Melissa A. Austin, PhD, MS

Professor, Epidemiology
Adjunct Professor, Bioethics and Humanities

Joint Member, Public Health Sciences, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center

Contact Information
University of Washington
Box 357236
Department of Epidemiology
F-261G Health Sciences Building
Seattle, WA 98195-7236
Tel: 206-616-9286
Fax: 206-543-8525
maustin@u.washington.edu

Affiliations
Institute For Public Health Genetics
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Joint Member )

Research Interests
Dr. Austin's research program focuses on the genetic epidemiology of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and pancreatic cancer. Her NIH-funded projects have included studies of the genetics of lipoprotein disorders among hyperlipidemic families, the genetics of the metabolic syndrome among Japanese Americans, and candidate gene studies of pancreatic cancer. She is currently a co-investigator of the Northwest-Alaska Pharmacogenetics Research Network.

Teaching Interests
Dr. Austin teaches EPI517/PHG511, Genetic Epidemiology, in the spring quarter. She served as founding Director of the UW Institute for Public Health Genetics (IPHG) from 1997 through 2011. With her leadership, and in collaboration with the Schools of Medicine, Law, Pharmacy, and Nursing, and the Washington State Department of Health, three entirely new interdisciplinary graduate degree programs in Public Health Genetics were created and implemented: an MPH, a Graduate Certificate, and a Ph.D. degree.The IPHG is nationally and internationally recognized as the leader in Public Health Genetics education.

In addition to her activities in the School of Public Health, Dr. Austin served as Associate Dean of the UW Graduate School from 2005 to 2007. She also served on the Advisory Council for the NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute from 2000 to 2004, and was an Established Investigator of the American Heart Association from 1994 to 1999. She was on sabbatical in 2001 as an Honorary Visiting Fellow at the University of Cambridge attached to the Public Health Genetics Unit and a Visiting Professor at the Centre for Cardiovascular Genetics at University College London

Education
PhD, Epidemiology, University of California (Berkeley) 1985
MS, Biostatistics, University of California Los Angeles 1975

Projects
Northwest-Alaska Pharmacogenomics Research Network
http://sop.washington.edu/pgrn


Women's Health Initiative Clinical Coordinating Center
http://www.fhcrc.org/science/phs/cprp/projects/whi_ccc.html

Links
FHCRC Faculty Homepage - for center news and research projects
SciVal Experts Page