Leo Gkekos

I am a PhD student in Cancer Epidemiology and Applied Biostatistics, with a
background in biomedical sciences, health policy, and epidemiology. I am
interested in cancer epidemiology, register-based research, and molecular
pathophysiology of cancer.

Main supervisor:
Dr. Anna Johansson
Co-supervisors:
Dr. Irma Fredriksson
Prof. Keith Humphreys

Group members:

Dr. Anna Johansson

Katrín Ásta Gunnarsdóttir

Margot Hofman

Dr. Rafael Cardoso

Previous education;

• MMSc Public Health Epidemiology || Karolinska Institutet, 2022
• MSc Governance and Leadership in European Public Health || Maastricht University, 2020
• BSc Biomedical Sciences || Cardiff university, 2019

My doctoral project addresses the role of reproductive and socioeconomic factors for risk and survival of breast cancer subtypes, as defined by the expression of certain biomarkers (ER, PR, HER2 and Ki-67) and grade. Both reproductive factors (e. g. number of children, ongoing pregnancy, time since latest childbirth and infertility) and socioeconomic factors (e.g.  education, income, employment) have been suggested to differentially contribute to subtype-specific incidence and survival. While studies have in  general indicated large differences, few have assessed all subtypes in detail and by additional data on risk factors. For this purpose, population-based clinical breast cancer data linked to population-based reproductive and socioeconomic information are required. Such knowledge is essential to improve targeted prevention strategies, disease management and healthcare planning.