Tracy A. Battaglia MD, MPH
Professor
Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Medicine
General Internal Medicine

MD, Boston University School of Medicine
MPH, Boston University School of Public Health
BA, Boston University

Pronouns: she/her/hers



Dr. Battaglia is a primary care clinician-investigator internationally recognized for her collaborative, innovative approaches to addressing health disparities among women historically marginalized. As director of the Women’s Health Unit and Women’s Health Interdisciplinary Research Center, associate chief of research for GIM and co-director of community engagement for the BU Clinical Translational Science Institute (CTSI), she has led the development of foundational infrastructure to support community-engaged methods in translational science. Her own research focuses on engaging with community to increase access to care for at-risk women, including ground-breaking work on the role of oncology patient navigators. Through her participation on several National Cancer Institute cooperative groups, she contributed to the 2012 Commission on Cancer Accreditation Standard requiring navigation services in cancer centers. As founding chair of the National Navigation Roundtable, she partners across sectors for sustainable navigation workforce. She currently leads a city-wide NIH study connecting multiple hospitals to reduce breast cancer disparities in Boston and contributed to two BU CTSI funding cycle renewals as well as Boston Medical Center’s participation in the HEALing Communities Study, an $89m award from the National Institute of Drug Abuse to evaluate community-driven approaches to reduce opioid deaths in Massachusetts communities.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility

My diagnosis of Stage IV Hodgkin’s Lymphoma at the time of my acceptance into Boston University School of Medicine was the first time I recognized my White privilege. As I embarked on my clinical training at Boston Medical Center, the largest safety net medical center in New England, I quickly learned that my experience as a cancer patient was unlike that of the patients I was providing care. It was this early experience that led me to a career that intentionally addressed health inequity through direct clinical care, health services innovations, community-engaged research approaches and capacity-building training programs to support others to advance health equity. For the next twenty years, I focused on using community engaged research approaches to form relationships with community partners to co-create solutions to ensure women from historically marginalized communities had access to timely, quality care. Through this work, I made major contributions to the evidence-base for oncology patient navigation, one of few interventions proven to reduce disparities in cancer care for women, while mentoring dozens of trainees toward independent careers in health equity research. Fast forward twenty years later. My diagnosis of HER2+ Stage 1 Breast Cancer allowed me once again to experience the stark reality of my White, now professional privilege. This experience, followed closely by the start of the COVID pandemic, was a catalyst for my firm commitment to creating an inclusive learning and practice environment. Every aspect of my academic work is built around the belief that addressing root causes of health inequity requires fundamentally changing the way we deliver care, including investing in long term authentic relationships across sectors, sharing power and resources, adapting policies and procedures, and redefining how we measure success. My current activities all align to make small, yet incremental change toward inclusivity, acceptance and impact.

Professor
Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Community Health Sciences


Associate Director for Clinical Sciences
Boston University
BU-BMC Cancer Center


Director
Boston University
Center of Excellence in Women’s Health


Member
Boston University
Evans Center for Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research


Associate Director
Boston Medical Center
Belkin Breast Center


Director
Boston University
Clinical and Translational Science Institute
Community Engagement Core

Director
Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
Women’s Health Interdisciplinary Research Center




The Boston University Clinical and Transitional Science Institute
04/15/2020 - 03/31/2025 (Key Person)
PI: Megan H. Bair-Merritt, MD, MSCE
NIH/National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
3UL1TR001430-08S1

Boston University Mentorship and Training in Cancer Health Disparities (MATCH)
08/01/2015 - 07/31/2019 (PI)
Susan G. Komen for the Cure


Boston University Women's Health Unit: Patient Navigation and Clinical Intervention Research to Eliminate Breast Cancer Health Disparities
08/05/2010 - 07/31/2015 (PI)
Susan G. Komen for the Cure


Patient Navigation in the SafetyNet: CONNECTeDD-Community Health Educator
09/08/2011 - 05/31/2013 (Subcontract PI)
Boston Medical Center Corporation NIH NCI
3U10CA139519-02S1

Comparative Effectiveness of Health Insurance Reform on Outcomes After Abnormal Cancer Screening
09/20/2009 - 06/30/2012 (PI)
NIH/National Inst on Minority Health and Health Disparities
5RC1MD004582-02

MB-CCOP Supplement #2
09/09/2011 - 05/31/2012 (Subcontract PI)
Boston Medical Center Corporation NIH NCI
3U10CA139519-02S2

Effect of Risk Perception on Breast and Colorectal Cancer Screening in Multiethnic Population
07/01/2003 - 06/30/2007 (PI)
American Cancer Society


The Oncology Equity Alliance at Boston Medical Center
07/01/2022 - 06/30/2027 (PI)
Merck Company Foundation

The Patient Navigation Program at Boston Medical Center
07/01/2022 - 12/31/2024 (PI)
American Cancer Society

Translating Research Into Practice: A Regional Collaborative to Reduce Disparities in Breast Canc…
09/01/2017 - 05/31/2023 (PI)
NATIONAL CENTER FOR ADVANCING TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCES
5U01TR002070-02

Women's Health Network at BMC
05/01/2018 - 06/30/2022 (PI)
Massachusetts Dept. of Public Health / DPH National Center on B

AVON Breast Health Initiative at Boston Medical Center
07/01/2017 - 12/31/2019 (PI)
Avon Foundation

Eliminating Patient Identified Social Barriers to Cancer Care
10/01/2013 - 09/30/2019 (PI)
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)

Medical Legal Partnership to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities 2nd Resubmission
07/01/2013 - 06/30/2019 (PI)
American Cancer Society

AVON Breast Health Initiative at Boston Medical Center
07/01/2016 - 06/30/2018 (PI)
Avon Foundation

Avon Foundation Safety Net Hospital Funding Initiative
07/01/2015 - 06/30/2017 (PI)
Avon Foundation

Connecting Community to Research: Building Skills to Partner in Research
06/01/2015 - 05/31/2017 (PI)
PCORI

Showing 10 of 23 results. Show All Results

Title


Yr Title Project-Sub Proj Pubs
2021 Translating Research Into Practice: A Regional Collaborative to Reduce Disparities in Breast Cancer Care 5U01TR002070-05 1
2020 Translating Research Into Practice: A Regional Collaborative to Reduce Disparities in Breast Cancer Care 5U01TR002070-04 1
2019 Translating Research Into Practice: A Regional Collaborative to Reduce Disparities in Breast Cancer Care 5U01TR002070-03 1
2018 Translating Research Into Practice: A Regional Collaborative to Reduce Disparities in Breast Cancer Care 5U01TR002070-02 1
2017 Translating Research Into Practice: A Regional Collaborative to Reduce Disparities in Breast Cancer Care 1U01TR002070-01 1

Publications listed below are automatically derived from MEDLINE/PubMed and other sources, which might result in incorrect or missing publications. Faculty can login to make corrections and additions.

iCite Analysis       Copy PMIDs To Clipboard

  1. Paskett ED, Battaglia T, Calhoun EA, Chappell MC, Dwyer A, Fleisher LG, Greenwald J, Wells KJ. Isn't there enough evidence on the benefits of patient navigation? CA Cancer J Clin. 2023 Jun 26. PMID: 37358050
     
  2. Kressin NR, Wormwood JB, Battaglia TA, Slanetz PJ, Gunn CM. Women's Reactions to Breast Density Information Vary by Sociodemographic Characteristics. Womens Health Issues. 2023; 33(4):435-442.View Related Profiles. PMID: 37087312; PMCID: PMC10330326; DOI: 10.1016/j.whi.2023.03.002;
     
  3. Murray Horwitz ME, Prifti CA, Battaglia TA, Ajayi AT, Edwards CV, Benjamin EJ, Yarrington CD, Parker SE. Prepregnancy Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes in a Safety-Net Hospital. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2023 Apr; 32(4):401-408.View Related Profiles. PMID: 36827080; PMCID: PMC10329150; DOI: 10.1089/jwh.2022.0322;
     
  4. Sprague Martinez L, Chassler D, Lobb R, Hakim D, Pamphile J, Battaglia TA. A discussion among deans on advancing community engaged research. Clin Transl Sci. 2023 Apr; 16(4):557-563. PMID: 36707736; PMCID: PMC10087072; DOI: 10.1111/cts.13478;
     
  5. Beidler LB, Kressin NR, Wormwood JB, Battaglia TA, Slanetz PJ, Gunn CM. Perceptions of Breast Cancer Risks Among Women Receiving Mammograph Screening. JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Jan 03; 6(1):e2252209.View Related Profiles. PMID: 36689223; PMCID: PMC9871800; DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.52209;
     
  6. Young AM, Brown JL, Hunt T, Sprague Martinez LS, Chandler R, Oga E, Winhusen TJ, Baker T, Battaglia T, Bowers-Sword R, Button A, Fallin-Bennett A, Fanucchi L, Freeman P, Glasgow LM, Gulley J, Kendell C, Lofwall M, Lyons MS, Quinn M, Rapkin BD, Surratt HL, Walsh SL. Protocol for community-driven selection of strategies to implement evidence-based practices to reduce opioid overdoses in the HEALing Communities Study: a trial to evaluate a community-engaged intervention in Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio. BMJ Open. 2022 Sep 19; 12(9):e059328. PMID: 36123106; PMCID: PMC9486330; DOI: 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-059328;
     
  7. Gunn CM, Sprague Martinez LS, Battaglia TA, Lobb R, Chassler D, Hakim D, Drainoni ML. Integrating community engagement with implementation science to advance the measurement of translational science. J Clin Transl Sci. 2022; 6(1):e107.View Related Profiles. PMID: 36285013; PMCID: PMC9549478; DOI: 10.1017/cts.2022.433;
     
  8. Rajabiun S, Xiao V, Bak S, Robbins C, Casanova N, Cabral HJ, Lemon SC, Haas JS, Freund KM, Battaglia T. Using community-engaged methods to develop a study protocol for a cost analysis of a multi-site patient navigation intervention for breast cancer care. BMC Health Serv Res. 2022 Jul 08; 22(1):881.View Related Profiles. PMID: 35804359; PMCID: PMC9264587; DOI: 10.1186/s12913-022-08192-y;
     
  9. Battaglia TA, Gunn CM, Bak SM, Flacks J, Nelson KP, Wang N, Ko NY, Morton SJ. Patient navigation to address sociolegal barriers for patients with cancer: A comparative-effectiveness study. Cancer. 2022 Jul 01; 128 Suppl 13:2623-2635.View Related Profiles. PMID: 35699610; PMCID: PMC10152516; DOI: 10.1002/cncr.33965;
     
  10. Garcia-Alcaraz C, Roesch SC, Calhoun E, Wightman P, Mohan P, Battaglia TA, Cobian Aguilar R, Valverde PA, Wells KJ. Exploring classes of cancer patient navigators and determinants of navigator role retention. Cancer. 2022 Jul 01; 128 Suppl 13:2590-2600. PMID: 35699613; PMCID: PMC9201988; DOI: 10.1002/cncr.33908;
     
Showing 10 of 124 results. Show More

This graph shows the total number of publications by year, by first, middle/unknown, or last author.

Bar chart showing 123 publications over 21 distinct years, with a maximum of 15 publications in 2022

YearPublications
20001
20032
20041
20061
20073
20083
20093
20107
201112
201211
20136
201412
20156
20165
20174
20185
20194
20208
20219
202215
20235


Patient Navigators Key in Closing Equity Gaps in Cancer Treatment

Health City 8/4/2022

Breast Cancer Survival Should Not Be Black or White

HealthCity 10/26/2020

Coronavirus Thank-you Notes from the BU Community

BU Today 4/22/2020

Lost In The Maze

Nature Medicine 10/7/2018

2018 Boston University Medical Group : Clinical Excellence Award
2018 Boston University Medical Campus : Health Equity Award
2014 Section of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Medical Center: Most Valuable Player Award
2013 National Cancer Institute: Physician Gold Award
2012 Society for General Internal Medicine Annual Conference, Orlando, FL: Best Cancer Research Poster Presentation
2010 Department of Medicine, Boston University Medical Campus: Evans Junior Faculty Merit Award
2010 Boston University Department of Technology: Ignition Award
2009 American Cancer Society, Triumph Magazine: Feature volunteer Summer 09
2008 American Cancer Society, New England Division: Researcher Spotlight
2006 AAMC: Early Career Women Faculty Professional Development Seminar
2005 Lifetime Television: Champion for Change
1995 Alpha Omega Alpha:
1993 American Cancer Society: Medical Student Fellowship
1992 Phi Beta Kappa, Alpha Epsilon Delta, Golden Key National Honor Society:
In addition to these self-described keywords below, a list of MeSH based concepts is available here.

Cancer prevention
Community based participatory research
Health disparities
Women's health
Health Equity
Community engaged research
Breast Cancer
Patient Navigation
Disparity, Health Care

Available to Mentor as: (Review Mentor Role Definitions):
  • Advisor
  • Career Mentor
  • Co-Mentor or Peer Mentor
  • Diversity Mentor
  • Research / Scholarly Mentor
Contact for Mentoring:
  • Email (see 'Contact Info')

801 Massachusetts Ave Crosstown Center
Boston MA 02118
Google Map

617.638.8036
Download vCard

Battaglia's Networks
Click the "See All" links for more information and interactive visualizations
Concepts
See all (275) concept(s)
_
Media Mentions
_
Co-Authors
See all (49) people
_
Similar People
See all (60) people
_
Same Department
Search Department