Phoenix Matthews named Distinguished Researcher
Phoenix Matthews, PhD, the College of Nursing Helen K. Grace Diversity Scholar, whose research is aimed at reducing cancer-related health disparities among vulnerable and underserved populations, has been chosen to receive the 2018 UIC College of Nursing Distinguished Researcher Award.
The annual award recognizes a UIC College of Nursing faculty member or alumnus who has made an outstanding contribution to nursing science and research.
Matthews' research is focused on tobacco use and cancer among racial, ethnic and sexual minority populations, groups which are at elevated risk for poor cancer-related outcomes. She is principal investigator of one of the first NIH-funded randomized clinical trials of a tailored smoking cessation treatment for LGBT smokers. The results of the study will help inform treatment approaches to that population, which smokes at two to three times the rate of the national average.
Matthews, who has been at the college since 2003, has published more than 60 peer-reviewed articles and five book chapters stemming from her research on cancer prevention and control. She is also associate professor and clinical psychologist in the department of psychiatry and serves as the director of the recruitment and retention core at UIC's NIH-funded Center for Clinical and Translational Science.
Past recipients include: Professor Emerita Marianne Piano, PhD '88, MS '84, RN, FAAN, FAHA, in 2017; Professor Emerita Kathy Norr, PhD, in 2016; Associate Dean for Research Eileen Collins, PhD, RN, FAACVPR, FAAN, ATSF, in 2015; and Professor Emerita Tonda Hughes, PhD '89, RN, FAAN, in 2014.