Faculty and Trainers

Dezheng Huo, PhD

Dr. Huo’s research interests focus on the genetic, molecular, and environmental factors underlying etiology, prognosis, and treatment of cancers, particularly as they relate to cancer in underserved populations. His research spans across several areas of cancer epidemiology and clinical epidemiology, including:



1. Genetic epidemiology of breast cancer, particular in women of African ancestry with the use of genome-wide association and whole genome sequencing approach.



2. Environmental and lifestyle factors for breast cancer etiology in African women and risk prediction model building, and strategy for cancer screening.



3. Health disparity in breast cancer outcomes in multiethnic patient cohort study with multi-dimensional data.



4. Investigation of the utilization and effectiveness of cancer treatment in real world using Big data.



5. Prenatal exposure to diethylstilbestrol and clear cell adenocarcinoma of vagina and cervix, as well as other health conditions in later life.



6. Epigenetics and non-coding RNAs, such as microRNAs in relationship to cancer prognosis and survival.

Birth cohort differences in reproductive and lifestyle breast cancer risk factors among women in the Nigerian breast cancer study.
Birth cohort differences in reproductive and lifestyle breast cancer risk factors among women in the Nigerian breast cancer study. Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2026 Aug 04; 218(3).
PMID: 42550281

Contextualizing the Utility of Polygenic Risk Scores using Absolute Risk Models in Diverse Ancestry Populations.
Contextualizing the Utility of Polygenic Risk Scores using Absolute Risk Models in Diverse Ancestry Populations. medRxiv. 2026 Jun 04.
PMID: 42282173

Birth Cohort Effects on Colorectal Cancer Onset in Lynch Syndrome.
Birth Cohort Effects on Colorectal Cancer Onset in Lynch Syndrome. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2026 Jun 02.
PMID: 42235869

Polygenic Risk Scores for Breast Cancer Among African American Women With High Risk.
Polygenic Risk Scores for Breast Cancer Among African American Women With High Risk. JAMA Netw Open. 2026 06 01; 9(6):e2619285.
PMID: 42307944

Multi-ancestry transcriptome-wide association studies uncover insights into breast cancer genetics and biology.
Multi-ancestry transcriptome-wide association studies uncover insights into breast cancer genetics and biology. Nat Commun. 2026 May 30; 17(1).
PMID: 42218145

Pragmatic Clinical Trial Assessing Response to Neoadjuvant Docetaxel and Trastuzumab in Nigerian Women With Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive Breast Cancer (ARETTA).
Pragmatic Clinical Trial Assessing Response to Neoadjuvant Docetaxel and Trastuzumab in Nigerian Women With Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Positive Breast Cancer (ARETTA). JCO Glob Oncol. 2026 May; 12(5):e2500287.
PMID: 42214048

Accessible Clinical Tool for Prognosis and Chemotherapy Prediction in Hormone Receptor-Positive/Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Negative Breast Cancer in Diverse and Low-Resource Settings.
Accessible Clinical Tool for Prognosis and Chemotherapy Prediction in Hormone Receptor-Positive/Human Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 2-Negative Breast Cancer in Diverse and Low-Resource Settings. JCO Glob Oncol. 2026 May; 12(5):e2500705.
PMID: 42214047

Advances and disparities in survival of childhood and adolescent cancers.
Advances and disparities in survival of childhood and adolescent cancers. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2026 May 18.
PMID: 42149832

Development and Validation of a Multimodal Clinical, Pathologic, and Genomic Model for Breast Cancer Recurrence.
Development and Validation of a Multimodal Clinical, Pathologic, and Genomic Model for Breast Cancer Recurrence. medRxiv. 2026 May 12.
PMID: 42180367

Prediction of OncotypeDX recurrence score using hematoxylin and eosin-stained whole slide images.
Prediction of OncotypeDX recurrence score using hematoxylin and eosin-stained whole slide images. NPJ Breast Cancer. 2026 May 11; 12(1).
PMID: 42115215

View All Publications

Study section of P01
NIH/NCI
2019

Study section of R01/R21
NIH/NCI
2018 - 2023

Study section of U01, H3Africa
NIH/NHGRI
2017

Study section of P01
NIH/NCI
2017

Runner-up in the Up For A Challenge – Stimulating Innovation in Breast Cancer Genetic Epidemiology
National Cancer Institute
2016

Study section of U54
NIH/NIMHD
2015

Distinguished Investigator Junior Award
University of Chicago
2014

Breast Cancer Research Program study section
U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command
2013 - 2014

Breast Cancer Research Program study section
U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command
2010

Breast Cancer Research Program study section
U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command
2008

Delta Omega
National Honor Society in Public Health
2005

Haenszel Award for Excellence in Research
University of Illinois at Chicago
2005

Student Travel Award
University of Illinois at Chicago
2000