Last Updated: 3/15/2010

Research Interests
Dr. Millikan is the Barbara Sorenson Hulka Distinguished Professor of Epidemiology in the School of Public Health at UNC Chapel Hill. At the Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, he is Principal Investigator on epidemiologic studies of Breast Cancer (Carolina Breast Cancer Study, Carcinoma in Situ of the Breast), Colon Cancer (MTHFR polymorphism and colon cancer), and Malignant Melanoma (North Carolina Melanoma Study). He is a co-investigator on a number of other projects, including the North Carolina Colon Cancer Study. His primary research interests include genetic epidemiology (gene-environment interaction, association studies) and molecular epidemiology (somatic mutations, loss of heterozygosity, gene expression profiling).

In the Department of Epidemiology, he teaches Cancer Epidemiology Methods, Molecular Epidemiology, Advanced Geneti Epidemiology and Epidemiology Methods.

Dr. Millikan's research interests include the role of genetics in human cancer, including the study of how inherited variation in DNA repair interacts with environmental factors in breast cancer, colon cancer, and malignant melanoma. He is also interested in carcinogen metabolism, and identifying causes of breast cancer in young women and African American women.

Dr. Millikan is a member of the National Breast Cancer Coalition, and one of the founding faculty for Project LEAD, an innovative educational program for breast cancer activists sponsored by the National Breast Cancer Coalition.

Recent Accomplishments and Honors
Dr. Millikan was recently awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to work as a Visiting Scholar at University College, Dublin Ireland.

Training
Dr. Millikan has a background in clinical medicine (DVM UC Davis, 1984; Internship at University of Pennsylvania, 1985; private practice 1985-87), molecular biology (Postdoctoral Fellowship at Harvard Medical School, 1987-89), and epidemiology (PhD UCLA, 1993).

Publications
Recent publications:

Golubovskaya C, Conway-Dorsey K, Edmiston S, Tse C-K, Lark A, Livasy C,Moore D, Millikan R, Cance W. FAK overexpression and P53 mutations
are highly correlated in human breast cancer. Int J Ca 125: 1735-38 (2009).

Thorner A, Hoadley K, Parker J, Winkel S, Millikan R, Perou C. In vitro and
in vivo analysis of B-myb in basal-like breast cancer. Oncogene 28: 742-51 (2009).

Carey L, Perou C, Livasy C, Dressler L, Cowan D, Conway K, Karaca G, Troester M, Tse C-K, Edmiston S,Deming S, Geradts J, Cheang M, Nielsen T, Moorman P, Earp H, Millikan R. Race, Breast Cancer Subtypes,and Survival in the Carolina Breast Cancer Study. J Amer Med Assoc 295: 2492-502 (2006).

Brennan D, Jirstrom K, Kronblad A, Millikan RC, Landberg G, Duffy M, Rydn L, Gallagher W, O'Brien S. CAIX is an independent prognostic marker in pre-menopausal breast cancer patients with 1 to 3 positive lymph nodes and a putative
marker of radiation resistance. Clinical Cancer Res 12: 6421-31 (2006).

Millikan R, Newman B, Tse C-K, Moorman P, Conway K, Smith L, Labbok M, Geradts J, Bensen J, Jackson S, Nyante S, Livasy C, Carey L, Earp H, Perou C. Epidemiology of basal-like breast cancer. Breast Cancer Research and Treatment
109: 123-139 (2008).

Vinikoor L, Schroeder J, Millikan R, Satia J, Martin C, Ibrahim J, Galanko J, Sandler R. Consumption of trans fatty acid and its association with colorectal adenomas. Am J Epidem DOI: 10.1093/aje/kwn134 (2008).

Steck S, Keku T, Butler L, Galanko J, Massa B, Keku T, Millikan R, Sandler R. Polymorphisms in methionine synthase, methionine synthase reductase, and serine hydroxymethyltransferase, folate and alcohol intake, and
colon cancer risk. J Nutrigenet Nutrigenomics 1: 196-204 (2008).

Brennan D, Rexhepaj E, Jirstom K, Landberg G, Hewitt S, Duffy M, O'Brien S,
Culhane A, Higgins D, O'Connor D, Millikan R, McSherry E, Gallagher L. Altered cytoplasmic-nuclear ratio of Survivin is a prognostic indicator in breast cancer. Clinical Cancer Research 14: 2681-89 (2008).

Butler L, Millikan R, Sinha R, Keku T, Winkel S, Harlan B, Eaton A, Gammon M, Sandler R. Modification by N-acetyltransferase 1 genotype on the association between dietary heterocyclic amines and colon cancer in a multiethnic study. Mutation Research 638: 162-174 (2008).

Walters R, Groben P, Busam K, Millikan R, Rabinovitz H, Cognetta A, Mihm M, Prieto V, Googe P, King R, Moore D, Wossley J, Thomas N. Consumption of the epidermis: A criterion in the differential diagnosis of melanoma and dysplastic
nevi that is associated with increasing Breslow depth and ulceration. American J Dermatopathology 29: 527-533 (2007).

Conway K, Parrish E, Edmiston S, Tolbert D, Tse C-K, Moorman P, Newman B, Millikan R. Risk Factors for Breast Cancer Characterized by the Estrogen Receptor Alpha A908G (K303R) Mutation. Breast Cancer Res 9: R36 (2007).

Thomas N, Edmiston S, Alexander A, Millikan RC, Groben P, Hao H, Tolbert D, Berwick M, Busam K, Begg D, Mattingly D,Ollila D, Tse C-K, Hummer S,
Lee-Taylor J, Conway K. Number of nevi and early life ambient UV exposure are associated with BRAF-mutant melanoma. Cancer Epidem Biomark Prev 16: 991-97 (2007).

Stitzenberg K, Thomas N, Dalton K, Brier S, Ollila D, Berwick M, Mattingly D, Millikan RC. Distance to diagnosing provider as a measure of access for patients with melanoma. Archiv Dermatol 143: 991-998 (2007).

Orlow I, Begg C, Cotignola J, Roy P, Hummner A, Clas B, Mujumdar U, Canchola R, Kricker A, Armstrong B, Millikan R, Marrett L, Gruber S,
Anton Culver H, Zanetti R, Gallagher R, Dwyer R, Rebbeck T, Busam K, From L
Mujumdar U, Berwick M. CDKN2A germline mutations in individuals with cutaneous
malignant melanoma. Journal Invest Dermatol 127: 1234-43 (2007).

Kricker A, Armstrong B, Hummer A, Begg C, Millikan R, Marrett L, Anton Culver
A, Zanetti R, Gallagher R, Dwyer R, Rebbeck T, Busam K, From L
Mujumdar U, Berwick M. Ambient UV, personal sun exposure, and risk of multiple primary melanomas. Cancer Causes Control 18: 295-304 (2007).

Mullan P, Millikan R. Molecular subtyping of breast cancer: opportunities for new therapeutic approaches. Cell Molecular Life Sciences 64: 3219-32 (2008).

Livasy C, Perou C, Karaca G, Cowan D, Maia D, Jackson S, Tse C-K, Millikan RC.
Identification of a basal-like subtype of breast ductal carcinoma in situ.
Human Pathology 38: 197-204 (2007).

O'Brien S, Fagan A, Fox E, Millikan R, Culhane A, Brennan D, McCann A, Hegarty S,
Moyna S, Duffy M, Higgins D, Jirstrom K, Landberg G, Gallagher W. CENP-F expression is associated with poor prognosis and chromosomal instability in patients with primary breast cancer. Int J Cancer 120, 1426-35 (2007).

E-mail: millikan@email.unc.edu
Telephone: (919) 966-7437
Address: 2105C McGavran-Greenberg Hall, CB# 7435 Chapel Hill, NC

Click here to update this profile