Active Research Trials
PRECISE
Precision Approaches to Lung Cancer Screening and Smoking Cessation Treatment in Primary Care (PRECISE)
Annual lung cancer screening and tobacco treatment are pillars of cancer prevention and control yet are often not provided by physicians or received by patients in primary care settings. New evidence suggests that personalized risk feedback including a patient’s genetic and clinical information could highlight the benefits of these practices and engage physicians and patients in improved care. This study will test the impact of a genetically-informed intervention on physicians’ ordering and patients’ completion of lung cancer screening and tobacco treatment in primary care.
For more information about this study, please visit:
MOTIVATE
A Multi-level Intervention to Personalize and Improve Tobacco Treatment in Primary Care (MOTIVATE)
Smoking is a leading cause of premature death, causing more than half of all cancer deaths. However, tobacco treatment is often not provided and not highly effective in primary care. New evidence suggests that a precision treatment approach to motivate and guide treatment based on personal genetic and metabolic markers could improve treatment uptake and quit success. This study will test the impact of a multilevel precision treatment intervention on improving tobacco treatment and health outcomes in primary care.
For more information about this study, please visit:
NIH RePORTER (Grant R01DA056050)
Our Team
Li-Shiun Chen, MD, MPH, ScD
Professor, Department of Psychiatry; Director, Tobacco Treatment Program, Siteman Cancer Center; Psychiatrist, BJC Behavioral Health
I am a physician scientist with research interest in improving clinical care of smoking cessation. My research areas include smoking cessation treatments, pharmacogenetics/personalized medicine, cross-populational studies of smoking, gene-environmental interactions, and longitudinal studies. Our goal is to allow physicians and patients to use most effective treatments with least side effects, and better predict health risks. I have received NIH funding to conduct different research projects on smoking cessation and treatments. Since 2015, I have been a member in the NIDA Genetics Consortium, a group of leading scientists spearheading this nation’s efforts to understand genetic causes of substance dependence. In addition, I am a board-certified psychiatrist and see patients at BJC Behavioral Health Clinics. I am a co-director for the course of cross-cultural psychiatry for Washington University Psychiatry Residency Program, teaching faculty for the MPHS program, and I serve as a reviewer for a number of journals and an ad-hoc reviewer for NIH study sections. Alex Ramsey, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry
Laura Bierut, MD
Alumni Endowed Professor of Psychiatry
As a physician scientist, I lead several studies funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to study environmental and genetic contributions to smoking behaviors, addiction and other psychiatric and medical illnesses. Recently my work has moved into the translation of scientific discoveries into clinical care. I am an active member in the National Institute on Drug Abuse Genetics Consortium, a national group of scientists who are leading efforts to understand the underlying genetic causes of substance use disorder. I was appointed to the National Advisory Council for the National Institute on Drug Abuse by the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Xavier Becerra. I was also recently appointed to the National Advisory Council for the National Human Genome Research Institute to advise the NIH on genomics research. I am a member of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Tobacco Products Scientific Advisory Committee, which advises the FDA on the scientific basis of regulating tobacco products, and I am Co-Chair of the Smoking Cessation Panel for the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. In recognition of my research accomplishments, I was awarded the 2014 Alton Ochsner Award Relating Smoking and Disease and the 2018 Langley Award for Basic Research on Nicotine and Tobacco. Nina Smock, BA
Clinical Research Specialist, Chen Lab Manager, Program Manager, Tobacco Treatment Program, Siteman Cancer Center
Ms. Smock has been at Washington University since 2007 contributing to various projects focused on occupational health, precision medicine, and improving clinical care of smoking cessation. Ms. Smock has a proven track record of leading teams to success by leveraging extensive experience to guide individuals towards achieving shared goals and objectives. She has expertise in study design, subject recruitment, and health informatics integrations for smoking cessation. She is also experienced in focus groups, data management, qualitative data coding, grant writing, and manuscript writing. Her dedication is to enhance worker and community health by comprehensively understanding and improving health communication strategies. Thue Rammaha, MS
Clinical Research Coordinator II
Mr. Rammaha holds a Master of Science degree in Applied Health Behavior Research from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and a Bachelor of Science degree in Medical Sciences from Saint Louis University. He has vast knowledge and experience working in various healthcare, community, and research settings. As an aspiring physician, he is passionate about collaborating with healthcare workers and clinical scientists to advance medical research and knowledge to improve health outcomes, particularly in underserved communities. Currently, he is focused on coordinating research studies that involve returning personalized clinical and genetic results to research participants, with the aim of promoting health-preventative behaviors. Elizabeth Sekarski, BS
Professional Rater II
Lizzie received her B.S. in Psychology, along with minors in Biology, Criminology and Sociology from the University of Missouri-Columbia. During undergrad she established her passion for research and treating substance use disorders. She has worked with multiple psychologists as a Research Assistant at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Her research interests include substance abuse, co-morbidities in substance use and mental health disorders, and pharmacological and behavioral substance use treatments. She would like to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology in the future.
Giang Pham, MPH
Statistical Data Analyst
Ms. Pham is an experienced statistical data analyst who has worked with Dr. Chen on prior genetic studies of smoking and smoking cessation. Jingling Chen, BS
Statistical Data Analyst
Tricia Salyer, MEd
Clinical Research Supervisor
Ms. Salyer has over 15 years of experience working in biomedical research at Washington University School of Medicine. During her career, she has managed studies investigating the genetics of alcohol use disorder and smoking behaviors, and she has been involved with several research studies focused on returning genetic results to research participants. Ms. Salyer’s expertise includes project management, study design, clinical phenotyping, and research compliance.
Kristen Sextro, BA
Clinical Research Coordinator I
Kristen received her B.A. in Biology from University of Missouri in St. Louis. Her previous research experience focused on the safety and effectiveness of novel pharmaceuticals to treat psychiatric disorders in adult and pediatric populations. Her research interests include mental health and substance use.
Rachel Middleton, MS
Professional Rater II
Ms. Middleton received her M.S. in Applied Health Behavior Research from Washington University School of Medicine in Saint Louis. She received her B.S. in Psychology and Minor in Business from the University of Missouri-Columbia. While earning her B.S., she gained research experience serving as an assistant in the Department of Psychology Personality Dynamics Laboratory for two years. In this role, she evaluated participant’s sense of coherence, significance, and purpose as they relate to overall meaning of life. She also has several years of experience working as a psychometrist for both pediatric and older-adult populations. In the future, Rachel is interested in pursuing an M.D. in Neuropsychiatry.
Anastasia Hanonick, BA
Professional Rater II
Stasia Hanonick received her B.A. in Psychology from Saint Louis University in St. Louis. She has previous experience assisting with cognitive behavioral research and working in environmental consulting. Her research interests lie in studying populations who have experienced severe trauma in their childhoods and how this subsequently impacts the development of executive functioning, social skills, emotional regulation, and moral reasoning. She wants to pursue a PhD in the future.
Louis Fox, BS
Research Statistician
Recent Findings
CONTACT US
PRECISE: behaviorandgenetics@email.wustl.edu 314-747-7849
MOTIVATE:
motivate@email.wustl.edu
314-273-3826
For In-Person Appointments: Washington University School of Medicine – Public Health Building
600 S. Taylor Avenue, Suite 122
Saint Louis, Missouri 63110
Mailing Address:
660 S. Euclid Ave
Saint Louis, Missouri 63110