About

Dr. Zuo-Feng Zhang is a Professor of Epidemiology at UCLA, serving as the Co-Director of the UCLA Center for Environment Genomics, Director of the Molecular Epidemiology Training Program, and Scientific Director of the UCLA Central Tumor Registry. His research focuses on the molecular epidemiology of various cancers, including those of the bladder, prostate, esophagus, stomach, head and neck, and cervix. His work also encompasses nutrition and cancer, epidemiology of second primary cancers, methodological issues in tumor marker use, and cancer progression and survival. Dr. Zhang has a distinguished background that includes a Medical Degree in Preventive Medicine from Shanghai Medical University and a Ph.D. in cancer epidemiology from the State University of New York at Buffalo. His training includes post-doctoral work at the International Agency for Research on Cancer under the World Health Organization. He has held academic positions at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and Cornell Medical College before joining UCLA in 1997, where he became a full professor in 1999. His research group investigates genetic mutations, methylations, polymorphisms, and SNPs related to tumor suppressor genes and DNA repair genes, aiming to evaluate their effects on cancer risk and gene-environment interactions. Dr. Zhang has also contributed to public health through consulting for the World Health Organization and serving on NIH study sections.

Research topics

• Internal medicine
• Medicine
• Surgery
• Gastroenterology
• General surgery
• Oncology
• Biology
• Food science
• Medical physics

Selected publications

• Body mass index and gastric cancer risk: results from the Stomach Cancer Pooling Project Consortium

  International Journal of Epidemiology · 2025-08-18

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Body mass index (BMI) has been associated with gastric cancer (GC), though results are conflicting regarding the GC subsites of cardia and non-cardia. This study aims to evaluate the associations between BMI and GC risk, focusing on these distinct anatomical subsites. METHODS: We pooled data from seven case-control studies from the Stomach Cancer Pooling (StoP) Project. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of GC risk across BMI categories (normal weight, overweight, obesity) were calculated by pooling study-specific ORs through random-effects meta-analytic models. The dose-response relationship between BMI and the risk of GC cancer was assessed by using a one-stage mixed-effects logistic regression model. Results were stratified according to cardia and non-cardia GC. RESULTS: The analysis comprised 1478 GC cases, including 511 cardia and 967 non-cardia cases, and 6671 controls. There was an increased risk of cardia GC among obese patients (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.20-2.06), while no association was found for non-cardia GC (OR 0.82, 95% CI 0.66-1.01). Restricting the analysis to population-based studies, the association for cardia GC became stronger for obese (OR 1.65, 95% CI 1.09-2.48) and overweight (OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.10-2.39) patients. The dose-response meta-analysis showed an increased risk of cardia GC with increasing BMI values, ranging from a null effect at a BMI of 21.75 to an OR of 2.06 (95% CI 1.22-3.48) for a BMI of ≥40. CONCLUSION: Our results indicate an association between higher BMI categories and the risk of cardia GC, whereas no association was found with non-cardia GC.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• The impact of cancer diagnosis on functional decline in adults aged 50 and older: the US Health and Retirement Study

  Journal of Cancer Survivorship · 2025-07-29 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  PURPOSE: We conducted a longitudinal secondary data analysis to estimate long-term functional limitation trajectories of adults over 50 with cancer compared to cancer-free individuals. METHODS: Using the Health and Retirement Study (1998-2020), we followed adults over 50 without cancer history. Incident cancer was self-reported or proxy reported. Functional decline was assessed using self-reported independence in six domains, including instrumental activities of daily living (IADL), activities of daily living (ADL), mobility, large muscle, gross motor, and fine motor skills. We employed linear probability models with repeated measures to estimate independence probabilities. RESULTS: Among 15,972 participants (mean [SD] age, 66.1 [9.9] years), 23.1% reported cancer during follow-up. Before diagnosis, individuals with cancer had a 1.3% lower probability of IADL independence compared to cancer-free individuals (95% CI = - 1.9, - 0.7). After diagnosis, cancer survivors experienced a sharp 6% drop in IADL independence, resulting in a 3.4% lower probability than in those without cancer (- 4.6, - 2.2). The annual rate of IADL decline after diagnosis was slower in cancer survivors compared to those without cancer (- 0.9% vs. - 1.3%). Similar patterns were observed for ADL. The greatest immediate reduction was in the gross motor domain with a decline of 8.6% (- 10.4, - 6.8). CONCLUSIONS: Cancer survivors experienced rapid functional decline at diagnosis, possibly attributed to active treatment. Following diagnosis, cancer survivors had a more gradual loss in functional independence compared to cancer-free individuals. IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: Findings underscore the importance of proactive, tailored interventions to support functional independence in older cancer survivors, particularly around diagnosis.

  PublisherDOI

• Table S6 from The Risk of Type 2 Diabetes among Older Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Colorectal Cancer Survivors: A Population-Based Study Using the SEER–Medicare Database

  2025-06-03

  preprintOpen access

  <p>This table summarizes the hazard ratios and corresponding 95% CIs for various risk factors for Type 2 Diabetes.</p>

  PublisherDOI

• Molecular engineering of sterically-isolated spherical chromophores for high-performance second order nonlinear optical polymers

  Dyes and Pigments · 2025-07-03

  article
  PublisherDOI

• Dietary vitamin D and gastric cancer risk within the stomach cancer pooling (stop) project

  European Journal of Nutrition · 2025-08-31

  articleOpen access

  PURPOSE: The evidence regarding the role of vitamin D on gastric cancer (GC) is controversial. Within the Stomach cancer Pooling (StoP) Project, a global consortium of epidemiological studies on GC, we aimed to evaluate the relationship between dietary vitamin D and GC risk. METHODS: Five case-control studies were included in the analysis, accounting for 1875 cases and 5899 controls. Odds ratios (OR) of GC and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) for tertiles of vitamin D intake were computed using logistic regression models adjusted for relevant confounders, including energy intake. The pooled ORs were computed using random-effect models. RESULTS: The pooled OR of GC for the highest compared to the lowest tertile of vitamin D intake was 1.06 (95% CI 0.80-1.39), with a p for heterogeneity of 0.019. No significant association was found across strata of sex, age, socioeconomic status, smoking status, alcohol intake, and vegetable and fruit consumption. CONCLUSIONS: Our pooled analysis indicates that there is no association between dietary vitamin D and the risk of GC.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Correction: VNP20009-Abvec-Igκ-MIIP suppresses ovarian cancer progression by modulating Ras/MEK/ERK signaling pathway

  Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology · 2025-09-16

  erratumOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Table S1 from The Risk of Type 2 Diabetes among Older Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Colorectal Cancer Survivors: A Population-Based Study Using the SEER–Medicare Database

  2025-06-03

  preprintOpen access

  <p>This table presents the counts of cases and corresponding person-years by race and ethnicity among the study population.</p>

  PublisherDOI

• An Anti–saliva contamination Bonding Strategy Based on Polycation Assembly

  Journal of Dental Research · 2025-06-25 · 3 citations

  article

  The high incidence of saliva contamination is a real threat to dentin bonding that underpins contemporary preventive dentistry and clinical dentistry. Saliva contamination can form a nanoscale bacteria-contained adsorption film with high hydration on demineralized dentin matrix (DDM), worsening the insufficient adhesive infiltration into the DDM and causing bacteria load. The resultant bacteria-loaded hybrid layer with more defects aggravates the durability issue of dentin bonding that affects the oral health of billions of people worldwide. To address the issue of saliva contamination, a robust polycation assembly-assisted bonding strategy was developed based on the electrostatic adsorption of bactericidal polycations on the natural template of a 3-dimensional, porous, negatively charged DDM as well as the contaminated DDM to form a stable electrostatic complex via electrostatic adsorption. Both residual bacteria in the biofilm and bacteria from saliva were killed, and the hydrated DDM was dehydrated, causing the release of interface-confined water regardless of the presence of contamination, which greatly improved adhesive infiltration. More interesting, due to the charge reversal caused by polycation adsorption, the polycation/DDM complex actively adsorbed negatively charged saliva proteins continuously and formed a stable polycation/DDM/saliva protein complex, actively erasing the adverse effect of saliva contamination on dentin bonding. This is the first successful construction of a persistently antibacterial and defect-low hybrid layer under saliva contamination.

  PublisherDOI

• Ultraviolet‐Controlled Radical Dopants: Suppressing Unpredictable Oxidation and Lithium Migration in Perovskite Solar Cells

  Angewandte Chemie International Edition · 2025-08-04 · 1 citations

  article

  Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have achieved parity in efficiency with silicon-based solar cells. This dependency introduces stability challenges and complicates device fabrication due to the traditional air-oxidation doping process, which is time-consuming, unpredictable, and requires continuous monitoring of device variability. Here, we propose two triphenyl sulfonium (TPS) salts as UV-light-triggered radical-generating dopants for 2,2',7,7'-tetrakis [N,N-di(4-methoxyphenyl) amino]-9,9'-spirobifluorene(spiro-OMeTAD). These dopants eliminate the need for air-based oxidation, thereby simplifying fabrication while enhancing the electrical properties of spiro-OMeTAD through efficient p-type doping. Using this approach, we achieved a champion power conversion efficiency of 25.18%, surpassing the performance of traditional doping methods. Notably, PSCs incorporating TPS dopants and cost-effective silver top-electrodes demonstrated exceptional stability under various operational conditions. This work presents a scalable, cost-effective doping strategy that addresses critical stability-efficiency trade-offs in PSCs, positioning them as viable contenders for commercial renewable energy applications.

  PublisherDOI

• Table S2 from The Risk of Type 2 Diabetes among Older Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Colorectal Cancer Survivors: A Population-Based Study Using the SEER–Medicare Database

  2025-06-03

  preprintOpen access

  <p>This table displays the results of a sensitivity analysis supplementing the main results in Table 4.</p>

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R01ES006718

  NIH · $737k · 1997

• NIH Grant R01DA011386

  NIH · $2.3M · 2006

• Molecular Epidemiology Cancer Training Program

  NIH · $7.4M · 1980–2026

• NIH Grant R03CA077954

  NIH · $152k · 2000

• NIH Grant R21ES011667

  NIH · $651k · 2007

Frequent coauthors

• Paolo Boffetta

  Stony Brook University

  320 shared

• Stefania Boccia

  Agostino Gemelli University Polyclinic

  307 shared

• Carlo La Vecchia

  University of Milan

  299 shared

• María Paula Curado

  242 shared

• Mia Hashibe

  Huntsman Cancer Institute

  232 shared

• Silvia Franceschi

  Istituti di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico

  197 shared

• Keitaro Matsuo

  Healis Sekhsaria Institute For Public Health

  182 shared

• Luigino Dal Maso

  172 shared

Labs

• UCLA Center for Environment GenomicsPI

Education

• Post-Doctoral Fellow, Descriptive Epidemiology

  International Agency for Research on Cancer

  1998

• Ph.D. in Cancer Epidemiology and Experimental Pathology, Social and Preventive Medicine

  University at Buffalo - The State University of New York

  1991

• M.B. in Preventive Medicine

  Shanghai Medical University

  1983

Awards & honors

• Fellow of the American College of Epidemiology (ACE) since 1…
• Member of the Board of Directors of the American College of…
• Regular member of NIH Epidemiology of Cancer Study Section (…
• Regular member of the NCI-J study section