Biography

Dr. Elena Cyrus is an associate professor in the Department of Population Health Sciences at the University of Central Florida College of Medicine (UCF COM). Dr. Cyrus obtained her PhD in Public Health with a concentration in Epidemiology and a Bachelor of Arts in International Relations with a concentration in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region from Florida International University, and, earned a Master’s in Public Health at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. She completed pre and postdoctoral fellowships in family planning and reproductive health, global health, and HIV and substance use disparities with the University of Michigan, Yale University and FIU. She is currently a Visiting Professor at la Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas and she is an alum of the University of California San Francisco Center for AIDS Prevention Visiting Professors Program. As a global health researcher and interventionist, her current work focuses on the prevention of infectious diseases, substance use and HIV/sexually transmitted infections among key populations globally through population-based epidemiology and mixed method observational research that informs intervention development and implementation. In 2023, Dr. Cyrus was the single recipient of the National Institute on Drug Abuse DP2 Avenir National Science Award for pioneering efforts in syndemic research. As the Global Health Lead for the UCF COM’s Study Abroad Program with clinical and research sites in LAC and Europe, Dr. Cyrus mentors undergraduate, graduate and medical students internationally.

Recent selected publications:

1. Cyrus, E., Sanchez, J., Madhivanan, P., Lama, J., Bazo, A., Valencia, J., Leon, S., Villaran, M., Panagiotis, V., Sciaudone, M., Vu, D., Coudray, M., Altice, F. (2021). Prevalence of Intimate Partner Violence, Substance Use Disorder and Depression among Incarcerated Women in Lima, Perú.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH). doi:10.3390 /ijerph18211134 
2. Galea, J., Marhefka, S., León, S., Rahill, G., Cyrus, E., Sánchez, H., Zhang, Z., Brown, B. (2021). High levels of mild to moderate depression among men who have sex with men and transgender women in Lima, Peru: implications for integrated depression and HIV care. AIDS Care. doi:10.1080/09540121.2021.1991877
3. Ramírez-Ortiz, D., Seitchick, J., Polpitiya, M., Algarin, A., Sheehan, D.M., Fennie, K., Cyrus, E., Trepka, M.J. (2021). Post-immigration factors affecting retention in HIV care and viral suppression in Latin American and Caribbean immigrant populations in the United States: A systematic review.  Ethnicity and Health. doi: 10.1080/13557858.2021.1990217
4. Cyrus, E., Johnson, S., Perez, H. Fajardo, F., Holder, C. (2021 in press). Engagement in primary care as a predictor of HIV screening among Transgender Women in South. Transgender Health. epub ahead of print
5. Cyrus, E., Clarke, R., Bursac, Z., Hadley, D., Trepka, M.J., Dévieux, J., Bagci, U., Coudray, M., Mariano, Y., Kiplagat, S., Noel, I., Ravelo, G., Paley, M., Wagner, E. (2020 under review). Measuring the impact of socioeconomic disparity on COVID-19 health related outcomes in the United States. Health Equity
6. Cyrus, E., Coudray, M., Kiplagat, S., Mariano, Y., Noel, I., Dévieux, J., Galea, J.T., Hadley, D., Wagner, E. (2020). Cannabis use among adolescents: A narrative review. Current Opinion in Psychology.
7. Galea, J., Marhefka, S., Cyrus, E., Contreras, C., Brown B. (2020). Integration of  depression care in HIV services: A global mental health perspective. The Lancet.
8. Hintzen, P., Vertovec J., Cyrus E., Padilla M., Varas-Díaz N. (2019). Introduction to the special issue: Applying a Caribbean perspective to an analysis of HIV/AIDS. Glob Public Health, 14(11):1547-1556. doi: 10.1080/17441692.2019.1658122
9. Cyrus, E., Sheehan, D.M., Fennie, K., Sanchez, M., Dawson, C., Cameron, M., Maddox, L., Trepka, MJ. (2018). Delayed diagnosis among non-Latino Caribbean immigrants. Journal of Health Care for Poor and Underserved, 29(1):266-283, doi: 10.1353/hpu.2018.0019.
   
   
10. Holder, C., Perez, H., Fajardo, F., Diaz, A., Cyrus, E. (2019). PrEP Use and Awareness among Transgender Women in South Florida. Journal of National Medical Association, doi: 10.1016/j.jnma.2019.08.001

Complete List of Published Work available at:  

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/myncbi/elena.cyrus.1/bibliography/50857279/public/?sort=date&direction=ascending