Darlingtina Esiaka, PhD

Darlingtina K. Esiaka, PhD, CPG, CPH, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Behavioral Science and the Center for Health, Engagement, and Transformation at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. She also holds affiliations with the Sanders Brown Center on Aging and the Department of Psychology (Developmental, Social, and Health areas). She earned a dual title PhD in Psychology and Gerontology in 2019 from the University of Kansas. Her research program centers on health disparities in aging, with a primary focus on improving the early identification of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) among Black adults, particularly older Black men. Her work emphasizes the characterization of neurophysiological patterns associated with elevated ADRD vulnerability prior to the emergence of clinically observable impairment, as well as the broader social and contextual factors associated with earlier onset and differential disease trajectories. As a secondary line of research, Esiaka examines early cancer detection in older Black adults, with particular attention to psychosocial and structural factors associated with late-stage diagnosis and survivorship outcomes.