Melinda Protani

Dr. Melinda Protani is a Lecturer and Program Director for the Master of Epidemiology at The University of Queensland's School of Public Health. Her research focuses on cancer epidemiology, survivorship, and healthcare inequities, particularly in cancer care access and outcomes. She employs methods like medical record audits, population surveys, and data linkage to study cancer aetiology and disparities.

Research Interests: Cancer epidemiology, health equity, treatment disparities, and non-communicable diseases. Her work addresses how obesity, comorbidities, and social determinants impact cancer prognosis and healthcare access.

Recent Work: Recent studies include investigating breast cancer subtypes in registries, estrogen’s role in ovarian cancer, and disparities in colorectal cancer outcomes among individuals with severe mental illness. Her articles emphasize global and population-level analyses of cancer treatment efficacy and risk factors.

Grants: Current funding supports women’s cancer research through the Breast and Prostate Cancer Association. Past grants include studies on the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program’s impact on mental illness patients.

Supervision: Dr. Protani has supervised PhD candidates focusing on breast cancer pathways, maternal health equity, and ovarian cancer risk associations with medical treatments.