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Maria C. Swartz, PhD, MPH, RD, LD

Assistant Professor
UT MD Anderson Cancer Center
Houston, Texas, United States

Dr. Maria C. Swartz is a behavioral scientist by training and is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

The Swartz lab's overarching goal is to improve the quality of life of patients and survivors of children, adolescents, and young adults (AYA) patients cancer. Specifically, her research focuses on two aspects. The first is to improve access to prehabilitation and rehabilitation services for cancer patients and survivors, especially children and AYA cancer patients and survivors. The second is to examine the physical and cognitive benefits of physical activity in patients and survivors of children and AYA cancer. To optimize access and to improve the delivery of physical activity interventions to impact physical and cognition functions, her research has focused on developing scalable assessment methods (e.g., remote monitoring) to inform system-level intervention designs (e.g., remote interventions) to promote health behaviors and facilitate the delivery of preventive care to attenuate functional decline and cognitive impairment among at-risk individuals. This research focus aligns with her extensive clinical and community experience as a registered dietitian in practice since 2005. She continued to collaborate with community organizations such as the Light and Salt Association in Houston, TX, to provide nutritional counseling, develop culturally sensitive nutrition educational materials in English and Mandarin, and provide expertise in research design involving nutrition and other behavioral change interventions) with the hope of promoting better care for Asian Americans.

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