OUR RESEARCHERS
Meet the Team
Dennis Black, PhD
Principal Investigator
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
University of California, San Francisco
Dr. Black has over 20 years of experience investigating osteoporosis and therapies to treat this disease. His most recent research involved the evaluation of treatments for osteoporosis and the risk of fracture. The study concluded that benefits of treatments outweigh the risk of rare femoral fractures. The results were published in early 2010 in the New England Journal of Medicine and received extensive media coverage. Dr. Black is currently Principal Investigator, along with Dr. Roberta Ballard, for a multi-center trial (TOLSURF) pioneering treatment for BPD (bronchopulmonary dysplasia) for extremely low birth weight infants.
Mary Bouxsein, PhD
Co-Investigator
Professor, Department of Orthopedic Surgery
Harvard Medical School
Mary Bouxsein is the Maurice E Mueller Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Harvard Medical School and co-lead on the landmark Study to Advance BMD as a Regulatory Endpoint (SABRE), which aims to change the paradigm of drug development in osteoporosis by gaining approval for bone mineral density as a surrogate endpoint for fractures via the FDA Biomarker Qualification Program. Dr. Bouxsein also co-directs the Center for Musculoskeletal Research and is a faculty member in the combined Harvard-MIT Health Sciences and Technology Program. Dr. Bouxsein received her PhD in Mechanical Engineering from Stanford University and completed postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on understanding the biomechanical underpinnings of skeletal fragility in osteoporosis and other bone diseases, including bone loss due to spaceflight. Her work spans both preclinical and large clinical studies (e.g., Framingham Osteoporosis Study, MrOS study).
She has served in several leadership roles, including the President of the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, Associate Editor of the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, Board Member of the International Osteoporosis Foundation and member of the Advisory Council for the National Institute of Arthritis, Skin and Musculoskeletal Diseases at the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Bouxsein has published over 435 peer-reviewed articles and 30 book chapters and is a sought-after speaker both nationally and internationally.
Richard qualified in medicine from Edinburgh in 1977. He trained in endocrinology in Edinburgh, Northwick Park and at the Mayo Clinic (Dr B L Riggs). He leads a research group on the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of osteoporosis; of particular note is his contribution to the use of bone turnover markers and the development of treatments for osteoporosis. He was Secretary and President of the Bone Research Society and the European Calcified Tissue Society. He is an NIHR Senior Investigator (Emeritus). His work has been recognised by the Philippe Bordier Award (2012) (European Calcified Tissue Society), Frederic C Bartter Award 2014 and William F Neuman Award 2023 (American Society for Bone and Mineral Research), Kohn and Linda Edwards Awards from the Royal Osteoporosis Society (2004, 2018), the Clinical Endocrinology Trust Award from the European Society for Endocrinology (2020) and the Dent Lecturer from the Bone Research Society (2021).
Richard Eastell, MD, FRCPI
Co-Investigator
Professor of Bone Metabolism and Director of the Mellanby Centre for Musculoskeletal Research
University of Sheffield
Susan Ewing, MS
Data Analyst
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
University of California, San Francisco
Susan is a data analyst and data manager at UCSF, where I support the SABRE project. I wrote the statistical analysis plans and data documentation for the SABRE qualification plan. Earlier in my career at UCSF, I worked on the SOF and MrOS studies, large longitudinal observational studies of osteoporosis. More recently, my work has included the Iceland AGES ancillary studies of marrow fat, FSH, and bone health and the PERL Skeletal Health study examining bone health in type 1 diabetes. I conduct statistical analyses for investigators and contribute to manuscript preparation, including the creation of tables and figures and drafting of the Methods and Results sections. I also manage participant DXA data for large, multi-site studies. Outside of work, I enjoy running, swimming, cooking and baking, visiting my daughter in Australia, and spending time with my husband, father, and three cats.
I am a data analyst at CPMC Research Institute, where I support the SABRE project. My works have resulted in various SABRE publications. In addition, I wrote the statistical analysis plans and data documentation for the SABRE qualification plan. Earlier in my career at CPMC, I worked on the SOF and MrOS studies, large longitudinal observational studies of osteoporosis. More recently, my work has included SOMMA study (Study of Muscle, Mobility, and Aging) and TOPAZ study (Trial of Parkinson’s and Zoledronic Acid). My primary responsibilities are determining the appropriate statistical procedures needed to test research hypotheses and translating the results to written and graphical presentations that best describe how the research questions were tested. I have also helped investigators forward their ancillary studies by providing accurate inventory for studies’ biochemical specimens and arranging shipments of specimens from central laboratories for special studies.
Li-Yung Lui, MS
Data Analyst
California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute
Marian Schini, MD, PhD
Senior Clinical Research Fellow
University of Sheffield
I graduated from the Medical school of the University of Patras in Greece in 2005. After 4 years of training in Internal Medicine and 4 years in Endocrinology and Diabetes, I successfully obtained my CCT in Endocrinology and Diabetes in 2014. I have been working as a clinical research fellow for the University of Sheffield since 2015, with an interest in osteoporosis and calcium metabolism disorders. During this time, I undertook a PhD focusing on the prevalence and natural history of normocalcaemic hyperparathyroidism and hypoparathyroidism, two disorders of calcium metabolism. This project was funded by The Medical Research Council Versus Arthritis Centre for Integrated Research into Musculoskeletal Ageing and the Osteoporosis 2000 Support Group.
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After completing my PhD in 2020, I was appointed as an NHS consultant at the Metabolic Bone Centre at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals, but maintained my role as a fellow with the University of Sheffield, to pursue my research interest in bone metabolism further.
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I have been involved in several research projects in collaboration with researchers from the University of Sheffield, national but also international higher institutions. These projects have led to a number of publications and awards. I am the primary investigator for the POSE study (PINP and Osteoporosis in Sheffield Evaluation), a project aiming to investigate the use of PINP to monitor osteoporosis treatment in clinical practice by non-specialist practitioners. I am also the lead investigator in studies evaluating current osteoporosis treatments further, like denosumab and zoledronic acid. I have supported and continue to support a number of clinical trials as both a primary and sub-investigator. Some of these studies are on rare disorders of bone metabolism like X-linked hypophosphataemia and osteogenesis imperfecta, for which I have developed a special interest.
Tatiane Vilaca, MD, PhD
Clinical Research Fellow
University of Sheffield
I graduated from Medical School and trained in Endocrinology and Diabetes at the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) in Brazil. I undertook a research Master’s in Translational Medicine at the Federal University of Sao Paulo (EPM-UNIFESP) and completed my PhD at the University of Sheffield. During my PhD, I studied bone health in diabetes. Since completing my PhD, I have worked as a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the University of Sheffield.
Austin Thompson, MPH
Research Associate
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
University of California, San Francisco
I am a senior research associate at UCSF, where I support the SABRE project. I manage the daily operations for running large, multi-center observational and RCT studies for osteoporosis and atypical femur fracture research initiatives.
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Outside of work, I enjoy running, hiking, and traveling.
Lucy Wu, MPH
Research Associate
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
University of California, San Francisco
I am a senior research associate at UCSF, where I support the SABRE project. I manage the daily operations for running large, multi-center observational and RCT studies for osteoporosis and low back pain research initiatives.
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Outside of work, I enjoy walks, strength training, axe throwing, archery, cooking and baking, traveling, and spending time with my friends and family.