Anna Arthur, Ph.D., MPH, RDN

Professional Background

Anna Arthur, Ph.D., MPH, RDN, is an associate professor in the Department of Dietetics and Nutrition at KU Medical Center. She also serves as director of the doctorate program in medical nutrition science.

Before joining KU in 2021, Arthur was an assistant professor and Sylvia D. Stroup Scholar of Nutrition and Cancer at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She earned her bachelor's degree in nutritional sciences from Michigan State University. Later, she received both her master's degree in public health and doctorate in nutritional sciences from the University of Michigan School of Public Health. Arthur also completed a National Cancer Institute postdoctoral fellowship in cancer prevention and control at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Research

Overview

Arthur directs the Nourish to Flourish Cancer Research Laboratory at KU Medical Center, where her research focuses on the role of diet in cancer outcomes, particularly among low-income and high nutritional risk patients. She applies methodologies from nutritional and behavioral sciences, as well as cancer and molecular epidemiology, to develop evidence-based dietary interventions aimed at improving survival, treatment tolerance and quality of life. She is a principal investigator of the NOURISH trial (R01 NR021468), a multi-site study evaluating a medically tailored groceries intervention to reduce malnutrition among food insecure hematologic patients undergoing transplant and cellular therapies. Her work informs clinical nutrition strategies to optimize oncology patient care and improve long-term health outcomes for adults with a history of cancer.

In addition to her research, Arthur currently teaches graduate courses including ethics of clinical nutrition research, nutritional aspects of oncology, and health behavior counseling. She has also previously taught courses in nutritional epidemiology and nutrition assessment and therapy. She has mentored more than 55 trainees, ranging from high school students to postdoctoral fellows, many of whom have pursued competitive research, public health and clinical careers. She also serves on the board of editors of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the executive committee of the Oncology Nutrition Dietetics Practice Group of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Arthur’s work is widely published in leading peer-reviewed journals and contributes to advancements in medical nutrition therapy for oncology care.