NIH National Cancer Institute Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics

Sam Mbulaiteye Named 2022 Scientist of the Year by the Lymphoma Foundation of America

March 8, 2022, by Elise Tookmanian, Ph.D.

Sam Mbulaiteye, MBChB, M.Phil., M.Med., senior investigator in the Infections and Immunoepidemiology Branch (IIB), was recently recognized by the Lymphoma Foundation of America with their 2022 Scientist of the Year Award. As a part of this award, Dr. Mbulaiteye directed a donation from the foundation to a study site in Uganda for medical care for children with Burkitt lymphoma.

Dr. Mbulaiteye is the principal investigator of the Epidemiology of Burkitt Lymphoma in East-African Children and Minors (EMBLEM) study, a case-control study in six rural regions of Uganda, Tanzania, and Kenya. "This award is a very well-deserved recognition of Sam's leadership of EMBLEM and his sustained efforts to understand the multifactorial etiology of Burkitt lymphoma," said Eric A. Engels, M.D., M.P.H., chief of IIB. "His work will have an important impact on this major childhood cancer in sub-Saharan Africa." Beyond his research, this award also commends Dr. Mbulaiteye's outstanding commitment to mentorship.