Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, a professor who holds the Webb Endowed Chair of Nutrition Sciences in the School of Health Professions at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, was awarded the 2023 Joseph F. Fraumeni, Jr. Distinguished Achievement Award from the American Society of Preventive Oncology. The award is given annually to an outstanding scientist in the area of preventive oncology, cancer control and/or cancer prevention.
Professor Demark-Wahnefried, who serves as the associate director for Cancer Prevention and Control at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at the university, has dedicated much of her life to studying lifestyle changes — particularly diet and exercise and their impact on cancer and overall health. Cancer survivorship has been a keen interest of hers for more than 25 years, and her research has tested a variety of lifestyle interventions among survivors of breast, prostate and other forms of cancer. Most recently, Dr. Demark-Wahnefried was awarded a five-year, $11.7 million grant from the National Cancer Institute to test an online diet and exercise intervention.
“I have been a member of the American Society of Preventive Oncology for over 30 years, and it has provided me opportunities that made me a better associate director and training program leader,””¯Professor Demark-Wahnefried said. “This organization means a lot to me, and I am very grateful and tremendously heartened to receive this award.”
Dr. Demark-Wahnefried joined the faculty at the University of Alabama at Birmingham in 2010 after teaching at the University of Texas-MD Anderson Cancer Center and Duke University. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan, where she majored in chemistry and nutrition science. She holds a master’s degree in nutrition from Texas Woman’s University and a Ph.D. in nutrition science from Syracuse University in New York.