Executive Leadership & Expert Bios

Sherri L. Stewart, PhD

Epidemiologist, Division of Cancer Prevention and Control, NCCDPHP

Sherri L. Stewart, Ph.D., is an epidemiologist and team lead in the Division of Cancer Prevention and Control. Her research focus is primarily on reducing ovarian cancer morbidity and mortality and improving ovarian cancer treatment, with a particular focus on the use of evidence-based protocols to improve survival. She is also interested in the relationship of hormones and reproductive factors to ovarian cancer risk as a potential preventive measure.

Dr. Stewart joined CDC in 2003, in the Cancer Surveillance Branch, where she co–authored the annual United States Cancer Statistics (USCS) report, and several high-profile cancer surveillance articles, including:  Cancer mortality surveillance – United States, 1990–2000, Decline in breast cancer incidence--United States, 1999-2003, and Surveillance for cancers associated with tobacco use–United States, 1999-2004.  In 2007, she began working in the Comprehensive Cancer Control Branch, and has been team lead of the Scientific Support and Clinical Translation Team since 2010.        

Dr. Stewart leads several research projects, including three that focus on reducing health inequities and promoting prolonged survival for ovarian cancer patients.  Ovarian Cancer Patterns of Treatment and Outcomes is a multi–year study using data collected by cancer registries in New York and Northern California to determine which patients received appropriate treatment for the disease.  Results of this study have been presented at several scientific meetings, including the 2010 International Gynecologic Cancer Society Meeting in Prague, Czech Republic. 

Before joining CDC, Dr. Stewart worked at Georgetown University′s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Cancer Genetics and Epidemiology Program, where she performed research on environmental carcinogens and cancer risk.  After Georgetown, she researched the carcinogenesis and chemoprevention of ovarian cancer in the Medical Oncology Department of Fox Chase Cancer Center.  At Fox Chase, she developed a deep appreciation for ovarian cancer research, as the disease has a high burden in the United States, claiming tens of thousands of lives every year. 

Dr. Stewart is a long–standing member of both the American Association for Cancer Research and the American Society of Clinical Oncology.  She has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications. She received her Ph.D. in molecular pathology from Hahnemann University School of Medicine.

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