Transdisciplinary training in cancer prevention: reflections on two decades of training

Education in cancer prevention and control calls for training that spans disciplines to bring a broad range of skills together to develop future leaders who can speed research and delivery of effective prevention and control programs. We review the history of the Harvard Cancer Prevention Education Program as one example and summarize approaches to transdisciplinary training from the early 1990s onwards. From backgrounds in traditional public health disciplines (epidemiology, behavioral science, health policy, decision sciences, biostatistics, and environmental health) and clinical training, we encouraged common vocabulary, teamwork, and application of knowledge to the prevention of cancer with a population health perspective. While the evaluation of training programs is necessarily tied to the career trajectories of trainees, spanning decades, we present some early evidence of broad applications of training across research and delivery in government and not for profit sectors.