Professor Naomi Lee

Professor Naomi Lee
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
Northern Arizona University

The more you know... about HPV and cervical cancer in Native American women

The Lee Lab uses culturally informed community-based biomedical research and applies Two-Eyed Seeing as a guiding principle to address health disparities in Native American communities. For example, cervical cancer impacts Native American communities at higher rates than other racial and ethnic groups. Despite the differences in cervical cancer rates, little is known about the patterns of HPV infection. More recently, research has identified role of the vaginal microbiome (VMB) in HPV acquisition and progression to cervical cancer. Unfortunately, Native communities were not included in earlier studies focused on the VMB. Thus, the talk will highlight multiple efforts to raise awareness about HPV among Native communities. In addition, Dr. Lee will discuss the most recent findings within the VMB and HPV within a pilot study conducted in Flagstaff, AZ. Finally, she will also discuss ongoing efforts to address cervical cancer disparities including develop new HPV vaccines to offer broader protection.

Naomi Lee

Dr. Naomi Lee is from the Seneca Nation of Indians and grew up on the Cattaraugus Reservation in western New York. Dr. Lee received a B.S. in biochemistry from Rochester Institute of Technology. She also completed an M.S. and Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Rochester. From 2013-2015, Dr. Lee was an NINDS postdoctoral fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Steven Jacobson. Currently, Dr. Lee is an Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Northern Arizona University located in Flagstaff, AZ. She is also affiliated with the NIMHD-funded Southwest Health Equity Research Collaborative (SHERC), the NCI-funded Native American Cancer Prevention (NACP) partnership, and the NCI- funded Southwest Transformative Educational Advancement and Mentoring Network (STEAM). She is The Director of Community and Cultural Engagement through NAU’s Center for Materials Interfaces in Research and Applications (¡MIRA!). Dr. Lee is the founder and co-director of the Cultural and Academic Research Experience (CARE) program that aims to encourage historically excluded high school students into STEM and health science careers. Her research focuses on vaccine and therapeutic design and addressing health disparities in Native American communities using chemistry, biology, and public health tools. In addition, Dr. Lee is also Major in the Army Reserves assigned as a Functional Specialist (FxSP/38G) to the 322nd Civil Affairs Brigade in Honolulu, Hawaii.

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