About
Mingyang Song, MBBS, ScD, is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Epidemiology and Nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School. His research focuses on the clinical and translational epidemiology of cancer, with two main themes. The first involves integrating large-scale observational studies with biomarker-based randomized clinical trials to identify novel nutritional and gut microbiota-targeted strategies for cancer prevention and treatment. The second theme centers on the integration of electronic health record (EHR) data with molecular profiling to develop cost-effective risk assessment tools for precision cancer screening and surveillance. Dr. Song's work aims to translate epidemiologic advances into clinical practice to improve cancer prevention and treatment.
Research topics
- Medicine
- Internal medicine
- Environmental health
- Demography
- Biology
- Gerontology
- Genetics
- Oncology
- Computational biology
- Family medicine
- Gynecology
- Endocrinology
- Bioinformatics
Selected publications
Genetic architectures of proximal and distal colorectal cancer are partly distinct
Gut · 2021 · 79 citations
- Biology
- Genetics
- Bioinformatics
OBJECTIVE: An understanding of the etiologic heterogeneity of colorectal cancer (CRC) is critical for improving precision prevention, including individualized screening recommendations and the discovery of novel drug targets and repurposable drug candidates for chemoprevention. Known differences in molecular characteristics and environmental risk factors among tumors arising in different locations of the colorectum suggest partly distinct mechanisms of carcinogenesis. The extent to which the contribution of inherited genetic risk factors for CRC differs by anatomical subsite of the primary tumor has not been examined. DESIGN: To identify new anatomical subsite-specific risk loci, we performed genome-wide association study (GWAS) meta-analyses including data of 48 214 CRC cases and 64 159 controls of European ancestry. We characterised effect heterogeneity at CRC risk loci using multinomial modelling. RESULTS: ) and that were not reported by previous GWASs for overall CRC risk. Multiple lines of evidence support candidate genes at several of these loci. We detected substantial heterogeneity between anatomical subsites. Just over half (61) of 109 known and new risk variants showed no evidence for heterogeneity. In contrast, 22 variants showed association with distal CRC (including rectal cancer), but no evidence for association or an attenuated association with proximal CRC. For two loci, there was strong evidence for effects confined to proximal colon cancer. CONCLUSION: Genetic architectures of proximal and distal CRC are partly distinct. Studies of risk factors and mechanisms of carcinogenesis, and precision prevention strategies should take into consideration the anatomical subsite of the tumour.
BMJ · 2020 · 690 citations
- Medicine
- Gerontology
- Demography
OBJECTIVE: To examine how a healthy lifestyle is related to life expectancy that is free from major chronic diseases. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: The Nurses' Health Study (1980-2014; n=73 196) and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study (1986-2014; n=38 366). MAIN EXPOSURES: Five low risk lifestyle factors: never smoking, body mass index 18.5-24.9, moderate to vigorous physical activity (≥30 minutes/day), moderate alcohol intake (women: 5-15 g/day; men 5-30 g/day), and a higher diet quality score (upper 40%). MAIN OUTCOME: Life expectancy free of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer. RESULTS: The life expectancy free of diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer at age 50 was 23.7 years (95% confidence interval 22.6 to 24.7) for women who adopted no low risk lifestyle factors, in contrast to 34.4 years (33.1 to 35.5) for women who adopted four or five low risk factors. At age 50, the life expectancy free of any of these chronic diseases was 23.5 (22.3 to 24.7) years among men who adopted no low risk lifestyle factors and 31.1 (29.5 to 32.5) years in men who adopted four or five low risk lifestyle factors. For current male smokers who smoked heavily (≥15 cigarettes/day) or obese men and women (body mass index ≥30), their disease-free life expectancies accounted for the lowest proportion (≤75%) of total life expectancy at age 50. CONCLUSION: Adherence to a healthy lifestyle at mid-life is associated with a longer life expectancy free of major chronic diseases.
Physical activity and risks of breast and colorectal cancer: a Mendelian randomisation analysis
Nature Communications · 2020 · 688 citations
- Medicine
- Oncology
- Internal medicine
) breast cancer and for colon cancer. Our results support a potentially causal relationship between higher physical activity levels and lower risks of breast cancer and colorectal cancer. Based on these data, the promotion of physical activity is probably an effective strategy in the primary prevention of these commonly diagnosed cancers.
Genome-wide Modeling of Polygenic Risk Score in Colorectal Cancer Risk
The American Journal of Human Genetics · 2020 · 225 citations
- Medicine
- Oncology
- Internal medicine
The Lancet Public Health · 2020 · 2291 citations
- Medicine
- Demography
- Family medicine
BACKGROUND: Data for front-line health-care workers and risk of COVID-19 are limited. We sought to assess risk of COVID-19 among front-line health-care workers compared with the general community and the effect of personal protective equipment (PPE) on risk. METHODS: We did a prospective, observational cohort study in the UK and the USA of the general community, including front-line health-care workers, using self-reported data from the COVID Symptom Study smartphone application (app) from March 24 (UK) and March 29 (USA) to April 23, 2020. Participants were voluntary users of the app and at first use provided information on demographic factors (including age, sex, race or ethnic background, height and weight, and occupation) and medical history, and subsequently reported any COVID-19 symptoms. We used Cox proportional hazards modelling to estimate multivariate-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) of our primary outcome, which was a positive COVID-19 test. The COVID Symptom Study app is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04331509. FINDINGS: Among 2 035 395 community individuals and 99 795 front-line health-care workers, we recorded 5545 incident reports of a positive COVID-19 test over 34 435 272 person-days. Compared with the general community, front-line health-care workers were at increased risk for reporting a positive COVID-19 test (adjusted HR 11·61, 95% CI 10·93-12·33). To account for differences in testing frequency between front-line health-care workers and the general community and possible selection bias, an inverse probability-weighted model was used to adjust for the likelihood of receiving a COVID-19 test (adjusted HR 3·40, 95% CI 3·37-3·43). Secondary and post-hoc analyses suggested adequacy of PPE, clinical setting, and ethnic background were also important factors. INTERPRETATION: In the UK and the USA, risk of reporting a positive test for COVID-19 was increased among front-line health-care workers. Health-care systems should ensure adequate availability of PPE and develop additional strategies to protect health-care workers from COVID-19, particularly those from Black, Asian, and minority ethnic backgrounds. Additional follow-up of these observational findings is needed. FUNDING: Zoe Global, Wellcome Trust, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, National Institutes of Health Research, UK Research and Innovation, Alzheimer's Society, National Institutes of Health, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, and Massachusetts Consortium on Pathogen Readiness.
Recent grants
Coffee and metabolites modulating the gut microbiome for improved colorectal cancer survival
NIH · $2.6M · 2022–2027
NIH · $179k · 2018
The Gut Microbiome, Lifestyle, and Colorectal Neoplasia
NIH · $2.4M · 2022–2027
NIH · $679k · 2022
Frequent coauthors
- 2012 shared
Andrew T. Chan
Brigham and Women's Hospital
- 1670 shared
Shuji Ogino
Harvard University
- 1213 shared
Edward L. Giovannucci
Harvard University
- 918 shared
Charles S. Fuchs
- 829 shared
Kana Wu
- 730 shared
Marios Giannakis
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
- 682 shared
Xuehong Zhang
Harvard University
- 616 shared
Jeffrey A. Meyerhardt
Labs
Song LabPI
Awards & honors
- NextGen Star by the American Association for Cancer Research
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