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Research Areas & Initiatives

Science for Health Solutions

The Center for Asian Health (CAH) advances health and well-being through rigorous, culturally informed research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and community engagement, addressing the needs of Asian American populations and broader under-resourced communities. CAH drives innovation in population and clinical health while training the next generation of health scholars, professionals and leaders.

Our vision is to be a national leader in population health research, leveraging community engagement and interdisciplinary partnerships to translate discoveries into real-world solutions that positively impact health outcomes across communities.

Since 2000, we have conducted many impactful, community-engaged studies that generate both actionable and clinically relevant evidence to improve health by partnering with communities and translating findings into practice. Our work has produced more than 250 scientific publications that advance understanding of and effective interventions for promoting and sustaining health.

Our research focuses on: 

  • Understanding how biology and social factors affect health. 
  • Creating effective health programs that can be used nationwide. 
  • Working with healthcare systems to put research into practice. 
  • Training new researchers. 
  • Guiding health policy with research-based evidence at the local, state and national levels. 

We rigorously apply scientific methods to address real-world health challenges through: 

  • Large studies that follow groups of people over time to look for disease patterns. 
  • Randomized controlled trials to see if health programs or treatments work. 
  • Research that’s translated into everyday practice. 
  • Improving informed choice for clinical trial participation. 
  • Community engagement initiatives to make sure our research fits different cultures. 

Areas and Initiatives 

Cancer

Our cancer research team partners with community-based organizations to design, test, and evaluate interventions for cancer prevention, screening, and early detection. Our work addresses cervical, colorectal, breast, lung, stomach and liver cancers. 

We’ve led the U54 TUFCCC/HC Comprehensive Cancer Health Disparity Partnership (SPEECH) and the Asian Community Cancer Health Disparities Center, driving interdisciplinary research across population, clinical, and biomedical sciences. These programs also train new cancer scientists and deliver community-engaged, evidence-based cancer prevention and control programs. 

We are also committed to understanding cancer causes through long-term, population-based data, including through our national ASPIRE cohort study  

Chronic diseases 

The Center investigates why certain populations have higher rates of diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease.  

  • Our IDEAL program created healthy eating plans now used by grocery stores, restaurants and community groups to encourage better food choices. Community programs have helped people lower their blood pressure through culturally tailored education and support. 
  • The national MOSAAIC study examines heart and metabolic health and why diseases progress in certain groups. Our research uses big datasets like NHANES and All of Us to spot patterns in metabolic health and identify risk factors. We also conduct studies to apply research findings to everyday medical care.
Adolescent health 

Our research focuses on equipping youth and families with the tools essential to making healthier choices and reducing risk.  

  • The Proud Teens of Philly (PTOP) initiative delivers evidence-based STD prevention through school and community programs, empowering vulnerable youth with life skills and informed decision-making. 
  • The Smoke-Free Youth program trains teens to push back against tobacco marketing in their communities.  
  • The Secondhand Smoke-Free Homes program helps parents have tough but important conversations about protecting children from smoke exposure in multigenerational households.  
Brain health/aging and mental health 

We study how certain risks affect overall health, brain aging, and mental health across a lifespan. Key projects include: 

  • Helping smokers quit through mobile health tools, lowering relapse rates. 
  • Testing physical activity and brain training to reduce Alzheimer’s risk in older adults. 
  • Studying depression to find differences in symptoms and help-seeking across generations, improving screening tools. 

Our community programs make mental health services easier to access while honoring cultural traditions.

Tobacco 

Since 2000, the Center has studied tobacco use patterns among Asian Americans. Programs include: 

  • Youth smoking prevention programs. 
  • Smoking cessation programs. 
  • Raising awareness of secondhand smoke dangers in families and communities. 
  • Anti-smoking campaigns that use drama and mobile health (mHealth) tools for people of all ages.