Raquel Lucas

Integrated Member (PhD)

Research Line: L1 - Life Course Research and Healthy Ageing

Labs: Population Design of Musculoskeletal Health and Disease

Raquel Lucas earned her PharmD degree in 2004, followed by a Master’s degree in Epidemiology in 2006 and a PhD in Public Health in 2012, all from the University of Porto. She is currently a principal researcher at the Institute of Public Health at the University of Porto and a lecturer at the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. She leads a research group focused on the “Population Design of Musculoskeletal Health and Disease.”

Her research centers on the epidemiology of rheumatic and musculoskeletal disorders, with a particular focus on pain experiences across the life course and their interactions with musculoskeletal system development. Raquel has also been involved in monitoring the burden of rheumatic and musculoskeletal conditions in Portugal.

She was elected European Councilor for the International Epidemiological Association for the 2024–2027 term. Additionally, she contributed to establishing the first prospective study on HIV incidence in Portugal in collaboration with a civil society organization (GAT-Portugal), whose advisory board she joined in 2019.