Roshan Bastani, Ph.D.

Professor, Health Policy and Management
Director, UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity
Director, UCLA Center for Prevention Research
UCLA Fielding School of Public Health
Director, Cancer Disparities Research
Associate Director, Cancer Prevention and Control Research
UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, UCLA

Dr. Bastani's research interests are in addressing health inequities, with a focus on conducting rigorous yet pragmatic individual, community, organization and system-directed intervention trials to improve access and reduce disparities. She has led a large number of community-partnered studies targeting low income, ethnic minority, and immigrant populations and has had continuous research funding from the NIH since 1988. Dr. Bastani's research experience includes studies on breast, cervix, colorectal, and prostate cancer screening and diagnostic follow up; hepatitis B screening; HPV vaccine uptake; tobacco control; melanoma prevention; and obesity.

Dr. Bastani has established a robust program of research in colorectal cancer and liver disease. Examples include a large randomized trial to increase colorectal cancer (CRC) screening in an ethnically diverse sample of first-degree relatives of CRC survivors; several trials based in clinical settings such as Federally Qualified Health Centers; and community-partnered trials to increase CRC screening among Asians. Dr. Bastani's research on liver disease includes a large cluster-randomized trial to increase hepatitis B screening among Koreans; collaboration on several other hepatitis B screening trials among Vietnamese, Hmong, Cambodian and Chinese populations; and examination of hepatitis B screening and liver disease risk factors in multiple Asian groups and Latinos.

She currently leads a trans-disciplinary collaboration among scientists at several UC campuses to address liver disease disparities. The project combines the perspectives of population health, health disparities, clinical medicine, machine learning, and metabolomics to enhance risk prediction, provide insights regarding hepatocellular carcinoma oncogenesis, and inform a precision health approach to clinical management of at-risk patients.


Selected publications

  1. Stewart, L., Kwong, S.L., Bowlus, C.L., Nguyen, T.T., Maxwell, A.E., Bastani, R., Chak, E.W., Chen, M.S. Jr. (2016). Racial/ethnic disparities in hepatocellular carcinoma treatment and survival in California, 1988-2012World Journal of Gastroenterology, 22(38): 8584-8595. PMCID: PMC5064040
  2. Mojica, C., Glenn, B.A., Chang, C., Bastani, R. (2015). The relationship between neighborhood immigrant composition, limited English proficiency, and late-stage colorectal cancer diagnosis in CaliforniaBioMed Research International, 2015:1-8, Article ID 460181. PMCID: PMC4609354
  3. Bastani, R., Glenn, B.A., Maxwell, A.E., Jo, A.M., Herrmann, A.K., Crespi, C.M., Wong, W.K, Chang, L.C., Stewart, S.L., Nguyen, T.T., Chen, M.S. Jr., Taylor, V.M. (2015). Cluster-randomized trial to increase hepatitis B testing among Koreans in Los AngelesCancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, 24(9):1341-1349. PMCID: PMC4560609
  4. Bastani, R., Glenn, B.A., Maxwell, A.E., Ganz, P.A., Mojica, C.M., Alber, S., Chang, L.C. (2015). Randomized trial to increase colorectal cancer screening in an ethnically diverse sample of first-degree relativesCancer, 121(17):2951-2959. PMCID: PMC4545725
  5. Tu, S., Chun, A., Yasui, Y., Kuniyuki, A., Yip, M., Taylor, V., Bastani, R. (2014). Adaptation of an evidence-based intervention to promote colorectal cancer screening: A quasi-experimental studyImplementation Science, 9(85):1-8. PMCID: PMC4226971
  6. Flores, Y.N., Lang, C.M., Salmerón, J., Bastani, R. (2012). Risk factors for liver disease and associated knowledge and practices among Mexican adults in the U.S. and MexicoJournal of Community Health, 37(2):403-411. PMID: 21877109
  7. Maxwell, A.E., Bastani, R., Danao, L.L., Antonio, C., Garcia, G.M., Crespi, C.M. (2010). Results of a community-based randomized trial to increase colorectal cancer screening among Filipino AmericansAmerican Journal of Public Health, 100(11):2228-2234. PMCID: PMC2951922
  8. Bastani, R., Glenn, B.A., Taylor, V.M., Chen, M.S., Nguyen, T.T., Stewart, S.L., Maxwell, A.E. (2010). Integrating theory into community interventions to reduce liver cancer disparities: The Health Behavior FrameworkPreventive Medicine, 50(1-2):63-67. PMCID: PMC3243444
  9. Bastani, R., Glenn, B.A., Maxwell, A.E., Ganz, P.A., Mojica, C.M., Chang, L.C. (2008). Validation of self-reported colorectal cancer (CRC) screening in a study of ethnically diverse first-degree relatives of CRC casesCancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, 17(4):791-798. PMID: 18381469
  10. Bastani, R., Glenn, B.A., Maxwell, A.E., Jo, A.M. (2007). Hepatitis B testing for liver cancer control among Korean AmericansEthnicity & Disease, 17(2):365-373. PMID: 17682372

Contact information

[email protected]