Senior Leaders

Associate Director for Population Sciences John P. Pierce

Associate Director of Cancer and Prevention John P. Pierce

 

John P. Pierce, PhD
Professor of Family and Preventive Medicine
Sam M. Walton Chair for Cancer Research

John P. Pierce, PhD is responsible for leading the research activities of this large and well-funded division and for coordinating investigations on the prevention of cancer with research on health education and community outreach. This position reports to, and works in close conjunction with, the Deputy Director, Research Operations, to achieve coordination of research on prevention of cancer and population studies with investigators in the Clinical and Basic Divisions. He is a member of the Executive Cabinet, and participates in shaping Center policies to achieve greater integration of the work of its three Divisions towards the goal of fostering research for the ultimate benefit of cancer patients.

In addition, Pierce:

  • Advises the Center Director
  • Confers with the Deputy Director, Research Operations to develop ways to promote inter-divisional interactions
  • Assigns funding for pilot projects
  • Advises the Leaders of those Shared Resources most commonly used by population science researchers (Biostatistics, Data Compilation [and co-leads], Nutrition) of potential opportunities to enhance services
  • Identifies timely new and relevant shared resource service opportunities
  • Advises on prioritization of shared equipment to be purchased for population science projects in the Center
  • Seeks out faculty whose cancer-relevant research would benefit by membership in the Center, and whose contribution to it would benefit the research effort of the whole enterprise
  • Reviews new member applications and level of membership based upon the formal criteria outlined by the Center Director
  • Interacts with the appropriate Leader regarding the programmatic placement of new members
  • Organizes Divisional Retreats
  • Acts as the leadership conduit by which programmatic needs can gain support from available Center resources.

John Pierce, PhD is the Sam M. Walton Professor for Cancer Research in the Department of Family & Preventive Medicine. He is a fellow of the American College of Epidemiology and also of the Society for Behavioral Medicine. He has led the cancer prevention and control effort at UCSD for nine years, shepherding it from a developing program through to divisional status. In 1999, Pierce won two major honors: the Doll/Wynder Award for epidemiological/public policy research by the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco, and the Cullen award for excellence in tobacco research from the American Society for Preventive Oncology. Pierce coordinates the Maurice and Charmaine Kaplan distinguished lectureship in Cancer Prevention which is offered each year. The 1999 lecturer recipient was Sir Richard Doll who presented a classic public address entitled “50 years of progress in Cancer Prevention.”

Pierce has had wide international experience in cancer epidemiology, and preventive and social medicine at Universities in Australia, Canada, Mexico and the United States. He has also held the post of Chief of the Epidemiology Branch of the Office on Smoking and Health, at the Center for Diseases Control in Rockville MD, is nationally and internationally recognized for his work on tobacco control, and is outstandingly qualified to head this Division.