Julia Bohlius Is Awarded the Dora Seif Prize

Every two years, the Basel-based Dora Seif Foundation awards the Dora Seif Cancer Research Prize, worth CHF 5000, for the best work that contributes to improving the early diagnosis and therapy (prevention and prophylaxis) of cancer. On 19 December 2022, the Foundation awarded this year's prize to Julia Bohlius, Head of the Department “Education and Training” at Swiss TPH as well as to Walter Weber of the University Hospital Basel.

The award recognizes the outstanding achievements of Julia Bohlius in assessing the burden of cancer in people living with HIV, improving the quality of care for women at high risk for cervical cancer, and developing clinical guidelines for oncology interventions. “It is an honor to receive this prize and I would like to thank all research partners and collaborators who made this research work happen,” said Bohlius. “I am looking forward to further advance cancer prevention at the intersection of HIV and health care provision in disadvantage populations.”

Bohlius, who is also a Professor of Cancer Epidemiology at the University of Basel, applies quantitative methods in her research using data from cohort studies, cancer registries, and data warehouses. She also leads studies to evaluate the accuracy of diagnostic tests in collaboration with the International Agency for Research of Cancer, the Centre for Infectious Disease Research in Zambia and the Cervical Cancer Prevention Program in Zambia. In her research, Bohlius also explores the use of machine learning and Big Data in collaboration with partners from the National Cancer Registry in South Africa and the University of Berne. Through this comprehensive approach, Julia Bohlius aims to draw a differentiated picture of the needs of specific populations in order to create innovative guidelines for adapted and thus improved health care based on these needs.