Dr. Anne McTiernan named to HHS 2018 Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee

Dr. Anne McTiernan, a breast cancer epidemiologist and cancer prevention expert at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, has been appointed to the 2018 Physical Guidelines Advisory Committee of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She is among 17 nationally recognized experts in physical activity and health to serve on the committee, announced today by Dr. Karen DeSalvo, HHS assistant secretary for health.

Over the next two years, the committee will examine current scientific evidence on the link between physical activity and health outcomes, and ultimately will submit evidence-based recommendations in a scientific advisory report to the secretary of HHS. These recommendations will help inform the second edition of the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, which is expected to be released in 2018.

McTiernan is a member of the Public Health Sciences Division at Fred Hutch, where cancer prevention is a major focus of research. While most people know the Hutch for pioneering bone marrow transplantation, it also houses the nation's oldest and largest cancer prevention research program.

McTiernan has led groundbreaking randomized clinical trials that have shown regular moderate aerobic exercise (such as brisk walking for 30 minutes a day) significantly reduces risk factors for breast cancer in women and colon cancer in men.

She can discuss a wide range of lifestyle issues and how they impact cancer risk, prevention and recurrence — from the dangers of hidden belly fat and yo-yo dieting to why it is so hard to lose weight, even when you exercise.