The Kepka group is engaged in population science research that addresses cancer health equity related to cancer risk in vulnerable populations. Our goals are to drive quality improvement and increase access to primary health care services for cancer prevention and control among underserved populations.
Vaccination rates for the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine have dropped dramatically during the COVID-19 pandemic. Huntsman Cancer Institute and other leading cancer centers urge families and providers to resume HPV vaccination along with other key pediatric health services that have been interrupted by the pandemic.... Read More
What is the human papillomavirus? Who can get HPV? Does HPV cause cancer? Is the HPV vaccine safe? Deanna Kepka, PhD, MPH, can answer that. She is a Huntsman Cancer Institute investigator and associate professor in the College of Nursing at the University of Utah. She is also director of the Intermountain West HPV Vaccination Coalition. Watch the video or read the story to get answers to frequently asked questions.... Read More
YWCA Utah presented Deanna Kepka, PhD, MPH, with an Outstanding Achievement Award in Health and Medicine. Kepka is a Huntsman Cancer Institute investigator, assistant professor at the University of Utah College of Nursing, and adjunct assistant professor at the U of U Department of Population Health Sciences. Kepka studies effective strategies for vaccination uptake against human papillomavirus (HPV)-related cancers... Read More
Nearly 80 million Americans—one out of every four people—are infected with human papillomavirus (HPV). And of those millions, more than 31,000 will be diagnosed with an HPV-related cancer this year. Despite those staggering figures and the availability of a vaccine to prevent the infections that cause these cancers, HPV vaccination remains low in the United States. ... Read More
Recognizing a critical need to improve national vaccination rates for human papillomavirus (HPV), Huntsman Cancer Institute (HCI) at the University of Utah has united with each of the 69 National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer centers in support of recently revised recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).... Read More
