Eric Durbin, DrPH, an associate professor in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Division of Biomedical Informatics, has been elected president of the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries (NAACCR), an organization that maintains cancer reporting standards across the U.S. and Canada.
Durbin, who directs the Kentucky Cancer Registry and the Cancer Research Informatics Shared Resource at the UK Markey Cancer Center, will serve a two-year term leading NAACCR. NAACCR’s standards are used by all hospital and central cancer registries in the U.S. and Canada.
In his welcome message to NAACCR members, Durbin outlined his vision for modernizing cancer data collection through electronic health records, artificial intelligence, and more efficient reporting systems. He also emphasized the need to move beyond manual data collection toward automated systems that can capture cancer information in real time.
Durbin brings more than 35 years of experience in population-based cancer surveillance to the role. At UK, he leads research on childhood cancer disparities in Appalachia, where cancer rates are higher among children compared to the national average. His work has secured National Cancer Institute funding and established multi-state research collaborations.
As director of the Kentucky Cancer Registry, Durbin oversees the state’s population-based cancer surveillance system, which rapidly captures confirmed cancer cases across Kentucky. His team develops innovative informatics methods to improve cancer surveillance, clinical trial recruitment, and cancer research across the state.