Jessica Chubak, PhD, is an epidemiologist who works to improve cancer diagnosis, treatment, control, and survivorship. She contributes to several national collaborations that are finding practical, efficient, effective ways to screen for cancer, especially colorectal cancer. She also studies how common medications affect cancer risk and recurrence. Intrigued by how pets positively affect health, Dr. Chubak is studying animal-assisted activities in clinics and hospitals where children get treated for cancer. Dr. Chubak’s methodological research focuses on the use of administrative and electronic health record data in epidemiologic and health services studies.
Dr. Chubak joined KPWHRI in 2007, bringing expertise in epidemiologic methods, pharmacoepidemiology, and cancer. Awarded a Fulbright graduate student grant, Dr. Chubak pursued her master's degree in bioethics and health law in New Zealand before completing her PhD in Epidemiology at the University of Washington (UW). Dr. Chubak is an affiliate associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the UW School of Public Health, where she enjoys guest-lecturing and getting to work with students.
Epidemiology; colorectal cancer; medication use; survivorship; recurrence; secondary prevention; quality of life; automated data collection; screening; animal-assisted activities; survivorship
Screening
Cancer risk and use of common medications
Chubak J, Kamineni A, Buist DSM, Anderson ML, Whitlock EP. Aspirin use for the prevention of colorectal cancer: an updated systematic evidence review for the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Rockville (MD): Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (US); 2015 Sep. Report No.: 15-05228-EF-1. U.S. Preventive Services Task Force Evidence Syntheses, formerly Systematic Evidence Reviews.
Jones SM, Ziebell R, Walker R, Nekhlyudov L, Rabin BA, Nutt S, Fujii M, Chubak J. Psychometric investigation of benefit finding among long-term cancer survivors using the medical expenditure panel survey. Eur J Oncol Nurs. 2016 Feb;20:31-5. doi: 10.1016/j.ejon.2015.07.005. Epub 2015 Jul 26. PubMed
Chubak J, Hubbard RA, Johnson E, Kamineni A, Rutter CM. Assessing the effectiveness of a screening test for cancer in the presence of another screening modality in nonrandomized studies J Med Screen. 2015 Jun;22(2):69-75. doi: 10.1177/0969141314562036. Epub 2014 Dec 9.
Chubak J, Hubbard RA, Johnson E, Kamineni A, Rutter CM. Assessing the effectiveness of a cancer screening test in the presence of another screening modality. J Med Screen. 2015 Jun;22(2):69-75. doi: 10.1177/0969141314562036. Epub 2014 Dec 9. PubMed
Meenan RT, Anderson ML, Chubak J, Vernon SW, Fuller S, Wang CY, Green BB. An economic evaluation of colorectal cancer screening in primary care practice. Am J Prev Med. 2015;48(6):714-21. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2014.12.016. PubMed
Adams KF, Johnson EA, Chubak J, Kamineni A, Doubeni CA, Buist DS, Williams AE, Weinmann S, Doria-Rose VP, Rutter CM. Development of an algorithm to classify colonoscopy indication from coded health care data. EGEMS. (Wash DC). 2015 May 18;3(1):1171. doi: 10.13063/2327-9214.1171. eCollection 2015.
Chubak J, Onega T, Zhu W, Buist DS, Hubbard RA. An electronic health record-based algorithm to ascertain the date of second breast cancer events. Med Care. 2017 Dec;55(12):e81-e87. doi: 10.1097/MLR.0000000000000352. PubMed
How KPWHRI is contributing to better cancer screening and better outcomes for patients.
Top pediatric oncology hospitals reported lasting changes to programs involving visits with animals.
Aruna Kamineni, PhD, MPH, discusses her recent study on how guidelines report screening risks.