Dr Xavier Bosch holds a Medical Degree (University of Barcelona, 1972), a Master of Public Health (University of California-Los Angeles, 1978), a Medical Specialty in Internal Medicine and Clinical Oncology (Autonomous University of Barcelona, 1982), and a PhD (Autonomous University of Barcelona, 1991). In 2016, he was awarded Doctor Honoris Causa by the University of Barcelona.
He worked as epidemiologist in the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC, 1982-1993) and as Visiting Scientist in the National Cancer Institute (NCI, 2002). He served as Director of the Cancer Epidemiology Research Program on the Catalan Institute of Oncology (ICO, 1994-2015), and has collaborated with several public health agencies and scientific organizations such as the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the Program for Appropriate Technology in Health (PATH), or the European Research Organization on Genital Infection and Neoplasia (EUROGIN) among others.
His scientific career has focused on cancers associated to infectious agents, notably on cancer of the liver, the cervix, the genital tract and of the oral cavity and oropharynx. His research in the IARC was instrumental in demonstrating the causal role of Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) in cervical cancer, establishing the role of the environmental co-factors for carcinogenesis among HPV-positive women, and describing the international variation of HPV types in cervical cancer and some of its major variants. His studies have triggered both the first HPV vaccine clinical trials and the evaluation of HPV tests as screening tools.
He has also made relevant contributions to the field of Hepatitis B virus (HBV) and liver cancer, such as the assessment of the impact of childhood HBV vaccination in liver cancer prevention in the Gambia Hepatitis Intervention Study (GHIS), the quantification of HBV and HCV action in liver cirrhosis and liver cancer by PCR, or the study of the role of dietary exposition to aflatoxin in liver cancer.
He was an early adopter of molecular epidemiology as a new field, by using novel biological assays at DNA level to assess exposure to viral carcinogens. He also conducted studies on diet and colorectal cancer, and he coordinated a program of implementation and methodological research in cancer registration. He participated in relevant epidemiological studies in 35 countries worldwide (especially in Latin America, Africa and Asia), always devoted to the application of aetiological knowledge into the prevention of cancer.
As part of his educational activities, he served as co-Director of the HPV Information Center, a web-based resource led by ICO and IARC that compiles, processes and disseminates published information on HPV infection and HPV-related diseases for each of the 194 WHO member states, with the aim of accelerating the development and introduction of prevention strategies worldwide. He also coordinated the publication of several monograph series on HBV and HPV in the IARC, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute and the journal Vaccine.
Starting in September 2017, he is currently Senior Researcher in the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) and Director of e-Oncologia, a distance-learning platform started in 2004 with a network of almost 200 lecturers and tutors and over 1500 hours of educational content (44 courses), specially addressed to health professionals. He is also the scientific and project coordinator of HPV World, an international newsletter started in 2017 that synthesizes and updates the current scientific literature about HPV and associated diseases, covering topics such as screening, vaccination, and clinical practice.
He is a current board member of the International Papillomavirus Society (IPVS) and coordinated the organization of the next IPVS conference, which took place virtually in July 2020. Currently he is Professor at the Faculty of Health Sciences at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC). He is also member of the CIBERESP Group, a network of 51 research groups from different institutions and universities in Spain devoted to solving public health issues by identifying the determining factors of those issues and by assessing the effectiveness and efficiency of interventions.
Ä Second Prize. MSD price to best epidemiological paper with Spanish first author published in 1994, for the paper entitled “Sexually transmitted agents and cervical neoplasia in Colombia and Spain”, by de Sanjosé et al. (Int J Cancer 1994, 56: 358-363) (1995)
Ä First Prize. MSD price to best epidemiological paper with Spanish first author published in 1995, for the paper entitled: “Prevalence of HPV in cervical cancer: a worldwide perspective” by Bosch et al. (J Natl Cancer Inst 1995; 87: 796-802) (1996)
Ä First Prize. MSD price to best epidemiological paper with Spanish first author published in 1996, for the paper entitled “Male sexual behavior and HPV DNA: key risk factors for cervical cancer in Spain” (J Natl Cancer Inst 1996; 88: 1060-1067). (1997)
Ä Third Prize. MSD price to best epidemiological paper with Spanish first author published in 1996, for the paper entitled “Combined analysis of matched and unmatched case-control studies: comparison of risk estimates from different studies” Moreno et al.(Am J Epidemiol 1996; 143: 293-300). (1997)
Ä Awarded Gold Medal of the Spanish Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology.(2000)
Ä Awarded Narcís Monturiol Medal for outstanding contribution to the scientific progress (2005)
Ä Scientific Achievement Award of the American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology (ASCCP)(2006)
Ä Distinguished Services Award de la European Research Organization on Genital Infection and Neoplasia (2006)
Ä Jaume I Award to the best research career (2006)
Ä XX Award of the Catalan Foundation for Research and Innovation, to the researcher who has contributed significantly to international progress in the discipline of health sciences (2009)
Ä Award Carlos IV Research in Preventive Medicine and Public Health, National Royal Academy of Medicine, Spain (2009)
Ä Professional Excellence Award, Barcelona Medical College (2009)
Ä EDIMSA Award, Doctor of the Year (2009)
Ä Lilly Award on Biomedical Research (2012)
Ä The world’s Most Influential Scientific Minds: 2014. Thomson Reuters Highly cited researcher.
Ä Awarded V de Vida Prize of the Asociación Española contra el Cáncer (2015)
Ä Doctor Honoris Causa Barcelona University (2016)
Ä First Prize accesit al millor article de la convocatòria 2017 del "XXXIV Premio de la Sociedad Española de Epidemiología al Mejor Artículo en Epidemiología publicado durante 2016". Bruni L, Diaz M, Barrionuevo-Rosas L, Herrero R, Bray F, Bosch FX, de Sanjosé S, Castellsagué X. GLOBAL ESTIMATES OF HUMAN PAPILLOMAVIRUS VACCINATION COVERAGE BY REGION AND INCOME LEVEL: A POOLED ANALYSIS. Publicat a: Lancet Glob Health 2016 (2017)