Ms. Nelvis Castro serves as the Deputy Director of the Office of Communications and Public Liaison (OCPL) at the National Cancer Institute (NCI). She is responsible for coordinating communications among NCI divisions, offices, and centers, including the identification of communications strategies and implementation of related activities in the U.S. and abroad. Ms. Castro works independently and in concert with OCPL leadership to plan, develop, and lead an integrated cancer communications program that spans the research continuum, from prevention to treatment to survivorship, as well as palliative care and pain management. Her implementation of NCI-wide strategic communication plans helps increase the public's perception of NCI as a trusted, reliable source of health information, and increases the public's understanding of NCI's role in supporting and conducting medical research. Ms. Castro also oversees the management of the NCI Contact Center, and of the business operations for the office by planning and directing long-term and day-to-day business. Prior to assuming the role of Deputy Director for Programs at OCPL, Ms. Castro served as Associate Director for NCI’s Office of Communications and Education. She also served as the Acting Director of the Office of Communications from 2002 to 2006. Prior to joining NCI in 1991, Ms. Castro was the Director of Minority Health Communications with Prospect Associates, a health communications firm in Silver Spring, Maryland. A native of Cuba, she contributes key insights that inform multicultural communications with domestic and global populations. Ms. Castro graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Public Affairs and Communications from the American University in Washington, D.C.
Sessions
PAMN: NCI Update