Vikrant Sahasrabuddhe, M.B.B.S., M.P.H., Dr.P.H.

Dr. Vikrant Sahasrabuddhe is Deputy Chief of the Breast and Gynecologic Cancer Research Group and Program Director in the Division of Cancer Prevention at the National Cancer Institute overseeing prevention clinical research on cervical cancer and other human papillomavirus (HPV)-related cancers. Dr. Sahasrabuddhe provides scientific direction and strategic guidance for efforts on optimization of clinic-based and population-based precision prevention strategies for cervical cancer and other HPV-related cancers and building the evidence base for their implementation in the United States and globally.

Dr. Sahasrabuddhe oversees a scientific and programmatic portfolio of grants, cooperative agreements, and contract-funded studies focused on optimizing HPV vaccination (including dosing and delivery of currently licensed prophylactic HPV vaccines, and early phase trials of next generation vaccines), improving cervical and anogenital cancer screening and triage (novel biomarkers, imaging modalities, and screening algorithms), and innovations in HPV-related precancer treatment (novel immunotherapeutic and non-surgical approaches). A substantial emphasis in this portfolio is on individuals at high-risk of HPV-related cancers, such as those with human immunodeficiency (HIV) infection/immunosuppression, as well as on populations experiencing health disparities.

Dr. Sahasrabuddhe directs three major programs: the NCI Cervical Cancer ‘Last Mile’ Initiative, focused on expanding cervical cancer screening access to under-screened populations via self-collected sampling-based HPV testing approaches, the US-Latin American-Caribbean HIV/HPV-Cancer Prevention Clinical Trials Network (ULACNet), focused on collaborations to evaluate  approaches for prevention of HPV-related cancers in people living with HIV, and the HIV/Cervical Cancer Prevention ‘CASCADE’ Clinical Trials Network, focused on pragmatic clinical trials on optimizing the cervical cancer screening, management, and precancer treatment cascade for women with HIV.  He also serves as a NCI project scientist on the Cancer Prevention Clinical Trials Network (CP-CTNet) and on the Cancer Moonshot-funded Accelerated Cervical Cancer Control Initiative. In addition, he is a member of the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Guideline Development Group for cervical cancer screening and treatment recommendations, and advises the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program for the expansion and evaluation of cervical cancer screening and treatment services nested within HIV care settings.

Dr. Sahasrabuddhe received his medical degree from the University of Pune in India, his master's and doctorate degrees in public health from the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and he completed fellowship training in epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins University and in the NCI’s intramural program. Prior to joining NCI, Dr. Sahasrabuddhe served on the faculty at Vanderbilt University, most recently as Research Associate Professor of Medicine. He has published widely across a broad spectrum of clinical, epidemiologic, and implementation research areas on infection-associated cancers with high or rising incidence and mortality burden.  In recognition of his efforts, Dr. Sahasrabuddhe has received the NIH Director’s and NCI Director’s Merit Awards among other honors.