Prof Montserrat García-ClosasAcademic

Biography

Professor Montserrat García-Closas is a physician epidemiologist and Professor of Epidemiology at the Institute of Cancer Research (ICR), London, where she leads the Integrative Cancer Epidemiology Group. She co-leads the Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Research Unit, a joint initiative between the ICR and Imperial College London, and holds an honorary appointment at The Royal Marsden Hospital. She received her M.D. from the University of Barcelona and a Doctorate of Public Health in epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health, before joining the US National Cancer Institute's Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics in 1996, where she eventually served as Deputy Director. She returned to the ICR in 2023 and is principal investigator of the Breast Cancer Now Generations Study, a prospective cohort of 110,000 women in the UK, and the Male Breast Cancer Study. She has published over 400 peer-reviewed papers and is known for her research on genetic susceptibility, etiologic heterogeneity, and risk prediction for breast cancer, and has been quoted in the UK press on topics including the rise of early-onset cancers.

References

1. 1.Professor Montse Garcia-Closas – ICR staff profile — Current role title, group leadership, joint unit with Imperial, honorary Royal Marsden appointment, educational background, NCI career history, Generations Study PI role, publication count
2. 2.Montserrat García-Closas Leaves DCEG – National Cancer Institute — Confirms departure from DCEG Deputy Director role in May 2023 to join ICR as faculty
3. 3.Expert reaction to study on global cancer cases among under-50s – Science Media Centre — Evidences her role as a UK press-quoted expert, identified as Professor of Epidemiology at the ICR
4. 4.Excess weight and cancer rates in under-50s – ICR news — Confirms her title as Co-Director of CEPRU and Group Leader in Integrative Cancer Epidemiology; records her public commentary on early-onset cancer

Expertise

Cited on

• Cancer

Stated areas of expertise

• Breast cancer epidemiology
• Genetic susceptibility and cancer risk
• Cancer risk prediction and precision prevention
• Etiologic heterogeneity of cancer
• Early-onset cancer trends
• Cancer biomarkers

Notable achievements

• Principal investigator of the Breast Cancer Now Generations Study, a prospective cohort study of 110,000 women in the UK examining cancer aetiology and outcomes Source ↗
• Served as Deputy Director of the NCI Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG) from 2015–2022, providing scientific and administrative leadership Source ↗
• Has published over 400 peer-reviewed papers in cancer epidemiology and genetics Source ↗
• Quoted by the Science Media Centre as an expert commentator on the global rise in early-onset cancers Source ↗

What they’ve said

• “Excess weight is an important contributor, although it cannot fully account for the scale of the rise in bowel and other cancers. This tells us that multiple factors – including early-life exposures – may be acting together. Understanding these patterns is essential for identifying what is truly driving cancer risk in today's generations.”

  co-director of the Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention Research Unit and Group Leader in Integrative Cancer Epidemiology at the Institute of Cancer Research · Cancer · 27 Aug 2026 · Obesity a key factor for rising cancer rates in young people in England, study finds ↗

• “There will be a balance to strike: the Nice criteria are much easier to implement, but miss a large proportion of women at elevated risk. But a full risk assessment including genetic testing will place a heavy burden on resources.”

  Institute of Cancer Research, London · Cancer · 12 Aug 2026 · GPs’ breast cancer guidelines ‘miss’ 95% of young women who will develop disease ↗

• “There will be a balance to strike: the NICE criteria are much easier to implement, but miss a large proportion of women at elevated risk. But a full risk assessment including genetic testing will place a heavy burden on resources.”

  The Institute of Cancer Research, London · Cancer · 10 Aug 2026 · NICE referral criteria miss up to 95 per cent of women under 50 who go on to develop breast cancer within 10 years ↗

Source references

1. Obesity a key factor for rising cancer rates in young people in England, study findstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
2. GPs’ breast cancer guidelines ‘miss’ 95% of young women who will develop diseasetheguardian.com · 12 Aug 2026
3. NICE referral criteria miss up to 95 per cent of women under 50 who go on to develop breast cancer within 10 yearsicr.ac.uk · 10 Aug 2026

Contact & links

• Staff pagehttps://www.icr.ac.uk/research-and-discoveries/find-a-researcher/test-researcher-profile-detail/professor-montse-garcia-closas
• ORCIDhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1033-2650
• Press office emailmedia@icr.ac.ukpublished here ↗
• Press office phone0203 437 3502published here ↗

Organisational contact points only, each taken from a page the organisation publishes itself. No personal or direct contact details are held or shown.