Robert A. Hiatt, MD, PhD

Robert A. Hiatt, MD, PhD

Professor, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, UCSF; Associate Director of Population Sciences, UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center

Cancer Center Program Membership

Cancer Control

[email protected]

UCSF Box 0560
550 16th Street, Second Floor
San Francisco, CA 94143-0560

UCSF Profiles

Research Summary

I am Professor and immediate past Chair of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at UCSF and also the Associate Director of Population Sciences for the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. I have a demonstrated record in cancer epidemiology, especially focused on breast cancer, health inequities, environmental health research, global health science, implementation science and in leading successful and productive large-scale, multi-component research projects. As reflected in my publication record, I am strongly interested in the conduct of and training in transdisciplinary, team and translational science and was responsible for developing the PhD program in Epidemiology and Translational Science at UCSF. I was the first deputy director of the National Cancer Institute's Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (1998-2003), where, among other things, I oversaw the extramural cancer epidemiology, health services research and surveillance programs (SEER). I am a past president of the American College of Epidemiology and the American Society of Preventive Oncology. Between 2003 and 2016 I led the Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Program and its Coordinating Center in San Francisco and served on the National Academy's Board of Environmental Studies and Toxicology from 2012-2018. Currently at UCSF I am the Principal Investigator of the National Precision Medicine Initiative, All of Us, and I direct the San Francisco Cancer Initiative (SF CAN).

Research Funding

  • August 5, 1999 - May 31, 2028 - Cancer Center Support Grant , Co-Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: P30CA082103
  • June 26, 2023 - April 30, 2028 - The Upstream Center: Income Interventions to Address the Fundamental Causes of Cancer , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: U54CA280811
  • May 1, 2024 - May 31, 2027 - All of Us Coast-to-Coast Strong UBR Recruitment, Retention, and Facilitation (C2C SURRF) through Innovation , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: OT2OD037644
  • May 1, 2016 - April 30, 2027 - Translational Epidemiology - Training for Research on Aging and Chronic disease , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: T32AG049663
  • August 27, 2012 - February 28, 2019 - Addressing disparities in chronic disease with a teen and young adult focus , Co-Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: P60MD006902
  • September 1, 2010 - April 30, 2017 - Breast Cancer and the Environment Research Program Coordinating Center , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: U01ES019457
  • September 29, 2003 - July 31, 2012 - Bay Area Breast Cancer &the Environment Research Center , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: U01ES012801
  • September 30, 1994 - September 14, 2005 - CLIN CTR CLIN TRIAL/OBSERVATIONAL STUDY OF WHI , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: N01WH042121
  • September 30, 1992 - November 30, 2003 - CANCER SCREENING, MANAGED CARE, AND THE UNDERSERVED , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: P01CA055112
  • May 1, 1996 - April 30, 1999 - CASE-CONTROL STUDY OF MAMMOGRAPHY , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: R01CA063128
  • September 25, 1991 - August 31, 1997 - BREAST AND CERVICAL CANCER INTERVENTION STUDY , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: R01CA054605
  • September 30, 1989 - September 29, 1993 - STUDIES OF ENVIRON CAN UTILIZING PREPAID HEALTH PLANS , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: N01CP095606
  • September 30, 1984 - June 29, 1989 - STUDY ENVIRONMENTAL CANCER USING PRE-PAID HEALTH PLANS , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: N01CP041058

Education

Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, B.A., 1964, Zoology
Univ. of Michigan Med School, Ann Arbor, MI, M.D., 1968, Medicine
San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA, Internship, 1969
U.S. Public Health Service Hospital, San Francisco, CA, Residency, 1971
Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA, MPH, PhD, 1972, 1980, Epidemiology

Honors & Awards

  • 1967-1968
    Victor Vaughn Medical Historical Society, University of Michigan Medical School
  • 1968
    Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Children’s Bureau Fellowship, Belgrade, Yugoslavia
  • 1991
    American Epidemiological Society
  • 1998-1999
    President, American College of Epidemiology
  • 2001
    National Institutes of Health Merit Award, Quality of Cancer Care Committee
  • 2002
    National Institutes of Health Merit Award, Cancer Progress Report; 2002, National Institutes of Health Director's Award, Cancer Progress Report
  • 2003-2004
    President, American Society of Preventive Oncology
  • 2010
    National Cancer Institute, Visiting Scholar, Epidemiology & Genetics Program
  • 2018
    Influential Alumni Award, University of California, Berkeley, School of Public Health
  • 2022
    Resident Scholar, Bellagio Center Rockefeller Foundation, Bellagio, Italy

Selected Publications

  1. Han E, Crosbie E, Ling P, Perez S, Khan H, Hiatt R, Kearns C. Tobacco industry influence on breast cancer research, policy and public opinion: scoping the Truth Tobacco Industry Documents. Tob Control. 2026 Jul 28; 35(4):517-527. View on PubMed
  2. Canchola AJ, Pruitt SL, Lin K, Boscoe FP, Guan A, Henry KA, Hiatt RA, Hughes AE, Insaf TZ, Pinheiro PS, Rathod AB, Shahan K, Stroup AM, Zhu H, Gomez SL, Shariff-Marco S. Ethnic Enclave Residence and Breast, Cervical, and Colorectal Cancer Incidence among Asian American Adults, 2006 to 2017. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2026 Jul 01; 35(7):1139-1150. View on PubMed
  3. Hiatt RA, Burgess JL, Mathur P, Nogueira LM. Climate Change and Environmental Exposures Across the Cancer Continuum: Implications for Oncology. Am Soc Clin Oncol Educ Book. 2026 Jun; 46(3):e521654. View on PubMed
  4. Fiscalini A, Blum K, Fergus K, Hiatt RA, Naeim A, Kaster A, Scheuner MT, van 't Veer LJ, LaCroix AZ, Borowsky AD, Olopade OI, Park HL, Esserman J, Lancaster R, Heditsian D, Brain S, Lee V, Goodman DL, Ross KS, Wenger N, Parker BA, Madlensky L, Tice JA, Shieh Y, Ziv E, Arasu VA, Anton-Culver H, Kaplan CP, Rhoads KF, Badal K, Hogarth M, Petruse A, Soto IA, Leggat-Barr K, Goodman S, Atamer J, Ryu R, Adduci K, Matthews JB, Eklund M, Athena/WISDOM Network Collaborators and Advocate Partners, Sabacan LP, Esserman L. WISDOM randomized trial comparing risk-based versus annual breast cancer screening: study cohort characteristics and design. NPJ Breast Cancer. 2026 May 24. View on PubMed
  5. Consortium of the Center to End Corporate Harm, University of California, San Francisco, Chartres N, Apollonio DE, Bero LA, Bialous S, Crosbie E, Hendlin YH, Hiatt RA, Kearns C, Knight KR, Ling PM, Lustig RH, Redberg RF, Schmidt LA, Tasker K, Teherani A, Woodruff TJ. Corporate Vectors of Chronic Disease - Using Internal Industry Documents to Craft Counterstrategies. N Engl J Med. 2026 Mar 26; 394(12):1231-1237. View on PubMed
  6. Santiago-Rodríguez EJ, White JS, Bailey ZD, Allen IE, Hiatt RA, Shariff-Marco S. Residential segregation and late-stage colorectal cancer in the United States: a population-based study of 1.2 million adults. Am J Epidemiol. 2026 03 17; 195(4):1163-1174. View on PubMed
  7. Esserman LJ, Fiscalini AS, Naeim A, Van't Veer LJ, Kaster A, Scheuner MT, LaCroix AZ, Borowsky AD, Anton-Culver H, Olopade OI, Esserman J, Lancaster R, Madlensky L, Blanco AM, Ross KS, Goodman DL, Tong BS, Hogarth M, Heditsian D, Brain S, Lee V, Blum K, Kim MO, Sabacan LP, Fergus KB, Yau C, Park HL, Parker BA, Kaplan C, Rhoads KF, Eder S, Adduci K, Matthews JB, Wenger NS, Shieh Y, Hiatt RA, Ziv E, Tice JA, Eklund M. Risk-Based vs Annual Breast Cancer Screening: The WISDOM Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2026 03 03; 335(9):763-774. View on PubMed
  8. Fergus KB, Ross KS, Scheuner MT, Blanco AM, Tice JA, Ziv E, Shieh Y, van 't Veer L, Olopade OI, Goodman DL, Tong BS, Harvey H, DeRosa D, Risty L, Silver E, Kaster A, Fiscalini AS, Blum K, Heise R, Sabacan L, Heditsian D, Brain S, Petruse A, Eklund M, Hiatt RA, Borowsky AD, Naeim A, Park HL, LaCroix AZ, Parker BA, Lancaster R, Esserman J, Wenger N, Arasu V, Anton-Culver H, Esserman LJ, Madlensky L. Germline Pathogenic Variants Among Women Without a History of Breast Cancer: A Secondary Analysis of the WISDOM Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2026 03 01; 186(3):344-352. View on PubMed
  9. Leggat-Barr K, Lewis T, Tice JA, Tsopurashvili E, Sayaman R, Warner P, Malvin K, Sabacan L, Perry-Solomon A, Theiner S, Acerbi I, Griffin A, McGuire J, Lee V, Borowsky AD, Wisdom Study and Athena Breast Health Network Investigators and Advocate Partners, Eklund M, Kaplan C, Hiatt RA, Fiscalini AS, Kerlikowske K, Shieh Y, Esserman L, Van't Veer L. Breast cancer risk level and prediction of tumor aggressiveness in the Athena Breast Health Network. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2026 Jan 28; 215(3):65. View on PubMed
  10. Fiscalini A, Blum K, Fergus K, Hiatt RA, Naeim A, Kaster A, Scheuner MT, van 't Veer LJ, LaCroix AZ, Borowsky AD, Olopade OI, Park HL, Esserman J, Lancaster R, Heditsian D, Brain S, Lee V, Goodman DL, Ross KS, Wenger N, Parker BA, Madlensky L, Tice JA, Shieh Y, Ziv E, Arasu VA, Anton-Culver H, Kaplan CP, Rhoads KF, Badal K, Hogarth M, Petruse A, Soto IA, Leggat-Barr K, Goodman S, Atamer J, Ryu R, Adduci K, Matthews JB, Eklund M, Athena/WISDOM Network Collaborators and Advocate Partners, Sabacan LP, Esserman L. WISDOM Randomized Trial Comparing Risk-Based Versus Annual Breast Cancer Screening: Study Cohort Characteristics and Design. Res Sq. 2025 Dec 15. View on PubMed
  11. Hiatt RA, Kennedy AE, Adams AK, Basen-Engquist KM, Bondy ML, Carvajal-Carmona LG, Fouad M, Grusky DB, Matthews P, McNeill LH, Phillips E, Pinheiro LC, Pisu M, Rechis R, Rehkopf DH, Tamimi RM, Terry MB, Wetter DW, Srinivasan S. The Persistent Poverty Initiative's Framework to Address Social and Economic Determinants of Cancer. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2025 Aug 01; 34(8):1235-1239. View on PubMed
  12. Hawes MR, Chakravarty D, Cheng J, Handley MA, Tsoh JY, Lin TK, Hiatt RA, Vijayaraghavan M. The Healthy Homes Study: Protocol for a cluster randomized trial of a place-based smoke-free home intervention in affordable housing. PLoS One. 2025; 20(7):e0328786. View on PubMed
  13. Santiago-Rodriguez EJ, Shariff-Marco S, Bailey ZD, White JS, Allen IE, Hiatt RA. Residential Segregation and Colorectal Cancer Screening in the United States, 2010 to 2018. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2025 May 02; 34(5):705-713. View on PubMed
  14. Carvalho MM, Bah A, Azrib S, Hiatt RA, Boutayeb S, Belyamani L, Soliman AS, Khalis M. Evaluation of performance indicators of a national breast cancer screening program in Casablanca, Morocco. BMC Cancer. 2025 Apr 04; 25(1):612. View on PubMed
  15. Hiatt RA, Xun W, Santiago-Rodríguez EJ, Pikhartova J, Shelton N. Socio-economic position, area-level deprivation and gradients in cancer incidence: England and Wales, 1971-2016. BMC Public Health. 2025 Feb 24; 25(1):741. View on PubMed
  16. Hiatt RA. The Abraham Lilienfeld Award of the American College of Epidemiology - Not staying in our lane, September 11, 2024. Ann Epidemiol. 2025 03; 103:61-63. View on PubMed
  17. Guan A, Shariff-Marco S, Henry KA, Lin K, Meltzer D, Canchola AJ, Arizpe A, Rathod AB, Hughes AE, Kroenke CH, Gomez SL, Hiatt RA, Stroup AM, Pinheiro PS, Boscoe F, Zhu H, Pruitt SL. Latino Enclaves and Healthcare Accessibility: An Ecologic Study Across Five States. J Gen Intern Med. 2025 03; 40(4):739-748. View on PubMed
  18. Tesfaye S, Cronin RM, Lopez-Class M, Chen Q, Foster CS, Gu CA, Guide A, Hiatt RA, Johnson AS, Joseph CLM, Khatri P, Lim S, Litwin TR, Munoz FA, Ramirez AH, Sansbury H, Schlundt DG, Viera EN, Dede-Yildirim E, Clark CR. Measuring social determinants of health in the All of Us Research Program. Sci Rep. 2024 04 16; 14(1):8815. View on PubMed
  19. Bleil ME, Appelhans BM, Gregorich SE, Hiatt RA, Roisman GI, Booth-LaForce C. Pubertal timing: A life course pathway linking early life risk to adulthood cardiometabolic health. PLoS One. 2024; 19(3):e0299433. View on PubMed
  20. Van Loon K, Breithaupt L, Ng D, DeBoer RJ, Buckle GC, Bialous S, Hiatt RA, Volberding P, Hermiston ML, Ashworth A. A roadmap to establishing global oncology as a priority initiative within a National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2024 03 07; 116(3):345-351. View on PubMed

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