Erin Aiello Bowles, MPH
Research Associate
206-287-2708
aiello.e@ghc.org
Recent publications
Curriculum vitae (CV)
Research interests and experience
- Cancer control: breast cancer; biostatistics; epidemiology; mammography; mammographic breast density; breast cancer treatment; molecular markers; breast cancer screening surveillance; automated data collection; quality of care; medication use
- Women's health: menopause; hormone replacement therapy (HRT); breast cancer
- Health services & economics: access to care; health disparities; health outcomes research; quality of life; measurement of change in health care systems; practice variation
Epidemiologist Erin Aiello Bowles is looking at cancer from many different perspectives. Her research brings new insight into breast cancer risk factors, while also helping improve cancer care for patients and families.
As a key member of two large cancer collaborations—the National Cancer Institute's Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium and the HMO Cancer Research Network (CRN)—Ms. Aiello Bowles has developed diverse expertise that includes reading mammograms for mammographic breast density and doing statistical analyses. She recently published findings that support current Breast Imaging-Reporting and Data System (BI-RADS®) guidelines for short-interval follow-up after breast lesions assessed as "probably benign." Her past work with Group Health Research Institute (GHRI) investigators Diana Buist, PhD and Diana Miglioretti, PhD confirmed that breast density is a key breast cancer risk factor. She would like to take this research to the next level by examining the hormonal, biological, and environmental factors that modify breast density and interact to affect breast cancer risk.
Ms. Aiello Bowles is also passionate about doing research to help improve the quality of cancer care. Working with colleagues from the CRN, they studied cancer care from four diverse perspectives: expert interviews; patient, family, and provider focus groups; organization site visits; and a literature review. Ms. Aiello Bowles published findings from the expert interviews that suggested lack of standardization of care guidelines is a key barrier to high-quality cancer care. These findings have strengthened her commitment to helping improve the quality of cancer care, and she is pursuing more funding in this area. She is especially interested in studying the period around cancer diagnosis and surgery—a time when many patients feel their highest anxiety.
Recent publications
Elmore JG, Bowles EJ, Geller B, Oster NV, Carney PA, Miglioretti DL, Buist DS, Kerlikowske K, Sickles EA, Onega T, Rosenberg RD, Yankaskas BC. Radiologists' attitudes and use of mammography audit reports. Acad Radiol. 2010;17(6):752-60. PubMed
Phipps AI, Ichikawa L, Bowles EJ, Carney PA, Kerlikowske K, Miglioretti DL, Buist DS. Defining menopausal status in epidemiologic studies: a comparison of multiple approaches and their effects on breast cancer rates. Maturitas. 2010 May 20 [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Bowles EJ, Sickles EA, Miglioretti DL, Carney PA, Elmore JG. Recommendation for short-interval follow-up examinations after a probably benign assessment: is clinical practice consistent with BI-RADS guidance? AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2010;194(4):1152-9. PubMed
Yong M, Schwartz SM, Atkinson C, Makar KW, Thomas SS, Newton KM, Aiello Bowles EJ, Holt VL, Leisenring WM, Lampe JW. Associations between polymorphisms in glucuronidation and sulfation enzymes and mammographic breast density in premenopausal women in the United States. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2010;19(2):537-46. PubMed
Cook AJ, Elmore JG, Miglioretti DL, Sickles EA, Bowles EJ, Cutter GR, Carney PA. Decreased accuracy in interpretation of community-based screening mammography for women with multiple clinical risk factors. J Clin Epidemiol. 2010 Apr;63(4):441-51. Epub 2009 Sep 9. PubMed
Aiello Bowles EJ, Tuzzio L, Ritzwoller DP, Williams AE, Ross T, Wagner EH, Neslund-Dudas C, Altschuler A, Quinn V, Hornbrook M, Nekhlyudov L. Accuracy and complexities of using automated clinical data for capturing chemotherapy administrations: implications for future research. Med Care. 2009;47(10):1091-7. Epub 2009 Jul 30. PubMed
Aiello Bowles EJ, Geller BM. Best ways to provide feedback to radiologists on mammography performance. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2009 Jul;193(1):157-64. PubMed
Buist DS, Anderson ML, Reed SD, Aiello Bowles EJ, Fitzgibbons ED, Gandara JC, Seger D, Newton KM. Short-term hormone therapy suspension and mammography recall: a randomized trial. Ann Intern Med. 2009;150(11):752-65. PubMed
Reed SD, Buist DS, Anderson ML, Aiello Bowles EJ, Fitzgibbons D, Seger D, Newton KM. Short-term (1-2 mo) hormone therapy cessation before mammography. Menopause. 2009 Nov-Dec;16(6):1125-31. Epub 2009 May 15. PubMed
Carney PA, Kettler M, Cook AJ, Geller BM, Karliner L, Miglioretti DL, Bowles EA, Buist DS, Gallagher TH, Elmore JG. An assessment of the likelihood, frequency, and content of verbal communication between radiologists and women receiving screening and diagnostic mammography. Acad Radiol. 2009;16(9):1056-63. Epub 2009 May 12. PubMed
McTiernan A, Wang CY, Sorensen B, Xiao L, Buist DS, Aiello Bowles EJ, White E, Rossing MA, Potter J, Urban N. No effect of aspirin on mammographic density in a randomized controlled clinical trial. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2009;18(5):1524-30. PubMed
To view more publications, please see Ms. Aiello Bowles' CV.