Dr. Rayjean Hung has to think ‘big picture.’

As an epidemiologist, she studies big groups of people to get to the little details. Details that lead to discovery.

Dr. Hung, a Principal Investigator at the Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute of Mount Sinai Hospital, along with a group of international researchers, identified the genetic region associated with lung cancer risk in the largest genetic study of its kind. Her research helped to show that chromosome 15 is associated with lung cancer and provided new clues on how smoking tobacco can cause this cancer.

“Lung cancer continues to be the most common cancer in Canada and survival rates remain low,” states Dr. Hung. “This new information could lead to possibilities of new prevention strategies and therapeutic targets at early stages.”

Lung cancer is devastating. 80% of people die from it within five years. In 2008, it is projected that 8,100 (4,100 men; 4,000 women) in Ontario will be diagnosed with lung cancer and an estmated 6,900 (3,600; 3,300 women) will die of the disease.

“This research helps us to understand how lung cancer develops and better comprehend its mechanism. Lung cancer is a complex disease, so it helps us to solve part of the puzzle," says Dr. Hung.

Dr. Hung and her colleagues in epidemiology and biostatistics at Mount Sinai’s Prosserman Centre for Health Research continue to make insights into population health issues to gain better understanding of many illnesses. They work together to translate scientific discoveries into improved human health, because Dr. Hung believes fervently that Research Creates the Best Medicine.