Rena Pasick, DrPH, MPH, MA
Recall Faculty
Medicine
School of Medicine

Dr. Pasick’s completed studies include an NCI Program Project, Cancer Screening, Managed Care and the Underserved, and NCI RO1 studies: Cross-Cultural Communication in Colorectal Cancer Screening (CRC – to aid communication between clinicians and African American, Chinese, and Latino patients on colorectal screening); Behavioral Constructs and Culture in Cancer Screening (3Cs – to test the cultural appropriateness of five major behavioral theory constructs); Interactive Outreach: CIS-Link to the Underserved (to connect public hospital cancer patients with the Cancer Information Service); and Statewide Communication to Reach Diverse Low Income Women, a study to identify English and Spanish-speaking women at risk for hereditary breast cancer or Asian women who may be at risk for Hepatitis B among callers to the California breast and cervical screening program. Her current research includes an NCI-funded RO1, Comparison of 3 Modes of Genetic Counseling in High-Risk Public Hospital Patients and a Susan G. Komen Scholar grant, Second Opinions and the Treatment Gradient Experienced by African American Breast Cancer Patients: An Exploratory Study. In 2010, Dr. Pasick was recognized for her record of research in cancer disparities by an invitation to join the Susan G. Komen National Scholars. With the funds that came with this honor, Dr. Pasick has studied cross-cultural validation of breast cancer risk assessment tools, breast cancer risk education in the context of the African American church, and exploration of the meaning of breast cancer risk among Chinese women having a strong family history of breast cancer.

In 2008, Dr. Pasick’s Community Engagement program established a very active Faith Communities initiative that fosters new health ministries in African American churches and disseminates evidence-based interventions such as Body & Soul in that setting. This has led to development of a Prostate Education Committee that engages in research, education, and advocacy addressing the excess burden of this disease among African American men.

Dr. Pasick regards her most significant contribution as the establishment of the Minority Training Program in Cancer Control Research (MTPCCR), designed to encourage under-represented master’s level students and master’s trained professionals to go on for their doctoral degrees and to pursue careers in cancer control research. The MTPCCR was funded continuously by the National Cancer Institute from 1998-2018. Over 700 people participated of whom more than 30% have gone on to the doctorate. The majority report that the MTPCCR was a strong influence on their plans, and half are working in cancer-related research. Currently, UCLA has raised funds to support the MTPCCR at that campus through 2021. An NCI-funded adaptation of the program targeting Latinx participants was awarded to colleague Amelie Ramirez at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, with Dr. Pasick as Co-PI 2010-20.

• Ethnographic investigation of patient-provider communication among African American men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer: a study protocol.
  BMJ open 2020 Palmer NR, Shim JK, Kaplan CP, Schillinger D, Blaschko SD, Breyer BN, Pasick RJ
• Advancing Cancer Control in San Francisco: Cancer Screening in Under-Represented Populations.
  American journal of preventive medicine 2020 Rivadeneira NA, Hoskote M, Le GM, Nguyen TT, Nápoles AM, Pasick RJ, Sarkar U, Hiatt RA
• Éxito!: Making an Impact in Training Latinos for Doctorates and Cancer Research.
  Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education 2019 Ramirez AG, Gallion KJ, Perez A, Adeigbe RT, Munoz E, Pasick RJ
• Social Media as a Tool to Promote Health Awareness: Results from an Online Cervical Cancer Prevention Study.
  Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education 2019 Lyson HC, Le GM, Zhang J, Rivadeneira N, Lyles C, Radcliffe K, Pasick RJ, Sawaya G, Sarkar U, Centola D
• Facts or stories? How to use social media for cervical cancer prevention: A multi-method study of the effects of sender type and content type on increased message sharing.
  Preventive medicine 2019 Zhang J, Le G, Larochelle D, Pasick R, Sawaya GF, Sarkar U, Centola D
• Perceptions of cervical cancer prevention on Twitter uncovered by different sampling strategies.
  PloS one 2019 Le GM, Radcliffe K, Lyles C, Lyson HC, Wallace B, Sawaya G, Pasick R, Centola D, Sarkar U
• Effective communication in the era of precision medicine: A pilot intervention with low health literacy patients to improve genetic counseling communication.
  European journal of medical genetics 2018 Joseph G, Lee R, Pasick RJ, Guerra C, Schillinger D, Rubin S
• The Role of Physician Recommendation in Colorectal Cancer Screening Receipt Among Immigrant Chinese Americans.
  Journal of immigrant and minority health 2018 Jih J, Nguyen MP, Ly I, Tsoh JY, Le GM, Woo K, Chan E, Gildengorin G, Stewart SL, Burke A, Pasick R, McPhee SJ, Nguyen TT
• An Intervention Tool to Increase Patient-Physician Discussion of Lifestyle Risk Factors for Breast Cancer.
  Journal of women's health (2002) 2018 Ozanne E, Karliner LS, Tice JA, Haas JS, Livaudais-Toman J, Pasick RJ, Kaplan CP
• The San Francisco Cancer Initiative: A Community Effort To Reduce The Population Burden Of Cancer.
  Health affairs (Project Hope) 2018 Hiatt RA, Sibley A, Fejerman L, Glantz S, Nguyen T, Pasick R, Palmer N, Perkins A, Potter MB, Somsouk M, Vargas RA, van 't Veer LJ, Ashworth A
• Cancer genetic counseling communication with low-income Chinese immigrants.
  Journal of community genetics 2017 Cheng JKY, Guerra C, Pasick RJ, Schillinger D, Luce J, Joseph G
• Erratum to: Information Mismatch: Cancer Risk Counseling with Diverse Underserved Patients.
  Journal of genetic counseling 2017 Joseph G, Pasick RJ, Schillinger D, Luce J, Guerra C, Cheng JKY
• Disparities in abnormal mammogram follow-up time for Asian women compared with non-Hispanic white women and between Asian ethnic groups.
  Cancer 2017 Nguyen KH, Pasick RJ, Stewart SL, Kerlikowske K, Karliner LS
• Information Mismatch: Cancer Risk Counseling with Diverse Underserved Patients.
  Journal of genetic counseling 2017 Joseph G, Pasick RJ, Schillinger D, Luce J, Guerra C, Cheng JKY
• Colorectal Cancer Screening and Chinese Americans: Efficacy of Lay Health Worker Outreach and Print Materials.
  American journal of preventive medicine 2016 Nguyen TT, Tsoh JY, Woo K, Stewart SL, Le GM, Burke A, Gildengorin G, Pasick RJ, Wang J, Chan E, Fung LC, Jih J, McPhee SJ
• Validation of an Efficient Screening Tool to Identify Low-Income Women at High Risk for Hereditary Breast Cancer.
  Public health genomics 2016 Stewart SL, Kaplan CP, Lee R, Joseph G, Karliner L, Livaudais-Toman J, Pasick RJ
• Effective Referral of Low-Income Women at Risk for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer to Genetic Counseling: A Randomized Delayed Intervention Control Trial.
  American journal of public health 2016 Pasick RJ, Joseph G, Stewart S, Kaplan C, Lee R, Luce J, Davis S, Marquez T, Nguyen T, Guerra C
• Healthcare Communication Barriers and Self-Rated Health in Older Chinese American Immigrants.
  Journal of community health 2016 Tsoh JY, Sentell T, Gildengorin G, Le GM, Chan E, Fung LC, Pasick RJ, Stewart S, Wong C, Woo K, Burke A, Wang J, McPhee SJ, Nguyen TT
• Educational Interventions to Promote Healthy Nutrition and Physical Activity Among Older Chinese Americans: A Cluster-Randomized Trial.
  American journal of public health 2016 Jih J, Le G, Woo K, Tsoh JY, Stewart S, Gildengorin G, Burke A, Wong C, Chan E, Fung LC, Yu F, Pasick R, McPhee SJ, Nguyen TT
• Latinos and Cancer Information: Perspectives of Patients, Health Professionals and Telephone Cancer Information Specialists.
  Journal of health disparities research and practice 2016 Kaplan CP, Nápoles A, Davis S, Lopez M, Pasick RJ, Livaudais-Toman J, Pérez-Stable EJ
• Barriers and Facilitators to Online Portal Use Among Patients and Caregivers in a Safety Net Health Care System: A Qualitative Study.
  Journal of medical Internet research 2015 Tieu L, Sarkar U, Schillinger D, Ralston JD, Ratanawongsa N, Pasick R, Lyles CR
• Impact of a primary care based intervention on breast cancer knowledge, risk perception and concern: A randomized, controlled trial.
  Breast (Edinburgh, Scotland) 2015 Livaudais-Toman J, Karliner LS, Tice JA, Kerlikowske K, Gregorich S, Pérez-Stable EJ, Pasick RJ, Chen A, Quinn J, Kaplan CP
• Twenty-Two Health Promotion Pioneers.
  American journal of health promotion : AJHP 2015 Goetzel RZ, Parker E, Terry PE, Pasick RJ, Burton WN, Green L, Hunnicutt D, Palma-Davis L, Eng E, Schulz AJ, Minkler M, Anderson DR, Strecher VJ, Katz D, Serxner S, Whitsel L, Pronk NP, Wallerstein N,…
• A randomized, controlled trial to increase discussion of breast cancer in primary care.
  Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology 2014 Kaplan CP, Livaudais-Toman J, Tice JA, Kerlikowske K, Gregorich SE, Pérez-Stable EJ, Pasick RJ, Chen A, Quinn J, Karliner LS
• Breast cancer and coping among women of color: a systematic review of the literature.
  Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer 2014 Yoo GJ, Levine EG, Pasick R
• Efficient identification of low-income Asian American women at high risk for hepatitis B.
  Journal of health care for the poor and underserved 2013 Joseph G, Nguyen K, Nguyen T, Stewart S, Davis S, Kevany S, Marquez T, Pasick R
• Perceptions, expectations, and attitudes about communication with physicians among Chinese American and non-Hispanic white women with early stage breast cancer.
  Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer 2013 Wang JH, Adams IF, Pasick RJ, Gomez SL, Allen L, Ma GX, Lee MX, Huang E
• A mixed method exploration of survivorship among Chinese American and non-Hispanic White breast cancer survivors: the role of socioeconomic well-being.
  Quality of life research : an international journal of quality of life aspects of treatment, care and rehabilitation 2013 Wang JH, Adams IF, Tucker-Seeley R, Gomez SL, Allen L, Huang E, Wang Y, Pasick RJ
• "5 mins of uncomfyness is better than dealing with cancer 4 a lifetime": an exploratory qualitative analysis of cervical and breast cancer screening dialogue on Twitter.
  Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education 2013 Lyles CR, López A, Pasick R, Sarkar U
• Factors influencing time to diagnosis after abnormal mammography in diverse women.
  Journal of women's health (2002) 2013 Pérez-Stable EJ, Afable-Munsuz A, Kaplan CP, Pace L, Samayoa C, Somkin C, Nickleach D, Lee M, Márquez-Magaña L, Juarbe T, Pasick RJ
• Efficient identification and referral of low-income women at high risk for hereditary breast cancer: a practice-based approach.
  Public health genomics 2012 Joseph G, Kaplan C, Luce J, Lee R, Stewart S, Guerra C, Pasick R
• Understanding Filipina women's health orientation and the implications for colorectal cancer screening
  Diversity in Health and Care 2011 Afable-Munsuz A, Pasick R, Nguyen, KH, Perez-Stable, EJ.
• Healthy colon, healthy life: a novel colorectal cancer screening intervention.
  American journal of preventive medicine 2010 Walsh JM, Salazar R, Nguyen TT, Kaplan C, Nguyen LK, Hwang J, McPhee SJ, Pasick RJ
• Physicians' approaches to recommending colorectal cancer screening: a qualitative study.
  Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education 2010 Walsh JM, Karliner L, Burke N, Somkin CP, Pham LA, Pasick R
• Healthy colon, healthy life (colon sano, vida sana): colorectal cancer screening among Latinos in Santa Clara, California.
  Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education 2010 Walsh JM, Salazar R, Kaplan C, Nguyen L, Hwang J, Pasick RJ
• Adult daughters' influence on mothers' health-related decision making: an expansion of the subjective norms construct.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2009 Washington PK, Burke NJ, Joseph G, Guerra C, Pasick RJ
• Behavioral constructs and mammography in five ethnic groups.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2009 Stewart SL, Rakowski W, Pasick RJ
• In Memoriam: Sabra F. Woolley, PhD.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2009 Pasick RJ, Burke NJ
• Intention, subjective norms, and cancer screening in the context of relational culture.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2009 Pasick RJ, Barker JC, Otero-Sabogal R, Burke NJ, Joseph G, Guerra C
• Perceived susceptibility to illness and perceived benefits of preventive care: an exploration of behavioral theory constructs in a transcultural context.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2009 Joseph G, Burke NJ, Tuason N, Barker JC, Pasick RJ
• Social and cultural meanings of self-efficacy.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2009 Burke NJ, Bird JA, Clark MA, Rakowski W, Guerra C, Barker JC, Pasick RJ
• Theorizing social context: rethinking behavioral theory.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2009 Burke NJ, Joseph G, Pasick RJ, Barker JC
• Considering culture in physician-- patient communication during colorectal cancer screening.
  Qualitative health research 2009 Burke N, Somkin CP, Pasick R
• Healthy Colon, Healthy Life (Ruot Lành, Song Khoe): patient and physician factors associated with colorectal cancer screening among Vietnamese Americans in a county medical care system.
  Journal of health care for the poor and underserved 2009 Walsh J, Nguyen T, Nguyen L, Pasick R, McPhee SJ
• Cancer screening for underserved women: the Breast and Cervical Cancer Intervention Study.
  Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology 2008 Hiatt RA, Pasick RJ, Stewart S, Bloom J, Davis P, Gardiner P, Luce J
• A critical review of theory in breast cancer screening promotion across cultures.
  Annual review of public health 2008 Pasick RJ, Burke NJ
• Recruiting low-income healthy women to research: an exploratory study.
  Ethnicity & health 2007 Joseph G, Kaplan CP, Pasick RJ
• Developing and validating a measure of Chinese cultural views of health and cancer.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2007 Liang W, Wang JH, Chen MY, Lee M, Schwartz MD, Pasick RJ, Mandelblatt JS
• The costs of an outreach intervention for low-income women with abnormal Pap smears.
  Preventing chronic disease 2006 Wagner TH, Engelstad LP, McPhee SJ, Pasick RJ
• Ethnic differences in decisional balance and stages of mammography adoption.
  Health education & behavior : the official publication of the Society for Public Health Education 2006 Otero-Sabogal R, Stewart S, Shema SJ, Pasick RJ
• Depressive symptoms among women with an abnormal mammogram.
  Psycho-oncology 2006 Alderete E, Juarbe TC, Kaplan CP, Pasick R, Pérez-Stable EJ
• Progress in the pipeline: replication of the minority training program in cancer control research.
  Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education 2006 Yancey AK, Kagawa-Singer M, Ratliff P, Valdez A, Jiménez L, Banks P, Stewart S, Roe KM, Pasick RJ
• The effectiveness of a community outreach intervention to improve follow-up among underserved women at highest risk for cervical cancer.
  Preventive medicine 2005 Engelstad LP, Stewart S, Otero-Sabogal R, Leung MS, Davis PI, Pasick RJ
• Poor patient comprehension of abnormal mammography results.
  Journal of general internal medicine 2005 Karliner LS, Patricia Kaplan C, Juarbe T, Pasick R, Pérez-Stable EJ
• Are risk factors for breast cancer associated with follow-up procedures in diverse women with abnormal mammography?
  Cancer causes & control : CCC 2005 Juarbe TC, Kaplan CP, Somkin CP, Pasick R, Gildengorin G, Pérez-Stable EJ
• Lessons learned from community-based cancer screening intervention research.
  Cancer 2004 Pasick RJ, Hiatt RA, Paskett ED
• The effect of access and satisfaction on regular mammogram and Papanicolaou test screening in a multiethnic population.
  Medical care 2004 Somkin CP, McPhee SJ, Nguyen T, Stewart S, Shema SJ, Nguyen B, Pasick R
• How do older Chinese women view health and cancer screening? Results from focus groups and implications for interventions.
  Ethnicity & health 2004 Liang W, Yuan E, Mandelblatt JS, Pasick RJ
• Comparison of methods for identifying a population-based sample of Filipina women for a health survey.
  Ethnicity & disease 2004 Hoggatt KJ, Stewart SL, Pasick R, Sabogal F, Tuason N, McBride MR, Duenas GV, Horn-Ross PL
• Increasing ethnic diversity in cancer control research: description and impact of a model training program.
  Journal of cancer education : the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education 2003 Pasick RJ, Otero-Sabogal R, Nacionales MC, Banks PJ
• Validation of recall of breast and cervical cancer screening by women in an ethnically diverse population.
  Preventive medicine 2002 McPhee SJ, Nguyen TT, Shema SJ, Nguyen B, Somkin C, Vo P, Pasick R
• Does willingness to pay vary by race/ethnicity? An analysis using mammography among low-income women.
  Health policy (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 2001 Wagner TH, Hu T, Dueñas GV, Kaplan CP, Nguyen BH, Pasick RJ
• Abnormal Pap smear follow-up in a high-risk population.
  Cancer epidemiology, biomarkers & prevention : a publication of the American Association for Cancer Research, cosponsored by the American Society of Preventive Oncology 2001 Engelstad LP, Stewart SL, Nguyen BH, Bedeian KL, Rubin MM, Pasick RJ, Hiatt RA
• Community-based cancer screening for underserved women: design and baseline findings from the Breast and Cervical Cancer Intervention Study.
  Preventive medicine 2001 Hiatt RA, Pasick RJ, Stewart S, Bloom J, Davis P, Gardiner P, Johnston M, Luce J, Schorr K, Brunner W, Stroud F
• Response to Kreuter and Skinner: consensus regarding use of the terms targeting and tailoring.
  Health education research 2001 Pasick RJ
• Quality of data in multiethnic health surveys.
  Public health reports (Washington, D.C. : 1974) 2001 Pasick RJ, Stewart SL, Bird JA, D'Onofrio CN
• Willingness to pay for mammography: item development and testing among five ethnic groups.
  Health policy (Amsterdam, Netherlands) 2000 Wagner TH, Hu TW, Dueñas GV, Pasick RJ
• Follow-up for abnormal papanicolaou smears in a high-risk population.
  Journal of lower genital tract disease 1999 Engelstad L, Bedian K, Stewart S, Rubin M, Koo J, Pasick R, Hiatt R
• Factors Associated with Cervical Cancer Screening among Filipino Women in California.
  Asian American and Pacific Islander journal of health 1998 McBride MR, Pasick RJ, Stewart S, Tuason N, Sabogal F, Dueñas G
• Unsolved problems in early breast cancer detection: focus on the underserved.
  Breast cancer research and treatment 1996 Hiatt RA, Pasick RJ
• Mass media in health promotion: a compilation of expert opinion.
  International quarterly of community health education 1988 Pasick RJ, Wallack L
• Psycho-social factors and the technologies of work.
  Social science & medicine (1982) 1983 Alcalay R, Pasick RJ
• Obesity: a new social policy perspective.
  International journal of obesity 1978 Fullarton JE, Pasick RJ