Staff: Tanya Agurs-Collins, PhD, RD
Tanya Agurs-Collins, PhD, RD
collinsta@mail.nih.gov
240-276-6956
Tanya Agurs-Collins, PhD, RD, is the Acting Branch Chief and a Program Director in the Health Behaviors Research Branch, Behavioral Research Program, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute (NCI). In this capacity, she is responsible for directing, coordinating, and managing a research grant portfolio in diet, physical activity, and weight-loss behavioral interventions for cancer prevention and survival. Dr. Agurs-Collins' scientific interests include multi-level lifestyle interventions and population differences in dietary intake and obesity on cancer risk and survival. She is also interested in understanding individual genetic variation in diet and physical activity behaviors and response to weight loss interventions.
Dr. Agurs-Collins has a PhD in Nutritional Sciences with an emphasis in epidemiology and a master's degree in Public Health Nutrition from the Pennsylvania State University in University Park, Pennsylvania. She also holds a bachelor's degree in Nutrition and Dietetics from Howard University in Washington, DC. Prior to joining NCI, Dr. Agurs-Collins was an Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine at Howard University College of Medicine and a nutritional epidemiologist at the Howard University Cancer Center. She is a registered dietitian with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Scientific Interests
- Nutrition and cancer survivorship
- Biomarkers and cancer risk
- Gene-behavior interactions
- Obesity and cancer risk
Selected Publications and Presentations
- Schmitz KH, Brown JC, Irwin ML, Robien K, Scott JM, Berger NA, Caan B, Cercek A, Crane TE, Evans SR, Ligibel JA, Meyerhardt JA, Agurs-Collins T, Basen-Engquist K, Bea JW, Cai SF, Cartmel B, Chinchilli VM, Demark-Wahnefried W, Dieli-Conwright CM, DiPietro L, Doerksen SE, Edelstein SL, Elena J, Evans W, Ferrucci LM, Foldi J, Freylersythe S, Furberg H, Jones LW, Levine R, Moskowitz CS, Owusu C, Penedo F, Rabin BA, Ratner E, Rosenzweig M, Salz T, Sanft T, Schlumbrecht M, Spielmann G, Thomson CA, Tjaden AH, Weiser MR, Yang S, Yu AF, Perna FM; ENICTO Consortium. Exercise and nutrition to improve cancer Treatment-Related outcomes (ENICTO). J Natl Cancer Inst 2025 Jan 1; 117(1):9-19.
- Sauter ER, Butera G, Agurs-Collins T. Long-Term Randomized Controlled Trials of Diet Intervention Reports and Their Impact on Cancer: A Systematic Review. Cancers (Basel) 2024 Sep 27; 16(19):3296.
- Sauter ER, Agurs-Collins T. Mechanisms by Which Pharmacotherapy May Impact Cancer Risk among Individuals with Overweight and Obesity. Cancers (Basel) 2024 Sep 26; 16(19):3275.
- Hoffman RK, Donze LF, Agurs-Collins T, Belay B, Berrigan D, Blanck HM, Brandau A, Chue A, Czajkowski S, Dillon G, Kompaniyets L, Kowtha B, Li R, Mujuru P, Mudd L, Nebeling L, Tomoyasu N, Young-Hyman D, Zheng XT, Pratt C. Adult obesity treatment and prevention: A trans-agency commentary on the research landscape, gaps, and future opportunities. Obes Res 2024 Sep; 25(9):e13769.
- Agurs-Collins T, Ross SA, Dunn BK. The Many Faces of Obesity and Its Influence on Breast Cancer Risk. Front Oncol 2019 Sep 4; 9:765.
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