Metabolic Research in Cancer Control
Amber Kleckner, PhD, is a nutrition scientist who is working to solve pressing problems in supportive care in cancer.
Research
Dr. Kleckner has a PhD in Human Nutrition from The Ohio State University. She completed a post-doctoral fellowship at Boston Medical Center and a fellowship in Cancer Control at University of Rochester in Rochester, NY. She is now an Assistant Professor at University of Maryland School of Nursing in Baltimore, MD, and Director of the Metabolic Research in Cancer Control (METRICCS) laboratory.
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Dr. Kleckner’s research efforts are loosely divided into three main parts:
1. We are interested in understanding the underlying mechanisms as to why people experience cancer-related fatigue and other persistent symptoms during treatment and into long-term survivorship. We look at glucose and fat metabolism, mitochondrial function, and allostatic load, which is the accumulation of physical and psychological stress over time.
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2. We design and test nutrition-based interventions to correct cancer- and treatment-induced issues to alleviate symptoms. These nutrition programs include the composition of people’s diets (e.g., Mediterranean Diet) and the timing of food (e.g., time-restricted eating).
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3. We look at how to improve effective communication between the patient, the caregivers, and the providers in order to address the most pressing issues that cancer survivors experience.
Latest Publications
