Dr. Bandera earned an MD degree from the University of Malaga, Spain and a PhD in Epidemiology and Community Health from the State University of New York at Buffalo.  She is a Professor of Epidemiology at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and School of Public Health, and a member of the graduate faculty at Rutgers University’s Department of Nutritional Sciences. Dr. Bandera is also Co-Leader of the Cancer Prevention and Control Program at Rutgers Cancer Institute.

Major Research interests

• Breast cancer in African American women and the role of nutritional factors on explaining disparities in risk and survival
• Epidemiology of breast, ovarian and endometrial cancer
• Obesity and cancer risk and survival
• Food estrogens  (phytoestrogens, mycoestrogens) and female hormonal cancers and reproductive outcomes.
• Early determinants of cancer risk, in particular factors affecting pubertal development and breast cancer
• Development of evidence-based dietary guidelines for cancer prevention and survival

Dr. Bandera is very involved in translating epidemiologic findings to public health action. At the national and international levels, she was a member of the American Cancer Society’s 2006 Committee on Nutrition and Physical Activity Guidelines for Cancer Prevention and was also involved in the 2007 World Cancer Research Fund International/American Institute for Cancer Research’s Second Expert Report on Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity, and the Prevention of Cancer.  She also served as a member of the American Cancer Society’s Guidelines on Nutrition and Physical Activity for Cancer Prevention and Survival 2011 and is currently serving as a member of the World Cancer Research Fund International/American Institute for Cancer Research Continuous Update Expert Panel. She also serves as Vice-Chair of the Lifestyle Behaviors, Energy Balance and Chemoprevention Special Interest Group of the American Society of Preventive Oncology (ASPO). At the state level, Dr. Bandera led the Nutrition and Physical Activity Workgroup of the New Jersey Task Force on Cancer Prevention, Early Detection, and Treatment for more than ten years and served as Vice Chair of the Advisory Group for Cancer Prevention and Control of the New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research.

Grant Review Panels (selected)

• NIH Cancer, Heart and Sleep Epidemiology Study Section Panel B, CHSB
• National Cancer Institute Initial Review Group Subcommittee J for Population and Patient-Oriented Training
• National Cancer Institute Review Group Subcommittee G for Education
• National Cancer Institute Special Emphasis Panel Loan Repayment Program for Clinical Research
• Ovarian Cancer Research Program of the Department of Defense's Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs
• American Institute for Cancer Research Grant Review Panel I
• World Cancer Research Fund International RFA on Biomarkers Research Panel.

Professional Organizations

• American Association for Cancer Research (AACR)
• Society for Epidemiologic Research (SER)
• American Society of Preventive Oncology (ASPO).

Editorial Assignments

• Associate Editor, Nutrition Research Reviews
• Associate Editor for BioMed Central-Cancer
• Member of the Editorial Review Committee of Public Education Materials on Food, Nutrition, Physical Activity and Cancer Prevention and Survival for the American Institute for Cancer Research.

Dr. Bandera is a peer-reviewer for many scientific journals including: 

• New England Journal of Medicine
• CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians
• JAMA-Oncology
• American Journal of Epidemiology
• Lancet Oncology
• Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention
• Cancer Research
• Clinical Cancer Research
• Journal of the National Cancer Institute
• Breast Cancer Research and Treatment
• Breast Cancer Research
• Cancer Causes and Control
• Obesity
• Public Health Nutrition
• Nutrition and Cancer