Yvonne Flores

Dr. Yvonne Flores, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management and a research scientist at the Center for Cancer Prevention and Control Research. She is also a member of the UCLA Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity and the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. Additionally, Dr. Flores is an investigator at the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), where she has led numerous bi-national projects since 2000.

Dr. Flores was born in Mexico, where she grew up in a bilingual and bicultural family. She uses her training in Health Services and Epidemiology to conduct research that focuses on the prevention of chronic diseases and reduction of health disparities among underserved populations. Three themes consistently guide her work: (1) a focus on reducing health disparities among Latinos and other minority groups; (2) a transdisciplinary approach to research that incorporates different disciplines and skills to solve complex public health problems; and (3) bi-national collaborations that bring together researchers and students from UCLA with investigators from institutions in Mexico.

Her research includes studies on breast, cervix, and liver cancer, with a focus on risk factors, knowledge and prevention practices, as well as the improvement of screening programs. Other work has focused on hepatitis C screening in Mexico, obesity-related diseases including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and liver disease, as well as the use of HPV screening and vaccination to prevent cervical cancer. Dr. Flores incorporates different methodological approaches in her research, which include primary data collection, analysis of large data sets (e.g. SEER, NHANES), cost-effectiveness analyses and other types of economic evaluation studies. She also conducts biologically-driven research with clinical and laboratory data to identify molecular and genetic markers for detection and treatment of disease.

Selected Publications

• Flores YN, Esquivel ZA, Ramírez-Palacios P, Morales LS, Edwards TC, Gallegos-Carrillo K, Salmerón J, Lang CM, Sportiche N, Patrick DL. (2019) Psychosocial, behavioral, and socio-environmental risk factors for overweight and obesity among adolescents in the US and Mexico. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 16(9):1-15. PMCID: PMC6539776
• Flores YN, Salmerón J, Glenn B, Lang C, Chang LC, Bastani R. (2019) Factors associated with HPV vaccine uptake among Mexican mothers in the U.S. and Mexico: Clinician offering appears key. Int J Public Health. 64(3):323-332. PMCID: PMC6451874
• Flores YN, Zhang ZF, Bastani R, Crespi C, Leng M, Stevens H, Ramirez P, Salmerón J. (2018) Risk factors for liver disease among adults of Mexican descent in the United States and Mexico: A comparative study. World J Gastroenterol. 24(37):4281-4290. PMCID: PMC6175761
• Flores YN, Velázquez-Cruz R, Ramírez Palacios P, Bañuelos M, Zhang ZF, Yee HF, Jr., Chang SC, Canizales Quinteros S, Quiterio M, Cabrera G, Salmerón J. (2016) Association between PNPLA3 (rs738409), LYPLAL1 (rs12137855), PPP1R3B (rs4240624), GCKR (rs780094) and elevated transaminase levels in overweight/obese Mexican adults. Mol Biol Rep, 43(12):1359-1369. PMID: 27752939; PMCID: PMC5106313
• Flores YN, Auslander A, Crespi CM, Rodriguez M, Zhang ZF, Durazo F, Salmerón J. (2016) Longitudinal association of obesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes with risk of elevated aminotransferase levels in a cohort of Mexican health workers. J Dig Dis, 17(5):304-12. PMCID: PMC4956543
• Corona E, Flores YN, Arab L. (2016) Trends in evidence-based lifestyle interventions directed at obese and overweight adult Latinos in the U.S.: A systematic review of the literature. J Community Health, 41(3):667-73. PMID: 26563268; DOI: 10.1007/s10900-015-0119-9
• Flores YN, Shaibi G, L Morales, T Edwards, K Gallegos, J Salmerón, D Patrick. (2015) Poor perceived health status and increased cardiometabolic risk among obese youth in Mexico. Qual Life Res. 24(8):1887-97. PMCID: PMC4497859
• Morales LS, Flores YN, Leng M, Sportiche N, Gallegos K, Salmerón J. (2014) Risk Factors for Cardiovascular Disease among Mexican-American Adults in the United States and Mexico: A Comparative Study. Salud Publica Mex. 56(2):197-205. PMID: 25014426
• Beal CM, Salmerón J, Flores YN, Torres L, Granados-García V, Dugan E, Lazcano-Ponce E. (2014) Cost analysis of different cervical cancer screening strategies in Mexico. Salud Publica Mex, 56(5):492-501. PMID: 25604287
• Islam N, Flores YN, Ramirez P, Bastani R, Salmerón J. (2014) Hepatitis and liver disease knowledge and preventive practices among health workers in Mexico: a cross-sectional study. Int J Public Health, 59(2):381-94. PMID: 24097058
• Purcell M, Flores YN, Zhang ZF, Denova-Gutierrez E, Salmeron J. (2013) Prevalence and predictors of elevated alanine aminotransferase levels among normal weight, overweight and obese youth in Mexico. J Dig Dis, 14(9):491-9. PMID: 23678860; DOI: 10.1111/1751-2980.12072
• Flores YN, Davidson P, Nakazono T, Carreon D, Mojica CM, Bastani R. (2013) Neighborhood socio-economic disadvantage and race/ethnicity as predictors of breast cancer stage at diagnosis. BMC Public Health, 13(1):1061. PMCID: PMC3831816
• Flores YN, Lang CM, Salmerón J, Bastani R. (2012) Risk Factors for Liver Disease and Associated Knowledge and Practices Among Mexican Adults in the U.S. and Mexico. J Community Health, 37(2):403-11. PMID: 21877109; DOI: 10.1007/s10900-011-9457-4
• Flores YN, Bishai D, Lörincz A, Shah K, Lazcano-Ponce E, Hernández M, Granados V, Pérez R, Salmerón J. (2011) HPV testing for cervical cancer screening appears more cost-effective than Papanicolau cytology in Mexico. Cancer Causes and Control. 22(2):261-272. PMCID: PMC3025113
• Flores YN, Yee HF, Leng M, Escarce J, Bastani R, Salmerón J, Morales L. (2008) Risk factors for chronic liver disease in Blacks, Mexican Americans, and Whites in the United States: Results from NHANES IV, 1999-2004. Am J Gastroenterol, 103(9):2231-8. PMCID: PMC4462194
• PubMed Publications