Cancer Epidemiology  (EPI 252)

This course begins on January 22. The deadline to register is January 19.

Winter 2024 (3 units)

The course will cover the fundamentals for descriptive epidemiology and global burden of cancer (incidence, mortality, and survival; time trends); cancer biology (carcinogenesis, genetics, molecular biology); evaluating epidemiologic evidence for cancer risk factors (study designs, causal inference); assessing the cancer risk attributable to specific risk factors/exposures (attributable risk, meta-analysis); important preventable or avoidable exposures (chemicals, nutrition, tobacco, occupation, infection, ionizing radiation); and cancer prevention and control. Emphasis will be on specific preventable exposures for major cancers and methods for assessing opportunities for prevention.

The course is intended to develop skills in the evaluation of risk factors and exposure prevention. Students will participate in hands-on exercises and critical review of journal articles. Participation in class discussion is an important part of the course. Students will prepare a class project and present interim and final presentations of this work.

Objectives

At the end of the course, students will understand:

  • Identify the major sites of cancer and their epidemioligic charachertiscs including age, sex, race and geographic distributions, time trends and major risk factors
  • Understand the molecular basis of cancer and carcinogenesis 
  • Understand the major modifable exposures of etiologic significance, including their possible mechanisms of action, their distribution in the population, and methodologic issues involved in studing them including attributable risks associated with modifiable exposures
  • Understand the concepts of cancer control, complex systems, and social determinants of cancer
  • Understand epidemiologic methods of the context of cancer research

Prerequisites

Epidemiologic Methods (EPI 203). Exceptions to this prerequisite may be made with the consent of the Course Director, space permitting.

Faculty

Course Directors:

Robert Hiatt, MD, PhD

Professor, Epidemiology & Biostatistics
email: [email protected]
 

Catherine Metayer, MD, PhD

Professor, Department of Public Health
email: [email protected]

Format

Course content will be delivered through weekly seminars on Mondays from 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM, Jan. 22 to May 6. Students are encouraged to attend class in person at UCSF or if circumstandes don't permit, via web conference (Zoom) and after notification of the instructor. Note that because the course is co-taught with UC, Berkeley, it begins later in Winter Quater and extends into Spring Quarter.

The daily schedule of activities will be posted on the course's online syllabus.

Materials

All materials will be available on the course's online syllabus.

Grading

Course participation and discussion  30%

  • Attendance and participation in the class disussion
  • Lead class discussion on assigned dates

Mid-term SEER project  20%

Written and oral presentations of research project. 50%

  • Students may select one topic/controversy ofr their final project
  • Selection of topic and interim updates wil be due as noted on the syllabus
  • Final written report and in-class presentation

UCSF students only. A Certificate of Course Completion will be available upon request to individuals who are not UCSF students and satisfactorily pass all course requirements.

UCSF Graduate Division Policy on Disabilities

To Enroll

ATCR and MAS students use the Student Portal

Students taking individual courses:

Course Fees
How to pay (please read before applying)
Only one application needs to be completed for all courses desired during the quarter.

Winter 2024 Course Schedule

Apply for Winter courses by January 19, 2024.