Cancer Epidemiology

  • Epidemiology, Public Health, Prevention and Survivorship
Dr. Renée Turzanski Fortner

Dr. Renée Turzanski Fortner

Head of Division

The overarching goal of the Division’s research is to provide insights on the etiology of cancer, strategies for prevention and earlier detection, and predictors of survival, with the goal of reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with a cancer diagnosis.

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Our Research

On the basis of established, genetic and non-genetic risk factors, we build quantitative risk models for the identification of individuals who have an increased risk of developing cancer compared to others, and who may gain increased benefit from targeted prevention measures such as regular cancer screening.

A further focus is exploring new routes for prevention and early diagnosis of cancer, as well as quality control of introduced measures. Due to their population-related approach, statistical methods and their further development are of particularly high relevance in epidemiology.

A major part of our research takes place within the setting of large-scale prospective cohort studies, such as the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) and the Scandinavian Consortium of Maternity Cohorts. Besides these prospective studies in the general population, our division conducts studies within large cohorts of cancer patients.

FUTURE OUTLOOK
Studies within our various prospective cohorts are increasingly making use of modern, high-throughput “omics” technologies (metabolomics, genomics, epigenomics, next-generation sequencing) for the identification of risk factors and predictors for cancer and markers for early detection.
For future studies, our division has a central role in the development and set-up of the “NAKO” – a new, large-scale prospective cohort study in Germany.

Team

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    Dr. Renée Turzanski Fortner

    Head of Division

Our Team

NAKO Study Center Mannheim

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    Yuliya Ertel

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    Altan Adanali

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    Farah Alam

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    Mailin Anna Theresia Antl

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    Annika Baert

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    Özlem Bedir

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    Nimet Demir

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    Patrycja Hamryszak

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    Silke Kahmann

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    Torben Loßmann

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    Anna-Constanze Mast

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    Ute Metzger

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    Ute Muskatewitz

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    Colin Ofenloch

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    Louisa Sautner

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    Maria Antonia Scafiti

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    Rita Schanzenbach-Bauer

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    Christine Schestak

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    Leni Schwarzwälder

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    Jasmin Tabakhtory-Fard

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    Nicoleta-Sanda Veredas Caballero

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    Luisa Wagner

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    Gülsüm Yurtseven

Our Projects

A key focus of our research is the prevention and early detection of lung cancer. Through various national and international projects, we are investigating how lung cancer risks can be identified early, how to reach appropriate individuals for early detection programs, and how screening services can be implemented effectively and equitably.

Among other things, we focus on evaluating lung cancer screening using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT), participation in screening programs, social and regional disparities in uptake, as well as issues related to health literacy, risk communication, and smoking cessation. Our work is based on data from epidemiological studies, screening projects, and healthcare systems.

Our research aims to contribute to further developing the evidence for effective, target-group-appropriate, and equitable lung cancer screening and to support its translation into clinical practice.

LUSI

The German Lung Cancer Screening Intervention Study (LUSI) investigates the benefits of lung cancer screening using low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) in individuals at increased risk for lung cancer.

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4-IN-THE-LUNG-RUN

4-IN-THE-LUNG-RUN (4ITLR) is a European research project aimed at further developing risk-based strategies for lung cancer screening and implementing them in various European healthcare systems.

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SOLACE

The European SOLACE project is investigating how to improve access to early lung cancer screening and, in particular, how to better reach hard-to-reach and underserved populations.

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Selected Publications

2025 - Int J Epidemiol. 2025 Jun 11;54(4)

Löfling LL, Støer NC, Botteri E, Fortner RT.

2025 - JAMA Netw Open. 2025 Jul 1;8(7)

Le Cornet C, Jung AY, Behrens S, Middha P, Truong T, Jernström H, Bolla MK, Wang Q, Southey MC, Beane Freeman LE, Koutros S, Stone J, Rennert G, Shulman K, Aronson KJ, Murphy RA, Guénel P, Patel AV, Bodelon C, Teras LR, Shahi S, Lacey JV, Dossus L, Kaaks R, Holleczek B, Brenner H, Brauch H, Hoppe R, Czene K, Hall PFL, Mannermaa A, Wu AH, Obi N, Michailidou K, Panayiotidis MI, McLean C, Haiman CA, Augustinsson A, Zheng W, Shu XO, Perou CM, Troester MA, Van Alsten S, Eliassen AH, Abubakar M, Kraft P, Ahearn TU, Evans DG, Wolk A, Milne RL, Easton DF, Pharoah PDP, Schmidt MK, García-Closas M, Vachon CM, Fortner RT, Chang-Claude J.

2025 - Br J Cancer. 2025 Jun;132(12):1158-1166.

Trewin-Nybråten CB, Leithe S, Paulsen T, Langseth H, Fortner RT.

2025 - Clin Cancer Res. 2025 Jun 13;31(12):2441-2453.

Kaaks R, Cooley V, Mukama T, Teras LR, Patel AV, Masala G, Crous-Bou M, Harris HR, Langseth H, Surcel HM, Wentzensen N, Terry K, Sasamoto N, Tworoger S, Fortner RT.

All Publications

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Get in touch with us

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Heike Weis

Sekretariat

Postal address:

Krebsepidemiologie (C180) Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum Im Neuenheimer Feld 581 69120 Heidelberg
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Petra Rössler

Sekretariat

Postal address:

Krebsepidemiologie (C180) Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum Im Neuenheimer Feld 581 69120 Heidelberg
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