Shilpa S. Murthy, MD, MPH, an early career investigator at Yale Cancer Center and an assistant professor of surgery in the Division of Colon and Rectal Surgery and Medical Oncology, has been awarded a prestigious $1.1 million Career Development Award from the Department of Defense (DoD). Her project, entitled “From Service to Survival: Investigating the Association Between Military Deployment and Early-Onset Colorectal Cancer Mortality in Veterans,” aims to understand why survival rates for younger patients with colorectal cancer are worse in the Veteran population.
Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. and cases of early onset colorectal cancer (EO-CRC) – cancer diagnosed before age 50 – are on the rise. Under the mentorship of Smilow Cancer Hospital and Yale Cancer Center physicians Pamela Kunz, MD and Rachel Greenup, MD, as well as Cynthia Brandt, MD, they are looking to determine whether military deployment is a risk factor for early death in Veterans with EO-CRC and use storytelling from veterans and machine learning to develop a clinical risk prediction tool to identify Veterans at high risk for EO-CRC. Potential causes may include military-related exposures, combat stressors, and other clinical conditions.
The award, part of the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) 2025 Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program Career Development Award—Scholar Option, supports independent, highly accomplished early-career investigators.
Murthy’s clinical practice consists of general and colorectal surgery at the West Haven Veterans Affairs Hospital and her research is dedicated to improving cancer care delivery for veterans and vulnerable patients.