Mariana C. Stern, PhD

Professor of Clinical Population and Public Health Sciences

the Ira Goodman Chair in Cancer Research

Associate Director for Population Science at USC NCCC

Vice Chair for Culture and Engagement

Websites

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Overview

Dr. Stern obtained her undergraduate training in Biology at the University of Buenos Aires, School of Sciences, in Argentina with a focus on molecular and evolutionary genetics. She obtained her PhD in Cancer Biology at the University of Texas-MD Anderson Cancer Center and pursued postdoctoral training in molecular epidemiology at the National Institutes of Environmental Health Sciences, National Institutes of Health. At USC, she is currently Director for the Molecular Epidemiology MS/PhD Program and teaches to undergraduates and graduate students enrolled in graduate programs in Preventive Medicine. Her overall research interests cut across the following main themes: diet and cancer, clinical epidemiology of prostate cancer, and cancer health disparities in Latino populations.

Education and Training

University of Buenos Aires, School of Sciences, Buenos Aires, Argentina — BS, MS — 1992 — Biology
University of Texas, Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Tx — PhD — 1992 — Cancer Biology
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, NIH, Research Triangle Park, NC — Postdoctoral Training — 2001 — Epidemiology

Research Funding

ADVANCE Population Cancer Research (PCR) Training
NIH · T32CA293959 · Sep 1, 2024 – Aug 31, 2029 · Role: Principal Investigator
Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Equity Center
NIH/NCI · 2 U54 CA233465-6 · Sep 1, 2023 – Aug 31, 2028 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
1/3 Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Center
NIH · U54CA233396 · Sep 19, 2018 – Aug 31, 2028 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
3/3 Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Center
NIH · U54CA233465 · Sep 19, 2018 – Aug 31, 2028 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
2/3 Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Center
NIH · U54CA233444 · Sep 17, 2018 – Aug 31, 2028 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
Diagnosing clinically-significant prostate cancer in African American men: Systematic random versus MR-image-fusion guided biopsy
NIH · R01CA205058 · Sep 2, 2016 – Aug 31, 2021 · Role: Principal Investigator

Media

ENLACE Study Explores Colorectal Cancer in Hispanic and Latino People (10/18/2023)
Biden’s Moonshot fund to support USC researchers (2/23/2022)
Cancer Moonshot funds will help USC researchers reduce health disparities in cancer research (1/26/2022)
Discussing Cancer Health Disparities (10/02/2020)
To diversify research, USC teams with Florida universities on cancer disparities (10/25/2018)
With a newly required cancer warning label, we discuss if coffee is safe to drink (04/02/2018)
Go ahead and drink your coffee, public health experts say (03/30/2018)
For Latinos, cancer risks can depend on heritage (08/29/2016)
Ni el café ni el mate: la temperatura del agua podría causar cáncer de esófago (06/16/2016)
Café ardiendo, bacon… La OMS nos quita todo los que nos gusta (06/16/2016)
Hot Drinks May Cause Cancer, According To World Health Organization (06/16/2016)
WHO: Coffee itself isn't cancerous, but watch out for 'very hot' beverages (06/15/2016)
It's not the coffee that will give you cancer, it's how hot it is (06/15/2016)
Directa la relación entre la carne roja y el cáncer (03/08/2016)
A Scientist Who Worked on the World Health Organization's Report on Red and Processed Meats Answers All Your Burning Questions (10/27/2015)
The Science Behind How Bacon Causes Cancer (10/26/2015)
Eating red meat may raise bladder cancer risk (11/20/2012)
Pan-fried meat increases risk of prostate cancer, new study finds (08/16/2012)
Should I eat hot dogs?

Publications

Patient-Provider Communication and Treatment Decision-Making among Latino Men with Prostate Cancer: A Qualitative Study. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2026 Jul 30.. View in PubMed
Access to Care and Patient Safety Measures: Placement in Healthcare Quality Frameworks, Degree to Which They Meet Criteria Used to Select and/or Prioritize Quality Measures, and Mapping to the National Quality Strategy Levers. Am J Med Qual. 2026 Jul 08.. View in PubMed
TGF-β Pathway-Based Polygenic Risk Score Modifies the Association between Red Meat Intake and Colorectal Cancer Risk: Application of a Novel Pathway-Based PRS Method. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2026 Jun 02; 35(6):973-986.. View in PubMed
Examining the Intersection between Drivers of Disparities: Social Determinants and Stress Reactivity in African American Breast Cancer Survivors. Cancer Res Commun. 2026 Mar 01; 6(3):698-705.. View in PubMed
Genetic risk factors modulate the association between physical activity and colorectal cancer. BMC Med. 2026 02 05; 24(1).. View in PubMed
Assessing barriers to genomic testing in breast cancer among diverse patients: a qualitative community-engaged research study. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2025 Dec 29; 215(2):47.. View in PubMed
Assessing the Content and Quality of Online Patient Education Material on Clinical Trials From NCI-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2025 Dec 18; 24(1).. View in PubMed
Using gene-environment interactions to explore pathways for colorectal cancer risk. EBioMedicine. 2025 Nov; 121:105964.. View in PubMed
Genetic risk factors modulate the association between physical activity and colorectal cancer. Res Sq. 2025 Sep 02.. View in PubMed
Training the Next Generation of Researchers to Advance Cancer Health Equity: Five Years of Experience from the Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Equity Center. J Cancer Educ. 2026 Jun; 41(3):426-434.. View in PubMed
Self-identification of Pelvic Floor Disorder Symptoms Among Latina Women: The Roles of Knowledge, Attitude, Behaviors, Beliefs, and Psychosocial Factors. J Racial Ethn Health Disparities. 2026 06; 13(3):2333-2344.. View in PubMed
Red meat intake interacts with a TGF-β-pathway-based polygenic risk score to impact colorectal cancer risk: Application of a novel approach for polygenic risk score construction. medRxiv. 2025 Jun 16.. View in PubMed
Optimizing participant and community engagement in cancer genomic sequencing research. Genet Med. 2025 Sep; 27(9):101483.. View in PubMed
Colorectal Tumors in Diverse Patient Populations Feature a Spectrum of Somatic Mutational Profiles. Cancer Res. 2025 May 15; 85(10):1928-1944.. View in PubMed
Understanding the reasons for declining to participate in cancer genetics and genomic studies in the USA: a scoping review protocol. BMJ Open. 2025 Apr 30; 15(4):e093998.. View in PubMed
Building research infrastructure to advance precision medicine in colorectal cancer. JNCI Cancer Spectr. 2025 Apr 30; 9(3).. View in PubMed
de novo metastases in patients with primary colorectal cancer: a Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results analysis. Cancer Causes Control. 2025 Sep; 36(9):937-946.. View in PubMed
Somatic Genomic Profiling of Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinomas From a Diverse Cohort of Patients. Pancreas. 2025 03 01; 54(3):e171-e178.. View in PubMed
Assessment of MYC Gene and WNT Pathway Alterations in Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Among Hispanic/Latino Patients Using Integrated Multi-Omics Approaches. medRxiv. 2025 Feb 22.. View in PubMed
Circulating microRNAs and alcohol consumption in the multiethnic cohort study. Alcohol. 2025 05; 124:105-110.. View in PubMed
Patient-Physician Communication Experience Modifies Racial/Ethnic Health Care Disparities Among Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results-Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Participants With Colorectal Cancer and Multiple Chronic Conditions. Med Care. 2025 03 01; 63(3):256-265.. View in PubMed
Impact of Structural Racism and Social Determinants of Health on Disparities in Breast Cancer Mortality. Cancer Res. 2024 Dec 02; 84(23):3924-3935.. View in PubMed
Integrative multi-omics profiling of colorectal cancer from a Hispanic/Latino cohort of patients. medRxiv. 2024 Nov 15.. View in PubMed
Prostate Cancer Disparities in Clinical Characteristics and Survival among Black and Latino Patients Considering Nativity: Findings from the California Cancer Registry. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2024 Nov 01; 33(11):1512-1522.. View in PubMed
A sustainable and expedited ‘One-Stop’ prostate cancer diagnostic pathway to reduce environmental impact and enhance accessibility. BJUI Compass. 2024 Dec; 5(12):1278-1287.. View in PubMed
Characterization of Additive Gene-environment Interactions For Colorectal Cancer Risk. Epidemiology. 2025 01 01; 36(1):126-138.. View in PubMed
Identification of Priorities for Colorectal Cancer Screening Interventions Among US Hispanic/Latino Populations. Am J Public Health. 2024 07; 114(S6):S515-S524.. View in PubMed
Colorectal cancer outcomes among Hispanic/Latino patients in the United States: a scoping review protocol. JBI Evid Synth. 2024 07 01; 22(7):1347-1354.. View in PubMed
Fruits and vegetables intake and bladder cancer risk: a pooled analysis from 11 case-control studies in the BLadder cancer Epidemiology and Nutritional Determinants (BLEND) consortium. Eur J Nutr. 2024 Oct; 63(7):2477-2498.. 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
Genome-wide interaction study of dietary intake of fibre, fruits, and vegetables with risk of colorectal cancer. EBioMedicine. 2024 Jun; 104:105146.. View in PubMed
Genetic risk impacts the association of menopausal hormone therapy with colorectal cancer risk. Br J Cancer. 2024 Jun; 130(10):1687-1696.. View in PubMed
Mentoring Minority Cancer Researchers of Tomorrow: Comparison of the Face-to-Face, Virtual, and Hybrid Training Methods of the CaRE2 Summer Cancer Research Education and Training Program. J Cancer Educ. 2024 08; 39(4):405-412.. View in PubMed
Spectrum of somatic mutational features of colorectal tumors in ancestrally diverse populations. medRxiv. 2024 Mar 15.. View in PubMed
Social network analysis of the CaRE2 health equity center: Team science in full display. Clin Transl Sci. 2024 03; 17(3):e13747.. View in PubMed
Genome-Wide Gene-Environment Interaction Analyses to Understand the Relationship between Red Meat and Processed Meat Intake and Colorectal Cancer Risk. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2024 03 01; 33(3):400-410.. View in PubMed
It is time to talk openly about menopause in academia. Nat Hum Behav. 2024 Jan; 8(1):6-7.. View in PubMed
Associations Between Patient Experience With Care, Race and Ethnicity, and Receipt of CRC Treatment Among SEER-CAHPS Patients With Multiple Comorbidities. J Natl Compr Canc Netw. 2023 12 27; 22(1D):e237074.. View in PubMed
The Latin America and the Caribbean Code Against Cancer: an opportunity for empowerment and progress. Lancet Reg Health Am. 2023 Dec; 28:100644.. View in PubMed
Characterizing prostate cancer risk through multi-ancestry genome-wide discovery of 187 novel risk variants. Nat Genet. 2023 12; 55(12):2065-2074.. View in PubMed
Disparities among Black and Hispanic colorectal cancer patients: Findings from the California Cancer Registry. Cancer Med. 2023 11; 12(22):20976-20988.. View in PubMed
Latin American and the Caribbean Code Against Cancer 1st edition: Weight, physical activity, diet, breastfeeding, and cancer. Cancer Epidemiol. 2023 10; 86.. View in PubMed
Latin America and the Caribbean Code Against Cancer 1st edition: Tobacco and nicotine-related products, secondhand smoke, and alcohol and cancer. Cancer Epidemiol. 2023 10; 86.. View in PubMed
Florida-California Cancer Health Equity Center (CaRE2) Community Scientist Research Advocacy Program. J Cancer Educ. 2023 10; 38(5):1429-1439.. View in PubMed
Genome-wide interaction analysis of folate for colorectal cancer risk. Am J Clin Nutr. 2023 11; 118(5):881-891.. View in PubMed
A Genetic Locus within the FMN1/GREM1 Gene Region Interacts with Body Mass Index in Colorectal Cancer Risk. Cancer Res. 2023 08 01; 83(15):2572-2583.. View in PubMed
Training Community African American and Hispanic/Latino/a Advocates on Prostate Cancer (PCa): a Multicultural and Bicoastal Approach. J Cancer Educ. 2023 10; 38(5):1719-1727.. View in PubMed
Association of nativity with survival among adults with hepatocellular carcinoma. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2023 07 06; 115(7):861-869.. View in PubMed
Probing the diabetes and colorectal cancer relationship using gene – environment interaction analyses. Br J Cancer. 2023 08; 129(3):511-520.. View in PubMed
Genome-wide Association Study of Bladder Cancer Reveals New Biological and Translational Insights. Eur Urol. 2023 07; 84(1):127-137.. View in PubMed
Priorities to Promote Participant Engagement in the Participant Engagement and Cancer Genome Sequencing (PE-CGS) Network. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2023 04 03; 32(4):487-495.. View in PubMed
Genome-wide Interaction Study with Smoking for Colorectal Cancer Risk Identifies Novel Genetic Loci Related to Tumor Suppression, Inflammation, and Immune Response. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2023 03 06; 32(3):315-328.. View in PubMed
Evidence of Novel Susceptibility Variants for Prostate Cancer and a Multiancestry Polygenic Risk Score Associated with Aggressive Disease in Men of African Ancestry. Eur Urol. 2023 07; 84(1):13-21.. View in PubMed
Author Correction: Deciphering colorectal cancer genetics through multi-omic analysis of 100,204 cases and 154,587 controls of European and east Asian ancestries. Nat Genet. 2023 Mar; 55(3):519-520.. View in PubMed
Florida-California Cancer Research, Education and Engagement (CaRE2) Health Equity Center: Structure, Innovations, and Initial Outcomes. Cancer Control. 2023 Jan-Dec; 30:10732748231197878.. View in PubMed
Deciphering colorectal cancer genetics through multi-omic analysis of 100,204 cases and 154,587 controls of European and east Asian ancestries. Nat Genet. 2023 01; 55(1):89-99.. View in PubMed
Genome-Wide Interaction Analysis of Genetic Variants With Menopausal Hormone Therapy for Colorectal Cancer Risk. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2022 08 08; 114(8):1135-1148.. View in PubMed
Adding a One Health approach to a research framework for minority health and health disparities. Elife. 2022 07 07; 11.. View in PubMed
Cognitive Testing of PAIN Report It-Spanish in Monolingual Hispanic Adults. Cancer Nurs. 2023 Sep-Oct 01; 46(5):364-374.. View in PubMed
Beyond GWAS of Colorectal Cancer: Evidence of Interaction with Alcohol Consumption and Putative Causal Variant for the 10q24.2 Region. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2022 05 04; 31(5):1077-1089.. View in PubMed
Cancer Epidemiology in Hispanic Populations: What Have We Learned and Where Do We Need to Make Progress? Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2022 05 04; 31(5):932-941. Fejerman L , Ramirez AG, Nápoles A . View in PubMed
Family History and Risk of Bladder Cancer: An Analysis Accounting for First- and Second-degree Relatives. Cancer Prev Res (Phila). 2022 05 03; 15(5):319-326.. View in PubMed
The 10th Annual Symposium on Global Cancer Research: New Models for Global Cancer Research, Training, and Control. JCO Glob Oncol. 2022 05; 8:1-3.. View in PubMed
A Rare Germline HOXB13 Variant Contributes to Risk of Prostate Cancer in Men of African Ancestry. Eur Urol. 2022 05; 81(5):458-462.. View in PubMed
Role of funders in addressing the continued lack of diversity in science and medicine. Nat Med. 2021 11; 27(11):1859-1861.. View in PubMed
Developing a Novel Framework for an Undergraduate Cancer Research Education and Engagement Program for Underrepresented Minority Students: the Florida-California CaRE2 Research Education Core (REC) Training Program. J Cancer Educ. 2021 10; 36(5):914-919.. View in PubMed
Evidence for racial/ethnic disparities in emergency department visits following breast cancer surgery among women in California: a population-based study. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2021 Jun; 187(3):831-841.. View in PubMed
Publisher Correction: Trans-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of prostate cancer identifies new susceptibility loci and informs genetic risk prediction. Nat Genet. 2021 Mar; 53(3):413.. View in PubMed
Trans-ancestry genome-wide association meta-analysis of prostate cancer identifies new susceptibility loci and informs genetic risk prediction. Nat Genet. 2021 01; 53(1):65-75.. View in PubMed
Presentation, Management, and Outcomes Across the Rural-Urban Continuum for Hepatocellular Carcinoma. JNCI Cancer Spectr. 2021 02; 5(1).. View in PubMed
Cancer health disparities in racial/ethnic minorities in the United States. Br J Cancer. 2021 01; 124(2):315-332.. View in PubMed
A Germline Variant at 8q24 Contributes to Familial Clustering of Prostate Cancer in Men of African Ancestry. Eur Urol. 2020 09; 78(3):316-320.. View in PubMed
A data mining approach to investigate food groups related to incidence of bladder cancer in the BLadder cancer Epidemiology and Nutritional Determinants International Study. Br J Nutr. 2020 09 28; 124(6):611-619.. View in PubMed
Psychosocial Stress, Glucocorticoid Signaling, and Prostate Cancer Health Disparities in African American Men. Cancer Health Disparities. 2020; 4.. View in PubMed
Cancer awareness crusades-pink ribbons and growing moustaches. Lancet Oncol. 2019 11; 20(11):1491-1492.. View in PubMed
Differences in Pancreatic Cancer Incidence Rates and Temporal Trends Across Asian Subpopulations in California (1988-2015). Pancreas. 2019 08; 48(7):931-933.. View in PubMed
Diet, physical activity, obesity and related cancer risk: strategies to reduce cancer burden in the Americas. Salud Publica Mex. 2019 Jul-Aug; 61(4):448-455.. View in PubMed
A genome-wide association study of prostate cancer in Latinos. Int J Cancer. 2020 04 01; 146(7):1819-1826.. View in PubMed
One-Stop MRI and MRI/transrectal ultrasound fusion-guided biopsy: an expedited pathway for prostate cancer diagnosis. World J Urol. 2020 Apr; 38(4):949-956.. View in PubMed
The association between coffee consumption and bladder cancer in the bladder cancer epidemiology and nutritional determinants (BLEND) international pooled study. Cancer Causes Control. 2019 Aug; 30(8):859-870.. View in PubMed
Modeling the Complex Exposure History of Smoking in Predicting Bladder Cancer: A Pooled Analysis of 15 Case-Control Studies. Epidemiology. 2019 05; 30(3):458-465.. View in PubMed
Association of genetic ancestry with colorectal tumor location in Puerto Rican Latinos. Hum Genomics. 2019 02 20; 13(1):12.. View in PubMed
Treatment of Patients With Early-Stage Colorectal Cancer: ASCO Resource-Stratified Guideline. J Glob Oncol. 2019 02; 5:1-19.. View in PubMed
Early Detection for Colorectal Cancer: ASCO Resource-Stratified Guideline. J Glob Oncol. 2019 02; 5:1-22.. View in PubMed
Author Correction: Association analyses of more than 140,000 men identify 63 new prostate cancer susceptibility loci. Nat Genet. 2019 02; 51(2):363.. View in PubMed
Histological Validation of 11Carbon-Acetate Positron Emission Tomography/Computerized Tomography in Detecting Lymph Node Metastases in Prostate Cancer. J Urol. 2019 02; 201(2):332-341.. View in PubMed
Novel Common Genetic Susceptibility Loci for Colorectal Cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2019 02 01; 111(2):146-157.. View in PubMed
Which Patients with Negative Magnetic Resonance Imaging Can Safely Avoid Biopsy for Prostate Cancer? J Urol. 2019 02; 201(2):268-276. Oishi M, Shin T, Ohe C, Nassiri N , Palmer SL, Aron M , Ashrafi AN . View in PubMed
Mitochondrial biology and prostate cancer ethnic disparity. Carcinogenesis. 2018 12 13; 39(11):1311-1319.. View in PubMed
The Role of Provider Characteristics in the Selection of Surgery or Radiation for Localized Prostate Cancer and Association With Quality of Care Indicators. Am J Clin Oncol. 2018 Nov; 41(11):1076-1082.. View in PubMed
Consumption of red and processed meat and breast cancer incidence: A systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies. Int J Cancer. 2018 12 01; 143(11):2787-2799.. View in PubMed
Contrast-Enhanced Transrectal Ultrasound for Follow-up After Focal HIFU Ablation for Prostate Cancer. J Ultrasound Med. 2019 Mar; 38(3):811-819.. View in PubMed
Association analyses of more than 140,000 men identify 63 new prostate cancer susceptibility loci. Nat Genet. 2018 07; 50(7):928-936.. View in PubMed
Fine-mapping of prostate cancer susceptibility loci in a large meta-analysis identifies candidate causal variants. Nat Commun. 2018 06 11; 9(1):2256.. View in PubMed
Comparative oesophageal cancer risk assessment of hot beverage consumption (coffee, mate and tea): the margin of exposure of PAH vs very hot temperatures. BMC Cancer. 2018 03 01; 18(1):236.. View in PubMed
Active Surveillance for Prostate Cancer: Are We Failing Latino Patients at a Large Safety Net Hospital? Clin Genitourin Cancer. 2018 08; 16(4):e719-e727. Ballas LK, Kraus R, Ji L , Groshen S, Stern MC . View in PubMed
Migration from Mexico to the United States: A high-speed cancer transition. Int J Cancer. 2018 02 01; 142(3):477-488.. View in PubMed
Two Novel Susceptibility Loci for Prostate Cancer in Men of African Ancestry. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2017 08 01; 109(8).. View in PubMed
DNA mismatch repair deficiency and hereditary syndromes in Latino patients with colorectal cancer. Cancer. 2017 Oct 01; 123(19):3732-3743.. View in PubMed
Identifying aggressive prostate cancer foci using a DNA methylation classifier. Genome Biol. 2017 01 12; 18(1):3.. View in PubMed