Focused on how racism—not race itself—drives health inequities, especially among Black and other racially minoritized populations.

Exposed how racism undermines Black Americans’ health at every stage.

Pioneered Research on Postpartum Depression in Black New York Mothers.

Advanced equity by improving mental-health access and culturally appropriate care for Latino and other underserved populations.

Championed bilingual, culturally responsive oncology care and improved health access for Latino communities facing resource barriers.

Pioneered interventions improving doctor-patient communication and community engagement to reduce racial health inequities.

Advanced equity by improving cancer prevention, tobacco control, and health access for Black, Asian, and other underserved communities.

Advanced equity by addressing police violence as a health issue and improving COVID-19 vaccine access for Black and Brown communities.

Fought Black Maternal Mortality Through Education and Advocacy in Georgia

Reduced cancer inequities by developing mathematical models of treatment differences, especially among Black and white prostate-cancer patients.

Researched how social and environmental factors drive racial disparities in sleep and metabolic health.

Worked to eliminate COVID-19 and healthcare inequities affecting Black, Latino, and other marginalized communities through research and policy leadership.

Studied racial and immigrant-status inequities in maternal and infant health, especially affecting Black and immigrant mothers.

Illuminated how structural racism harms health, documenting worse outcomes for Black Americans and other marginalized groups.

Addressed racial health disparities by researching food insecurity, diabetes, and policy interventions for equity.

Developed the “weathering” theory, showing chronic racism caused early health decline, especially in Black mothers and infants.

Pioneered Text-Based Mental Health Support for Low-Income Latinx Communities

Built California’s First Statewide Black Birth Justice Movement.

Developed low-cost screening interventions to boost colorectal cancer detection in underserved Latino and rural populations.

Tackled childhood trauma and toxic stress, highlighting disproportionate impacts on Black and low-income children.

Examined racial disparities in cancer-clinical trials by highlighting much lower awareness and participation among Black survivors.

Helped develop mRNA COVID-19 vaccines and worked to build vaccine trust in Black communities.

Fought cancer inequities by exposing delayed diagnoses and poorer treatment among Black patients and underserved communities.

Focused on reducing disparities in advanced-care planning and treatment access among Hispanic and female patients with Parkinson’s disease.

Exposed lead poisoning in Flint, championed public health initiatives for vulnerable children.

Improved tobacco-cessation and chronic-disease outcomes among Latino communities and other underserved groups.

Championed “Pharmacoequity” to Combat Medication Disparities Affecting Black Patients.

Led a West Side safety-net hospital where she combats diabetes, food insecurity and access issues for Black and Brown patients.

Advanced health equity by exposing racism’s role in poorer health outcomes for Black and other marginalized communities.

Addressed cancer screening disparities among older adults, especially in underserved populations.

Addressed smoking-cessation disparities and tobacco use prevention among Asian American and other immigrant populations.

Centered her work on structural racism’s impact on Black, Latinx and Indigenous communities’ health outcomes.

Exposed racism’s role in health, highlighting systemic causes of Black health inequities nationwide.

Led community-engaged research on behavioral health, chronic disease, and trauma among Alaska Native and American Indian populations.

Focused on impacts of daily discrimination, which contribute to poor health.

Created First Program Addressing Black Patients’ Barriers to Lifesaving Organs

Confronted Medical Racism, Leads Historic Equity Reckoning for Black Americans.

Improved treatment access, survivorship support, and clinical-trial participation for Black women with breast cancer.

Documented How Structural Racism Drives Cancer Disparities for Black Americans.

Developed cancer screening strategies for effectiveness across diverse populations.

Increased neuroscience research inclusivity and highlighted exclusion of African-ancestry data in mental-health studies.

Improved mental-health services and justice-system support for foster-care and juvenile-justice-involved youth from marginalized communities.

Advanced Indigenous health by providing mobile HIV/STI testing, education, and culturally responsive interventions.

Researched medical mistrust, showing racially concordant physicians boost preventive care among Black men.

Leading voice for ensuring that health breakthroughs reach all communities.

Focused on reducing cardiovascular and chronic-care disparities among under-served populations through social-determinants research.

Tackled lung-cancer screening inequities by creating decision aids and outreach tools for underserved, high-risk populations.

Fought Against Cardiovascular Health Disparities in Black Communities.

Exposed racism’s historic and ongoing impact on Black health through research, writing, and advocacy.

Focused on reducing health inequities among African American men by examining how racism and masculinity norms impede help-seeking.

Led efforts to reduce colorectal and hereditary cancer disparities among Hispanic and Puerto Rican populations.

Worked to uncover and reduce racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare quality and outcomes, particularly among Black versus White patients.

Translated Health Equity Research Into Practice for Hospitals and Health Systems Nationally.

Championed eliminating racial health disparities, especially infant mortality, HIV/AIDS, and care for minorities.