Beti Thompson, PhD

Associate Program Head, Cancer Prevention Program
Associate Director for Minority Health and Health Disparities, Health Disparities Research Center
Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center
Professor Emeritus, Health Services
University of Washington

Dr. Beti Thompson is a full member and Associate Program Head in the Cancer Prevention Program at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC) and a full professor in the Department of Health Services, School of Public Health at the University of Washington (UW). She is also the Associate Director for Minority Health and Health Disparities at the FHCRC. In the past 30 years, she has been PI, co-PI, or co-investigator on more than 30 NIH funded grants at the FHCRC. Dr. Thompson has a national and international reputation in community research and health disparities research.

Her current major research focus is on disease prevention through lifestyle change, such as dietary practices, physical activity and smoking behavior, as well as encouraging populations to participate in disease screening activities. Much of her work takes place at the community level. She is committed to a community based participatory research approach to intervention and utilizes that strategy whether dealing with an entire community, a worksite as community, or a subpopulation group as a community.