Regents' Professor

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Address: Leon Levy Cancer Center 2964
Tucson, AZ 85724
Phone: 520-626-7685
E-Mail: dalberts@azcc.arizona.edu

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Research Interests

David S. Alberts, M.D. is an internationally recognized physician and scientist whose major focus has been translational research in prevention and therapy of cancer.   Dr. Alberts became the third director of the AZCC in January 2005. He currently holds the positions of Regents Professor of Medicine and Pharmacology in the College of Medicine, as well as Professor in the College of Public Health and Professor of Nutritional Science in the College of Agriculture at the University of Arizona.
The major emphasis of Dr. Alberts research has been in the identification of chemoprevention and treatment strategies for breast, colon, ovary and skin cancers.  His laboratory research is concentrated on the in vitro screening of new chemicals for cancer prevention and treatment as well as the evaluation of new surrogate endpoint biomarkers for cancer prevention trials with special focus on precursor lesions for bladder, breast, colon, cervical, endometrial, ovarian, prostate, and skin cancers.
Dr. Alberts received his M.D. in 1966 from University of Virginia School of Medicine. He conducted his internship at University of Wisconsin, before becoming a Clinical Associate in medical oncology at the National Cancer Institute's Baltimore Cancer Research Center. Dr. Alberts conducted his residency at the University of Minnesota and then served on the faculty of the University of California, San Francisco, for five years.  He joined the University of Arizona College of Medicine in 1975 as an Assistant Professor, where he has served for over thirty years. Alongside the founding director of the AZCC, Sydney Salmon, M.D., Dr. Alberts was one of the original visionaries for the development of the AZCC in the mid 1970s.
Dr. Alberts professional successes are exemplified by his numerous national recognition awards including in the year 2001 by Science as one of the top three National Institutes of Health-funded clinical researchers in the United States. In 1999 he was awarded the American Society of Oncology's ACS Award Lecture.  In 2003, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) recognized his contributions to clinical research in the field of cancer with the AACR-Joseph H. Burchenal Clinical Research Award and in 2004 the American Society of Preventive Oncology gave him its Distinguished Career Award for research excellence. Also in 2004, the AACR awarded Dr. Albers with its AACR-Cancer Research and Prevention Foundation Award for Excellence in Cancer Prevention Research Worldwide.  Additionally, Dr. Alberts served as the chair for the U.S. FDA's Oncologic Drug Advisory Committee between 1982-1984, gaining valuable administrative experience.
Dr. Alberts has authored or co-authored more than 473 peer reviewed publications, more than 57 invited, published articles and more than 99 book chapters as well as editing/co-editing 7 books.  He is extremely active in both clinical and translation research, chairing the Cancer Prevention and Control Committee in the Gynecologic Oncology Group (since 1995) and chairing or co-chairing the Gynecologic Cancer Committee in the Southwest Oncology Group (Chair, 1980-2001 and co-chairs, 2007-present).  Additionally, he serves as Principal Investigator of a large Chemoprevention of Skin Cancer Program Project (PO1 CA27502-29) and NCI funded R25 Cancer Prevention and Control training grant (CA078447-09).
Dr. Alberts has long term experience working with the NCI.  Between 1990 and 1994, he served on the Board of Counselors to the Cancer Prevention Division.  Additionally, he served on the Scientific Advisory Board to NCI from 1999 to 2006.  Currently, Dr. Alberts serves on the Coordinating Subcommittee and Clinical and Translational Advisory Committee to NCI and its Division of CTEP (2007-2010).             
Dr. Alberts has considerable administrative experience at the University of Arizona, having served as Associate Dean for Research in the College of Medicine from 1996-2002, Deputy Director in the AZCC (1988-1996) and Chair of Cooperative Clinical Trials group research committees since 1980.

Selected Publications

Wertheim BC, Martínez ME, Ashbeck EL, Roe DJ, Jacobs ET, Alberts DS, Thompson PA. May 2009. Physical activity as a determinant of fecal bile acid levels. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev, 18:1591-8

Foote JA, Ranger-Moore JR, Einspahr JG, Saboda K, Kenyon J, Warneke J, Miller RC, Goldman R, Xu MJ, Roe DJ, Alberts DS. Apr 2009. Chemoprevention of human actinic keratoses by topical DL-alpha-tocopherol. Cancer Prev Res (Phila Pa), 2:394-400