Dr. Lauren Nephew is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology and the Associate Vice Chair of Health Equity for the Department of Medicine at Indiana University School of Medicine.  Her NIH-funded research program focuses on understanding how the structural and social determinants of health contribute to disparities in liver disease and developing interventions that improve access to liver transplantation.  

Dr. Nephew completed Internal Medicine residency at Massachusetts General Hospital and Gastroenterology and Liver Transplantation Fellowships at the University of Pennsylvania. While at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University for medical school, Dr. Nephew completed a Master’s program in Bioethics.   While at the University of Pennsylvania, she completed a Master’s of Science in Clinical Epidemiology. 

Selected Courses:

Inpatient Service Teaching - Indiana University Hospital

Selected Guest Lectures:

Hepatitis C Treatment Allocation - Gastroenterology and Nutrition - IUSM

Ethics of Liver Transplantation - Gastroenterology and Nutrition - IUSM

Research Interests:

• Health Equity
• Transplantation Ethics
• Racial Disparities in Hepatocellular Carcinoma

Selected Publications:

• Nephew LD, Rawl SM, Carter A, Garcia N, Monahan PO, Holden J, Ghabril M, Montalvan-Sanchez E, Patidar K, Desai AP, Orman E, Chalasani N. Health literacy and cumulative social disadvantage are associated with survival and transplant in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma: a prospective study.   BMJ Open Gastroenterol. 2024. 
• Nephew LD, Moore C, Garcia N, Parks L, McKay A, Strauss AT, Wiehe S, Chalasani N, Hughes-Wegner AT, Rawl SM. Information overload, financial constraints, and psychological burdens are among the barriers faced by marginalized groups seeking curative treatments for HCC.   Hepatol Commun. 2025.
• Walker TL, Aridi TG, Iyengar M, Siddique SM, Philpotts L, Ufere NN, Nephew LD. The Affordable Care Act Improves Access, Survival, and Racial Disparities of Patients with Liver Disease: A Systematic Review.  Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2025

Additional Publications: PubMed

Funding:

Selected Grants:

National Liver Cancer Screening Trial (TRACER) (Co-I)

$808,340 from NIH-National Cancer Institute March 2023 - July 2027

Alcoholic Hepatitis Clinical and Translational Network Late Phase Clinical Trials and Observational Studies (Co-I)

$343,426 annually from the NIH & NIAAA 2018-Present

Description: The purpose of this research study is to create a clinical database and bio-repository. To do this, biological samples and personal health information from participants will be obtained to use in future research studies related to alcoholic hepatitis or other diseases. This work is funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

K23 Award: Overcoming Disparities in HCC; HCC-EduLink Intervention (PI)

$150,000 annually from the NIH & NMHDI 2022-2026

Description: The purpose of this research study is to develop an intervention, HCC-EduLink, to a) improve patients’ HCC-related disease and treatment knowledge; b) screen patients for social needs and substance use and refer to social work for linkage to local services; and c) use our multidisciplinary HCC tumor board to facilitate linkage to subspecialty HCC cancer care, improving access to curative therapies for Black patients with chronic liver disease and HCC.

Selected Activities:

• Member, American Association for the Advancement of Liver Disease Diversity Committee; January 2019 - Present.

• Ethics Committee, All IN for Health Advisory Board, IN Clinical and Translational Science Institute; July 2021 - Present.

• Elective Subcommittee, Indiana University School of Medicine; July 2021 - Present.

• Member Health Equity Advisory Board, Autoimmune Hepatitis Association; July 2021- Present.

• Chair, Intersociety Group on Diversity Strategic Planning Committee, American Association for the Study of Liver Disease; April 2022 - Present.

• Scientific Programming Committee, American Association for the Study of Liver Disease; April 2022 - Present.