022 10 28; 31(21):3741-3756.. View in PubMed
DNA methylation at birth in monozygotic twins discordant for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Nat Commun. 2022 10 14; 13(1):6077.. View in PubMed
Associations between early-life and in utero infections and cytomegalovirus-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children. Int J Cancer. 2023 03 01; 152(5):845-853.. View in PubMed
Localized variation in ancestral admixture identifies pilocytic astrocytoma risk loci among Latino children. PLoS Genet. 2022 09; 18(9):e1010388.. View in PubMed
Hispanic Ethnicity Differences in Birth Characteristics, Maternal Birthplace, and Risk of Early-Onset Hodgkin Lymphoma: A Population-Based Case-Control Study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2022 09 02; 31(9):1788-1795.. View in PubMed
Cytomegalovirus proteins, maternal pregnancy cytokines, and their impact on neonatal immune cytokine profiles and acute lymphoblastic leukemogenesis in children. Haematologica. 2022 09 01; 107(9):2266-2270.. View in PubMed
Epigenome-wide association study of acute lymphoblastic leukemia in children with Down syndrome. Blood Adv. 2022 07 26; 6(14):4132-4136.. View in PubMed
Interaction between maternal killer immunoglobulin-like receptors and offspring HLAs and susceptibility of childhood ALL. Blood Adv. 2022 06 28; 6(12):3756-3766.. View in PubMed
Correction to: Common maternal infections during pregnancy and childhood leukaemia in the offspring: findings from six international birth cohorts. Int J Epidemiol. 2022 Jun 13; 51(3):1037.. View in PubMed
Common maternal infections during pregnancy and childhood leukaemia in the offspring: findings from six international birth cohorts. Int J Epidemiol. 2022 06 13; 51(3):769-777.. View in PubMed
Variant to function mapping at single-cell resolution through network propagation. Nat Biotechnol. 2022 11; 40(11):1644-1653.. View in PubMed
Accelerated epigenetic aging in newborns with Down syndrome. Aging Cell. 2022 07; 21(7):e13652.. View in PubMed
Epigenetic dysregulation in meningiomas. Neurooncol Adv. 2022 Jan-Dec; 4(1):vdac084.. View in PubMed
Pleiotropic MLLT10 variation confers risk of meningioma and estrogen-mediated cancers. Neurooncol Adv. 2022 Jan-Dec; 4(1):vdac044.. View in PubMed
Mitochondrial 1555 G>A variant as a potential risk factor for childhood glioblastoma. Neurooncol Adv. 2022 Jan-Dec; 4(1):vdac045.. View in PubMed
Clinical characteristics of cytomegalovirus-positive pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia at diagnosis. Am J Hematol. 2022 06 01; 97(6):E198-E201.. View in PubMed
Development of a Droplet Digital™ PCR DNA methylation detection and quantification assay of prenatal tobacco exposure. Biotechniques. 2022 04; 72(4):121-133.. View in PubMed
Variant to function mapping at single-cell resolution through network propagation. bioRxiv. 2022 Jan 24.. View in PubMed
Decreased IL-10 accelerates B-cell leukemia/lymphoma in a mouse model of pediatric lymphoid leukemia. Blood Adv. 2022 01 08; 6(3):854-865.. View in PubMed
Proximity to endocrine-disrupting pesticides and risk of testicular germ cell tumors (TGCT) among adolescents: A population-based case-control study in California. Int J Hyg Environ Health. 2022 01; 239:113881.. View in PubMed
Genome-wide trans-ethnic meta-analysis identifies novel susceptibility loci for childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Leukemia. 2022 03; 36(3):865-868.. View in PubMed
Mode of Delivery, Birth Characteristics, and Early-Onset Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma in a Population-Based Case-Control Study. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2021 12; 30(12):2286-2293.. View in PubMed
Genetic determinants of blood-cell traits influence susceptibility to childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Am J Hum Genet. 2021 10 07; 108(10):1823-1835.. View in PubMed
Medulloblastoma uses GABA transaminase to survive in the cerebrospinal fluid microenvironment and promote leptomeningeal dissemination. Cell Rep. 2021 Jul 27; 36(4):109475.. View in PubMed
Medulloblastoma uses GABA transaminase to survive in the cerebrospinal fluid microenvironment and promote leptomeningeal dissemination. Cell Rep. 2021 06 29; 35(13):109302.. View in PubMed
Increased burden of familial-associated early-onset cancer risk among minority Americans compared to non-Latino Whites. Elife. 2021 06 22; 10.. View in PubMed
Cytokine Levels at Birth in Children Who Developed Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2021 08; 30(8):1526-1535.. View in PubMed