Brenda K. Edwards, PhD, has been with the Surveillance Research Program (SRP) and its predecessor organizations at the National Cancer Institute (NCI) since 1989, serving as SRP's Associate Director from 1990-2011. She has been involved in cancer prevention and control since its formative days early in the 1980s. Dr. Edwards' research has focused on the full spectrum of cancer surveillance research, including risk factors, patterns of care, behavioral studies and survivorship, statistical methodology, and analytic studies.

Under her leadership, NCI's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program has become an important resource for monitoring the nation's cancer burden and for measuring progress in cancer control. Dr. Edwards has played a major role in preparing and disseminating the “Annual Report to the Nation on the Status of Cancer."

Dr. Edwards has received numerous awards, including the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries Calum S. Muir Memorial Award, in recognition for her work in cancer surveillance and registration. She has co-authored more than 100 peer-reviewed publications.