Judy Ou, PhD, MPH, is an epidemiologist-which is, according to her, “the nerdiest kind of detective ever.”
The mysteries that Ou investigates are all about factors in the world around us that cause human disease. Specifically, environmental factors that increase the risk of cancer, especially in people who are more likely to develop cancer, or factors that contribute to additional disease in those who have already survived cancer. Ou, an investigator at Huntsman Cancer Institute, also investigates how to reduce the presence of these factors and prevent cancer and other diseases from developing in the first place.
Her work is very family oriented. Every time Ou writes a grant, she asks herself, “What would my friends who are also moms do if they saw this? How could this help them with the questions they have? How would I provide the information in a way that would make them more empowered?”
Helping familiduring wildfire events
One of Ou’s ongoing projects assesses the impact of wildfire smoke on children with chronic health concerns. Conditions like cancer, diabetes, and congenital heart disease can harm respiratory function, but existing studies on the effects of air pollution are largely focused on healthy children or children with asthma, which leaves a large gap about wildfire smoke’s impacts on children with other lung complications. The goal of Ou’s project is to provide data that health care providers can use to better help families with sick children during wildfire events.
This project was inspired by a prior study where Ou’s team found that, for childhood cancer survivors, even short-term elevations in fine particulate matter air pollution significantly increase the risk of emergency room visits and hospitalizations. The evidence suggests that exposure to wildfire smoke, which has very high levels of fine particulate matter air pollution, may have greater health effects in people who have been treated for cancer.
Knowing how air pollution affects vulnerable groups is key to effective health care and patient education. The information that Ou’s work provides will help develop personalized care plans for at-risk children. Ou points out that the health concerns that affect children when they are young are likely to impact them for the rest of their lives, so interventions that improve children’s health will ultimately improve the health of adults and entire communities.
Improving knowledge of common hazards
Ou is currently working on a clinical intervention project designed to provide education about radon to lung cancer patients and their caregivers. Radon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that is formed by the breakdown of uranium in soils. It is odorless and invisible, and breathing it in for multiple years is associated with the development of lung cancer. The Mountain West has many naturally occurring uranium deposits, which means that homes in Utah are more likely to have high levels of radon. In Utah, one-third to one-half of homes have radon levels above what is considered safe, about twice the national rate.
Large population-based surveys conducted by the Utah Department of Health have found that, despite the region’s higher risk of radon exposure, 80% of Utahns either don’t know what radon is or have never even heard of it. Ou’s intervention aims to change that. By improving awareness of the health risks posed by radon exposure, her work can make people’s homes safer. Once radon levels are known, they can be mitigated. A home that has tested above the safe level can be serviced to reduce existing radon levels and prevent future build-up.
Making the data count
As an epidemiologist, Ou has made a career out of finding “voids” of information and filling them with knowledge. Much of her work has investigated subjects that currently suffer from a lack of information.
For Ou, it’s not about the science itself, but instead about what the science can do to serve people. The results that her projects generate can offer answers to people who desperately need them: health care providers trying to help sick kids recover, cancer survivors working to make their homes safer, and family and friends empowered by new knowledge to live healthier lives. At the end of the day, Ou says, “I like making friends and being involved in people’s lives. I like helping my community.”
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