Biography

    Dr. Applebaum’s main areas of research are environmental and occupational exposures, gene-environment interactions, and cancer epidemiology. More specifically, she is interested in how genetic susceptibility may contribute to health effects of environmental exposures. Her work in this area includes studying how genes in the nucleotide excision repair pathway may modify the relationship between arsenic and non-melanoma skin cancer. She also examined how DNA repair polymorphisms may modify an association between oral contraceptives and non-melanoma skin cancer. Further, Dr. Applebaum has studied how DNA repair polymorphisms and consumption of alcohol and smoking tobacco affect risk of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). She found that in order to distinguish risk factors for HNSCC, you must first account for HNSCC related to human papillomavirus.

    In her research in occupational exposures, Dr. Applebaum has studied silica increasing the risk of lung cancer among Vermont granite workers and endotoxin from cotton textile dust decreasing the risk of lung cancer among female textile workers in Shanghai, China. Dr. Applebaum found that these associations were stronger after accounting for left truncation, a bias which occurs when a study cohort includes workers hired before the start of follow-up, thereby representing a healthier subset of workers.

    Dr. Applebaum is a part of a team of researchers at BUSPH investigating potential causes of chronic kidney disease among sugarcane workers in Nicaragua, including pesticides, volume depletion, and other potential environmental and occupational factors.

Publications
    1. Agalliu I, Costello S, Applebaum KM, Ray RM, Astrakianakis G, Gao DL, Thomas DB, Checkoway H, Eisen EA. Risk of lung cancer in relation to contiguous windows of endotoxin exposure among female textile workers in Shanghai. Cancer Causes Control. 2011 Oct; 22(10):1397-404.
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    2. Applebaum KM, Malloy EJ, Eisen EA. Left truncation, susceptibility, and bias in occupational cohort studies. Epidemiology. 2011 Jul; 22(4):599-606.
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    3. Mehta AJ, Malloy EJ, Applebaum KM, Schwartz J, Christiani DC, Eisen EA. Reduced lung cancer mortality and exposure to synthetic fluids and biocide in the auto manufacturing industry. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2010 Nov; 36(6):499-508.
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    4. Welsh MM, Applebaum KM, Spencer SK, Perry AE, Karagas MR, Nelson HH. CTLA4 variants, UV-induced tolerance, and risk of non-melanoma skin cancer. Cancer Res. 2009 Aug 1; 69(15):6158-63.
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    5. Applebaum KM, Nelson HH, Zens MS, Stukel TA, Spencer SK, Karagas MR. Oral contraceptives: a risk factor for squamous cell carcinoma? J Invest Dermatol. 2009 Dec; 129(12):2760-5.
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    6. Applebaum KM, McClean MD, Nelson HH, Marsit CJ, Christensen BC, Kelsey KT. Smoking modifies the relationship between XRCC1 haplotypes and HPV16-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Int J Cancer. 2009 Jun 1; 124(11):2690-6.
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    7. Furniss CS, McClean MD, Smith JF, Bryan J, Applebaum KM, Nelson HH, Posner MR, Kelsey KT. Human papillomavirus 6 seropositivity is associated with risk of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma, independent of tobacco and alcohol use. Ann Oncol. 2009 Mar; 20(3):534-41.
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    8. Meyer MS, Applebaum KM, Furniss CS, Peters ES, Luckett BG, Smith JF, Bryan J, McClean MD, Marsit C, Kelsey KT. Human papillomavirus-16 modifies the association between fruit consumption and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2008 Dec; 17(12):3419-26.
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    9. Peters ES, Luckett BG, Applebaum KM, Marsit CJ, McClean MD, Kelsey KT. Dairy products, leanness, and head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Head Neck. 2008 Sep; 30(9):1193-205.
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    10. Welsh MM, Karagas MR, Applebaum KM, Spencer SK, Perry AE, Nelson HH. A role for ultraviolet radiation immunosuppression in non-melanoma skin cancer as evidenced by gene-environment interactions. Carcinogenesis. 2008 Oct; 29(10):1950-4.
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    11. Applebaum KM, Furniss CS, Zeka A, Posner MR, Smith JF, Bryan J, Eisen EA, Peters ES, McClean MD, Kelsey KT. Lack of association of alcohol and tobacco with HPV16-associated head and neck cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2007 Dec 5; 99(23):1801-10.
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    12. Karagas MR, Nelson HH, Zens MS, Linet M, Stukel TA, Spencer S, Applebaum KM, Mott L, Mabuchi K. Squamous cell and basal cell carcinoma of the skin in relation to radiation therapy and potential modification of risk by sun exposure. Epidemiology. 2007 Nov; 18(6):776-84.
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    13. Applebaum KM, Karagas MR, Hunter DJ, Catalano PJ, Byler SH, Morris S, Nelson HH. Polymorphisms in nucleotide excision repair genes, arsenic exposure, and non-melanoma skin cancer in New Hampshire. Environ Health Perspect. 2007 Aug; 115(8):1231-6.
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    14. Applebaum KM, Malloy EJ, Eisen EA. Reducing healthy worker survivor bias by restricting date of hire in a cohort study of Vermont granite workers. Occup Environ Med. 2007 Oct; 64(10):681-7.
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    15. Karagas MR, Zens MS, Nelson HH, Mabuchi K, Perry AE, Stukel TA, Mott LA, Andrew AS, Applebaum KM, Linet M. Measures of cumulative exposure from a standardized sun exposure history questionnaire: a comparison with histologic assessment of solar skin damage. Am J Epidemiol. 2007 Mar 15; 165(6):719-26.
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    16. Govindarajulu US, Spiegelman D, Miller KL, Kraft P. Quantifying bias due to allele misclassification in case-control studies of haplotypes. Genet Epidemiol. 2006 Nov; 30(7):590-601.
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    17. Malloy EJ, Miller KL, Eisen EA. Rectal cancer and exposure to metalworking fluids in the automobile manufacturing industry. Occup Environ Med. 2007 Apr; 64(4):244-9.
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    18. Miller KL, Kelsey KT, Wiencke JK, Moghadassi M, Miike R, Liu M, and Wrensch M. The C3435T polymorphism of MDR1 and susceptibility to adult glioma. Neuroepidemiology. 2005; (25):85-90.
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