Ludmil Alexandrov, PhD to Present Research on Cancer-Causing Mutations to President’s Cancer Panel

Ludmil Alexandrov, PhD, Professor of Bioengineering and Cellular and Molecular Medicine at the University of California San Diego and Deputy Director of the Sanford Stem Cell Fitness and Space Medicine Center, has been invited to present before the President's Cancer Panel at its June 2026 public meeting. The invitation recognizes Dr. Alexandrov as one of a select group of experts convened to inform the Panel's assessment of cancer risk at the national level. His talk, Mutational Signatures for Identifying the Mutagenic Causes of Cancer, is part of a two-day forum examining the evidence linking lifestyle and environmental risk factors to cancer, including early-onset cancers.

Alexandrov pioneered the field of mutational signature analysis, creating the framework now used worldwide to identify the environmental, lifestyle, and biological processes that cause cancer. His group developed the quantitative framework now used globally to identify biological, environmental and endogenous processes that drive cancer from DNA sequence data. The approach detects recurring patterns of somatic mutations in tumor genomes and attributes each pattern to a specific mutagenic process, enabling researchers to link carcinogenic exposures directly to their genomic consequences. This work connects directly to the meeting's focus on modifiable risk factors: by identifying the mutational fingerprints left by tobacco, pollution and other environmental agents, mutational signature analysis provides a molecular basis for understanding which exposures drive cancer and where prevention efforts can have the greatest impact.

Research Contributions

Dr. Alexandrov's research has characterized the mutational impact of tobacco smoking, air pollution and microbial genotoxins including colibactin, a toxin produced by certain strains of Escherichia coli that colonizes the gut and has been implicated in colorectal cancer. Recent discoveries from Alexandrov's laboratory have linked specific mutational processes to early-onset colorectal cancer, one of the fastest rising cancers among young adults. His work has also identified mutational signatures associated with defects in DNA repair pathways and other endogenous processes across cancer types.

Despite this progress, most driver mutations that initiate human cancers are generated by mutational processes whose causes remain unknown. Addressing this gap is the central focus of the Team CAUSE Cancer Grand Challenges project, a $25 million initiative that Dr. Alexandrov is currently leading. The project underscores why identifying and characterizing mutational signatures is so critical for cancer prevention.

His research integrates genomics, epidemiology and artificial intelligence to support cancer risk stratification, early detection, and precision oncology. He has authored over 170 peer-reviewed publications, including more than 35 in Nature, Science and Cell, and has been recognized annually since 2019 as a Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher. He is an elected Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering and serves on the California Carcinogen Identification Committee.

About the President's Cancer Panel

The President's Cancer Panel is a federal advisory committee that monitors the National Cancer Program and provides recommendations to the President on opportunities to reduce the nation's cancer burden. The June 2026 meeting, Modifiable Risk Factors for Cancer: Opportunities for Prevention, will be held in Rockville, MD, and broadcast live. The public is welcome to attend in person or virtually.

More information is available at prescancerpanel.cancer.gov.