Lan Zhang joins VIGH

Zhang is working closely with Vanderbilt’s Dr. Sten Vermund, conducting research on the REACH (Reaching for Excellence in Adolescent Care and Health) Project, examining the pathogenesis of HIV infection in youth between the ages of 12 through 18 years. Specifically, she is looking into Specifically, she is looking into behavioral and biological associations between HIV infection and vaginal douching.

A native of Tianjin, China, Zhang holds a master degree in Social Medicine and Health Management from Peking Union Medical College. During her graduate studies, she participated in the Comprehensive International Program of Research on AIDS (CIPRA) Project 1 (Epidemiology Study) in National Center for AIDS/STDs Control and Prevention, mainly targeted at HIV/AIDS epidemiology among female sex workers (FSWs) in Honghe Prefecture of Yunnan Province. She also worked in the Department of HIV/AIDS of Dehong CDC with their routine duties like sentinel surveillance, data collection and analysis, voluntary counseling and testing, and laboratory work. She received a bachelor degree in Preventive Medicine from Nantong University. Upon completion of her doctoral degree from Vanderbilt, she will return to China to work in HIV/AIDS research.