Heather J. Gunn, Ph.D.

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SUMMARY

Heather J. Gunn, Ph. D., is a biostatistician who specializes in cancer clinical trials. As a faculty statistician, Dr. Gunn aims to improve the design, conduct and analysis of cancer clinical trials, with a focus on pragmatic trial design.

Focus areas

• Design and analysis of cancer clinical trials. Dr. Gunn leads phase 2 and 3 clinical trials that have unique designs or endpoints, including cluster-randomized designs. She also is developing new statistical methods to address challenges specific to designing trials on cancer care delivery and radiation oncology.
• Patient-reported outcomes. Dr. Gunn's current work focuses on measuring patient-reported outcomes. This includes defining the minimal clinically important difference for patient-reported outcomes in radiation oncology.
• Missing data. Missing data is prevalent in patient-related data. Dr. Gunn develops and evaluates methods to address missing data. Her work aims to improve accuracy and validity while reducing bias.

Significance to patient care

Dr. Gunn studies cancer clinical trials and data from a registry of patients who have received radiation oncology care to improve patient care and results. She encourages patients to share their views of their health and symptoms. She also works to find differences in results for diverse groups and what causes them. Dr. Gunn's statistical research aims to help clinicians find better cancer treatments for patients.

Professional highlights

• Daniel J. Sargent, Ph.D., Memorial Fellowship in Innovative Clinical Trial Design and Methods, Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology, 2023, 2025.
• National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program:
  • Lead statistician, Cancer Care Delivery Research Steering Committee, 2022-present.
  • Lead statistician, Health Disparities Committee, 2021-present.
  • Faculty statistician, Cancer Care Delivery Research Steering Committee, 2021-2022.