Melissa A. Troester

Melissa A. Troester, PhD, MPH, is a Professor of Epidemiology with a joint appointment in Pathology & Laboratory Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She is a member of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and serves as Co-Leader of the Cancer Epidemiology Research Program. Dr. Troester also directs the UNC Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility and leads the Carolina Breast Cancer Study.

Her educational background includes a PhD in Environmental Health (2001) and an MPH in Epidemiology (2006), both from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She earned her MS in Chemistry from the University of Chicago (1995) and BA in Chemistry from Macalester College (1994).

Dr. Troester's research focuses on biomarker development and validation, genomic methods, epidemiologic methods, and breast cancer. She has more than a decade of experience working with genomic data and molecular biology of breast cancer risk and progression. Her work particularly examines racial disparities in breast cancer outcomes, environmental health impacts on cancer risk, and the development of precision oncology approaches.

Analysis of her recent publications reveals a strong emphasis on understanding breast cancer through genomic and molecular approaches, with particular attention to racial disparities and subtype-specific risk factors. Her research increasingly incorporates advanced computational methods, including machine learning for tumor classification, and examines gene-environment interactions in cancer development.

• Elected chair of the AACR Populations Sciences Working Group (2026-2028)
• Named Komen Scholar (2021)
• Awarded Susan G. Komen leadership grant ($200,000) for research on immune response in diverse breast cancers
• Part of $10 million funding for Cancer Identification and Precision Oncology Center
• Involved in $17 million grant exploring links between environmental contaminants and liver cancer

Dr. Troester serves as co-leader of the UNC Lineberger Cancer Epidemiology Research Program and directs the UNC Center for Environmental Health and Susceptibility. She leads the Carolina Breast Cancer Study, a landmark research project focused on reducing breast cancer disparities and barriers to high-quality care. Her laboratory work integrates genomic, epidemiological, and environmental health approaches to understand breast cancer risk and progression across diverse populations.