Research seminar: November 18, 2016

Overview: Kaiser Center for Health Research and Kaiser Permanente Research Bank

November 18, 2016

Sheila Weinmann, PhD, MPH, Epidemiologist & Meredith Vandermeer, MPH
Center for Health Research
Kaiser Permanente Northwest

The Kaiser Permanente (KP) Research Bank is a nationwide research bank that facilitates studies related to the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease. KP makes this resource—including samples and data—available to scientists who apply to use the information for genetic, epidemiological, and other scientific research. This long-term research program is designed to help scientists understand how people’s health is affected by their genes, behaviors, and the environment.

Dr. Sheila Weinmann is an epidemiologist whose research focuses on cancer etiology, screening, and progression, with particular emphasis on molecular epidemiology. Her interests also include pharmacoepidemiology and infectious disease epidemiology. She has over 20 years’ experience leading cohort and case-control epidemiologic studies and is presently the principal investigator of a grant to study molecular factors in relation to breast cancer recurrence in women on tamoxifen therapy. Dr. Weinmann has also been the principal investigator on epidemiologic studies of prostate cancer screening efficacy, molecular and other factors in relation to prostate cancer mortality after prostatectomy, statin use in relation to breast and prostate cancer recurrence, renal cell cancer risk factors, the molecular biology of renal cell cancer progression, and pregnancy outcomes after surgical treatment for cervical dysplasia.

Meredith Vandermeer is Research Associate in the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente NW. She serves as Project Director for the CERTs Scientific Forum, a science forum supporting the Centers for Education and Research on Therapeutics, a national program funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) that conducts and disseminates research on drug and biologic effectiveness and safety.