Brooke Nichols, PhD

Associate Professor, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Biography

Brooke Nichols, PhD, MSc, is an infectious disease mathematical modeller and health economist specializing in transmission dynamics, implementation modeling, and optimal resource allocation for pathogens including HIV, tuberculosis, SARS-CoV-2, and other pathogens of pandemic potential. Her work seeks to minimize the health and economic impact of infectious diseases through innovative quantitative approaches.

Dr. Nichols leads a multi-continental research team of quantitative scientists and modellers who integrate insights from clinical science, epidemiology, health economics, and mathematical modeling to develop actionable, evidence-based strategies. Her team advances novel quantitative methods and adapts existing frameworks to design cost-effective, scalable interventions aimed at reducing transmission, morbidity, and mortality. Their work has significantly influenced national and global health policies across critical public health domains. This includes contributing to evidence to normative guidance on HIV prevention and care (e.g., optimizing pre-exposure prophylaxis, scaling up HIV self-testing, improving viral load monitoring, and enhancing differentiated service delivery models), informing global strategies for the optimal use of diagnostics during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic (spanning mitigation, treatment, and surveillance), and guiding the development of World Health Organization’s Target Product Profiles (TPPs) for innovative diagnostics.

Publications

  • Published 10/1/2025

    de Nooy A, Miller C, Ockhuisen T, Falzon D, Korobitsyn A, Ruhwald M, Ismail N, Kohli M, Nichols BE. Guiding the development of the tuberculosis screening target product profile using single-screen and multi-screen approaches: a modelling study. Lancet Glob Health. 2025 Oct; 13(10):e1750-e1760. PMID: 40975082.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 9/25/2025

    Boer NA, Emperador DM, Eckerle I, Agogo E, Nichols BE. Evaluating the impact of trade-offs in diagnostic test accuracy, time-to-isolation, and accessibility on outbreak response for the Ebola virus: a mathematical modeling study. BMC Infect Dis. 2025 Sep 25; 25(1):1122. PMID: 40999340.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 9/10/2025

    Masuku SD, Nattey C, Coetzee L, Hirasen K, Mabhula A, Casalme DJ, Gler MT, Gupta A, Juneja S, Ndjeka N, Evans D, Nichols BE. An economic analysis of BPaL for multidrug-resistant TB in South Africa and the Philippines. IJTLD Open. 2025 Sep; 2(9):535-541. PMID: 40959787.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 9/8/2025

    de Nooy A, Omar SV, Ockhuisen T, Zwerling A, Shrestha S, Suresh A, Khan S, Colman RE, Uplekar S, Rodwell TC, Ismail N, Grantz K, Girdwood S, Nichols BE. Cost-effectiveness of Targeted Next Generation Sequencing for TB drug-resistance testing as an alternative to the standard of care in South Africa. Clin Infect Dis. 2025 Sep 08. PMID: 40920587.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 8/26/2025

    Huber AN, Jamieson L, Fox MP, Manganye M, Malala L, Chidarikire T, Khoza N, Nichols BE, Rosen S, Pascoe S. Evaluating the impact of differentiated service delivery (DSD) on retention in care and HIV viral suppression in South Africa: A target trial emulation using routine healthcare data. PLoS Med. 2025 Aug; 22(8):e1004489. PMID: 40857347.

    Read at: PubMed