Shehnaz Hussain, PhD, is a Professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences at the University of California (UC) Davis School of Medicine. She serves as Associate Director for Population Sciences and Director of the Office of Population Health at the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center. Dr. Hussain’s research stems from a long-standing interest in the intersection of infections and cancer. As a molecular epidemiologist, she brings together a mindset for maximizing public health impact and scientific curiosity to orchestrate research in cancer etiology, pathogenesis, chemoprevention, and early detection. A common thread of her ongoing research is the identification of biomarkers that relate to, or modulate, the immune response including serum immune markers, intestinal microbiome, immunogenic microbial components and metabolites, and environmental toxins. Currently, she is utilizing this immunoepidemiology lens to lead investigations of the disease continuum from metabolic associated fatty liver disease to liver cancer. Most recently, she has catalyzed a multidisciplinary research program focused on the carcinogenic impacts of wildfires. Dr. Hussain completed an Sc.M. in Epidemiology from the Johns Hopkins University, and Ph.D. in Epidemiology from the University of Washington, Seattle. She subsequently completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden, and a second fellowship at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Jamie Gabriel is a Fire Captain with the Los Angeles County Fire Department, where she serves in operational leadership roles including emergency response, safety oversight, and coordinating in-service training for all fire personnel. Her work is grounded in protecting firefighter health and safety, with a particular focus on occupational exposures and long-term health outcomes. Her research interests broadly focus on firefighter cancer risk, integrating occupational and environmental exposures with lifestyle and psychosocial factors such as sleep, diet, physical activity, and mental health. Drawing on 18 years of frontline fire service experience, she contributes to cancer research efforts aimed at reducing cancer burden among fire service personnel through advancement of departmental policies that support cancer prevention, risk reduction, and improvements in modifiable risk factors. Jamie recently completed a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies, expanding her clinical training and strengthening her ability to bridge public safety, clinical medicine, and occupational health research.