Elizabeth Claus, PhD, MD
Professor of Biostatistics; Director of Medical Research, School of Public HealthDownloadHi-Res Photo
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Biostatistics
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Neurosurgery
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Professor of Biostatistics; Director of Medical Research, School of Public Health
Biography
Elizabeth B. Claus, MD, PhD is Professor and Director of Medical Research in the Yale University School of Public Health as well as Attending Neurosurgeon and Director of Stereotactic Radiosurgery within the Department of Neurosurgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. She is a member of the board of advisors for the Acoustic Neuroma Association (ANA) as well as the Central Brain Tumor Registry of the United States (CBTRUS). Dr. Claus' work is focused in cancer and genetic epidemiology with an emphasis on the development of risk models for breast and brain tumors. She is the overall PI of the Meningioma Consortium, the Meningioma Genome-Wide Association Study, and the Yale Acoustic Neuroma Study as well as a co-investigator of the GLIOGENE (Genes for Glioma) and International Glioma Case/Control (GICC) projects. In addition to her research activities, Dr. Claus is a Board-certified neurosurgeon who completed her residency in neurosurgery at Yale-New Haven Hospital and her fellowship in neurosurgical oncology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Her clinical focus is on the treatment of meningioma, glioma, acoustic neuroma and brain metastases.
Claus launched the International Low-Grade Glioma (LGG) Registry in 2016 to discover why some people develop LGG, a slow growing but malignant brain tumor primarily affecting young adults, while others do not. The goal of the registry is also to learn more about the effect of this diagnosis and the associated treatments on daily life including the ability to work, drive, sleep, exercise, or take care of oneself and/or a family member. Recently Dr. Claus and a team of fellow scientists received funds from the National Cancer Institute to investigate the molecular evolution of LGG. The project, OPTimIzing engageMent in discovery of molecular evolution of low grade glioma” or OPTIMUM, will enroll 500 participants diagnosed with LGG and who have had two or more surgeries for their glioma and genotype these tumors to establish a comprehensive genomic characterization of the glioma tumors across time.
Last Updated on December 08, 2024.
Appointments
Biostatistics
ProfessorPrimaryNeurosurgery
ProfessorSecondary
Other Departments & Organizations
Education & Training
- Fellow
- Brigham and Women's Hospital (2003)
- Resident
- Yale-New Haven Hospital (2002)
- Resident
- Yale- New Haven Hospital (1996)
- MD
- Yale University School of Medicine (1994)
- PhD
- Yale University (1988)
Research
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Overview
- The Yale Breast Study
- The DCIS and BRCA1/2 Cohort Study
- The Meningioma Consortium Project
- The Meningioma Family Study
- The Meningioma Genome-Wide Association Study
- GLIOGENE (Genes for Glioma)
- The International Glioma Case/Control Study (GICC)
- The Yale Acoustic Neuroma Study (acousticneuroma@yale.edu)
- The International Low Grade Glioma Project (glioma@yale.edu)
Medical Research Interests
Astrocytoma; Breast Neoplasms; Central Nervous System Neoplasms; Epidemiology; Glioma; Meningioma; Neurosurgery; Oligodendroglioma; Statistics as Topic
Public Health Interests
Cancer; Genetics, Genomics, Epigenetics
ORCID
0000-0002-4430-2049
Research at a Glance
Yale Co-Authors
Frequent collaborators of Elizabeth Claus's published research.
Publications Timeline
A big-picture view of Elizabeth Claus's research output by year.
Research Interests
Research topics Elizabeth Claus is interested in exploring.
Lisa Calvocoressi, PhD
Roel Verhaak, PhD
Samir Amin
Jeffrey Townsend, PhD
Kevin Johnson
Lingeng Lu, MD, PhD
40Publications
3,886Citations
Glioma
Meningioma
Breast Neoplasms
Oligodendroglioma
Publications
2025
Distribution of copy number alterations and impact of chromosome arm call thresholds for meningioma
Patel R, Ghosh H, Meredith D, Ryall S, Claus E, Beroukhim R, Ligon A, Santagata S, Bi W. Distribution of copy number alterations and impact of chromosome arm call thresholds for meningioma. Nature Communications 2025, 16: 6025. PMID: 40603304, PMCID: PMC12222709, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-60734-0.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsCopy number alterationsCopy number alteration dataWhole-genome microarray dataPredictive of recurrenceMicroarray dataChromosome lossMultifocal samplesMeningioma recurrenceHigh-gradeMolecular classificationLow-gradeMolecular classifierMeningiomasIntermediate gradeRecurrenceThreshold differencesTumorDiscrete sizesAlterationsGradeIntegrity gradeCopyYears of life lost due to central nervous system tumor subtypes in the United States
Gerstl J, Price M, Bernstock J, Kruchko C, Spanehl L, Karandikar P, Barnholtz-Sloan J, Smith T, Claus E, Ostrom Q. Years of life lost due to central nervous system tumor subtypes in the United States. Neuro-Oncology 2025, noaf142. PMID: 40517297, DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noaf142.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricConceptsYears of Life LostMalignant CNS tumorsMean YLLCNS tumorsCentral nervous systemNational Program of Cancer RegistriesNon-malignant CNS tumoursNational Vital Statistics SystemVital Statistics SystemCentral nervous system tumor subtypeDisease burden measuresNon-malignant meningiomasLife expectancy dataPediatric CNS malignanciesYears of lifeMalignant pediatric tumorsNon-malignant tumorsAge of deathCancer RegistryIndividual patient levelLife LostPremature mortalityTumor histopathologiesPrimary brainCNS malignanciesOptimizing participant and community engagement in cancer genomic sequencing research
Crossnohere N, Schuster A, Blair C, Bland H, Carpten J, Claus E, Colditz G, Diehl D, Ding L, Drake B, Fields R, George S, Janeway K, Kim H, Lenz H, Mack J, Ricker C, Stern M, Sussman A, Trent J, Van Allen E, Verhaak R, Willman C, Bridges J, Mishra S, Kwan B, Network P, Toriola A, James A, Anandarajah A, Tomkinson A, Church A, Lai A, Toland A, Sussman A, Heffernan A, Noriega A, Martin-Giacalone B, Tew B, Davis B, Kwan B, Drake B, Rosales B, Ovalle B, Salhia B, Crompton B, Chavez C, Cibulskis C, Stoll C, Lerman C, DesRoches C, Raut C, Ricker C, Wiggins C, Willman C, Marx C, Blair C, Rubalcava C, Hernandez D, Craig D, Engelthaler D, Merrell D, Spencer D, Wallace D, MacKenzie D, McCance D, Diehl D, Siegal-Botti E, Taylor E, Van Allen E, Claus E, Velazquez-Villarreal E, Duncavage E, Linnenbringer E, Ceca E, Wan F, Chen F, Rodrigues F, Carranza F, Getz G, Gooden G, Cross G, Colditz G, Dart H, Hampel H, Lenz H, Clark H, Kang H, Kim H, Shulman I, Ulloa I, Lowey J, Gauderman J, Rodriguez J, Hornick J, MacKeigan J, Henderson J, Trent J, Mack J, Tsui J, Mozersky J, Sanchez J, Stopfer J, McElroy J, Mendez J, Carpten J, Bridges J, Keats J, Vega J, Lewinger J, Garber J, Wong J, Barnard J, Fortier J, Culver J, Kyte K, Janeway K, Lee K, Pettes K, Johnson K, Hall K, Lim K, Vij K, Blackwater K, Fisher L, Ding L, Zhang L, Lennox L, Salmi L, Garbanati L, Enriquez L, Postel M, Smart M, Quetawki M, Stern M, Fiala M, Watson M, Politi M, DeCamp M, Bachini M, Wendl M, Hochman M, Slade M, Kosich M, Gutierrez N, Schork N, Hamblet N, Pollock N, Elia N, Bhattacharyya O, Chastain P, Dickson P, Henderson P, Merriam P, Jaffal R, Mehta R, Chavez R, Vij R, Jayasinghe R, Gonzalez-Fisher R, Verhaak R, Barahona R, Du R, Fields R, Algaze S, Byron S, Rajpara S, Ovalle S, Lee-Sin S, Ryan S, Mishra S, Gabriel S, Gray S, Cargill S, George S, Iqbal S, Hendrickson T, Chowdhury T, Boyce T, Rebbeck T, Whitsett T, Glaberman U, Pankratz V, Yamamoto V, Cao Y, Amzaleg Y, Crees Z. Optimizing participant and community engagement in cancer genomic sequencing research. Genetics In Medicine 2025, 27: 101483. PMID: 40517303, DOI: 10.1016/j.gim.2025.101483.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsDefinition of engagementEvidence-based practiceQualitative content analysisCommunity-based effortsConsensus definitionCancer genomics researchEngagement of participantsIterative reviewParticipant engagementGenome sequencing researchCommunity needsCommunity engagementEngagement strategiesDocument reviewGenomic researchContent analysisParticipantsCommunity involvementCancer genome sequencingResearch CenterResearch processGenome sequenceEngagementCommunityCancer
2024
Canonical amplifications and CDKN2A/B loss refine IDH1/2-mutant astrocytoma prognosis
Ghosh H, Patel R, Claus E, Castro L, Wen P, Ligon K, Meredith D, Bi W. Canonical amplifications and CDKN2A/B loss refine IDH1/2-mutant astrocytoma prognosis. Neuro-Oncology 2024, 27: 993-1003. PMID: 39584448, PMCID: PMC12083226, DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noae258.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricConceptsFocal gene amplificationsCDKN2A/B lossFocal amplificationGene amplificationAssociated with worse survivalAssociated with reduced survivalGrade 4 casesGrade 4 patientsLoss of CDKN2A/BMolecular featuresOverall survival predictionIntermediate prognosisTumor gradeWorse survivalIDH1/2-mutantShorter survivalHistological criteriaStratify riskPoor outcomeHistological featuresCDKN2A/BHomozygous lossAcademic medical centerGrade 2Glioma diagnosticsEPID-22. MUTATIONAL SIGNATURE ASSOCIATED WITH HALOALKANE EXPOSURE ENRICHED IN FIREFIGHTERS IN THE ADULT GLIOMA STUDY
Cannataro V, Bracci P, Taylor J, McCoy L, Rice T, Hansen H, Heffernan A, Wiemels J, Wiencke J, Wrensch M, Claus E. EPID-22. MUTATIONAL SIGNATURE ASSOCIATED WITH HALOALKANE EXPOSURE ENRICHED IN FIREFIGHTERS IN THE ADULT GLIOMA STUDY. Neuro-Oncology 2024, 26: viii142-viii142. PMCID: PMC11553659, DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noae165.0558.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2023
EPID-28. YEARS OF LIFE LOST FOR BRAIN AND OTHER CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM TUMORS IN THE UNITED STATES, 2018
Neff C, Price M, Gerstl J, Kruchko C, Barnholtz-Sloan J, Bernstock J, Smith T, Claus E, Ostrom Q. EPID-28. YEARS OF LIFE LOST FOR BRAIN AND OTHER CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM TUMORS IN THE UNITED STATES, 2018. Neuro-Oncology 2023, 25: v121-v121. PMCID: PMC10639734, DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noad179.0460.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsCentral nervous system tumorsNervous system tumorsTotal YLLYears of lifeSystem tumorsAtypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumorCancer-specific mortalityShorter survival timeNon-malignant tumorsCDC's National ProgramNational Vital Statistics SystemRace/ethnicityAge of deathNational burdenCancer morbidityVital Statistics SystemSpecific histopathologyRhabdoid tumorSurvival timeLife LostPremature deathTumorsYLLNational programMortality dataQOL-09. QUALITY OF LIFE AFTER SURGERY FOR LOWER GRADE GLIOMAS
Heffernan A, Wu Y, Benz L, Verhaak R, Kwan B, Claus E. QOL-09. QUALITY OF LIFE AFTER SURGERY FOR LOWER GRADE GLIOMAS. Neuro-Oncology 2023, 25: v250-v250. PMCID: PMC10639580, DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noad179.0961.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsLow-grade gliomasGrade gliomasNon-malignant brain tumoursShort Form Health SurveyBackground Limited dataForm Health SurveyGeneral healthy populationGroup of patientsMedical Outcomes StudyCase/control studyLong-term qualityTime of interviewResidents of ConnecticutQOL outcomesSample average ageHealth SurveyOutcome studiesMeningioma casesTreatment groupsBrain tumorsAverage ageControl studyHealthy populationControl populationPrime of life
2021
A molecularly integrated grade for meningioma
Driver J, Hoffman SE, Tavakol S, Woodward E, Maury EA, Bhave V, Greenwald NF, Nassiri F, Aldape K, Zadeh G, Choudhury A, Vasudevan HN, Magill ST, Raleigh DR, Abedalthagafi M, Aizer AA, Alexander BM, Ligon KL, Reardon DA, Wen PY, Al-Mefty O, Ligon AH, Dubuc AM, Beroukhim R, Claus EB, Dunn IF, Santagata S, Bi W. A molecularly integrated grade for meningioma. Neuro-Oncology 2021, 24: 796-808. PMID: 34508644, PMCID: PMC9071299, DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noab213.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsMeningioma patientsWHO gradeGrading systemCommon primary intracranial tumorWorld Health Organization gradeProgression-free survivalAdditional prognostic informationPrimary intracranial tumorsCox proportional hazardsGrading schemeTime-dependent areaSurgical resectionChromosomal copy-number dataClinical behaviorHistopathology featuresPrognostic informationPatient managementIntracranial tumorsDiscovery cohortClinical careIndependent cohortMitotic countPatientsProportional hazardsMeningiomasEnvironmental and sex-specific molecular signatures of glioma causation
Claus EB, Cannataro VL, Gaffney SG, Townsend JP. Environmental and sex-specific molecular signatures of glioma causation. Neuro-Oncology 2021, 24: 29-36. PMID: 33942853, PMCID: PMC8730771, DOI: 10.1093/neuonc/noab103.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsIDH wild-type tumorsWild-type tumorsEnvironmental risk factorsIDH-mutant tumorsRisk factorsCases of gliomaMolecular signaturesPIK3CA mutationsPossible risk exposuresMutation subtypesCancer effectsExogenous exposureAdult gliomasTumorsWhole-exome sequencing dataGliomasKinase domainMutational signaturesCancer-causing mutationsMalesFemalesNon-coding regionsPIK3R1SexCancer mutational signatures
2020
Brain Tumor Discussions on Twitter (#BTSM): Social Network Analysis
Feliciano JT, Salmi L, Blotner C, Hayden A, Nduom EK, Kwan BM, Katz MS, Claus EB. Brain Tumor Discussions on Twitter (#BTSM): Social Network Analysis. Journal Of Medical Internet Research 2020, 22: e22005. PMID: 33030435, PMCID: PMC7582142, DOI: 10.2196/22005.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and Concepts
Academic Achievements & Community Involvement
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Activities
activity National Institutes of Health
09/01/2010 - PresentPeer Review Groups and Grant Study SectionsBoard MemberDetailsProvide advice to NIH relative to the Cancer Post-GWAS Initiativeactivity Acoustic Neuroma Association
10/01/2010 - 09/30/2015Public ServiceBoard MemberDetailsTo advise the ANA on a variety of topics related to the occurrence and treatment of acoustic neuromaactivity Glioma Research Consortium
01/01/2008 - PresentResearchDetailsDenmark; United Kingdom; Israel +2 moreAbstract/SynopsisProfessor Claus is a co-investigator for GLIOGENE, an international, multidisciplinary consortium of glioma researchers. The goal of this consortium is to identify susceptibility genes in high-risk familial brain tumor pedigrees by screening glioma patients within the United States, Europe, and Israel. The hypothesis is that there are specific discoverable genotypes that increase the risk of developing brain tumors. Professor Claus also conducts work with this group to refine treatment algorithms for patients diagnosed with low-grade gliomas.
activity Clinical Neurosurgery
08/01/2002 - PresentResearchDetailsBoston, MA, United StatesAbstract/SynopsisDr. Claus practices neurosurgery at Brigham and Women's Hospital
Honors
honor Population Science Research Prize
03/24/2022Yale School of Medicine AwardYale Cancer CenterDetailsUnited Stateshonor Top 100 Publications, Yale Centennial
10/01/2015Yale University AwardSchool of Public Health, Yale UniversityDetailsUnited States
News & Links
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Media
- This first issue of the magazine focused on brain tumor epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health
News
- March 10, 2025
Studying Chemical Exposure and Brain Cancer Risk in Firefighters
- May 02, 2024Source: Salud America!
7 Things You Should Know About Brain Tumors
- April 12, 2024
Yale Cancer Center Faculty and Trainees Present at AACR Annual Meeting
- March 18, 2024
Yale Cancer Center Experts Present New Research on Obesity, Tobacco, Evolution, and Early Onset Cancers at Leading Oncology Conference
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New Haven, CT 06510