Debra Toby Silverman (born December 31, 1948) is an American biostatistician and epidemiologist specialized in

bladder cancer Bladder cancer is the abnormal growth of cells in the bladder. These cells can grow to form a tumor, which eventually spreads, damaging the bladder and other organs. Most people with bladder cancer are diagnosed after noticing blood in thei ...

epidemiology and the

carcinogenicity A carcinogen () is any agent that promotes the development of cancer. Carcinogens can include synthetic chemicals, naturally occurring substances, physical agents such as ionizing and non-ionizing radiation, and Biological agent, biologic agent ...

diesel exhaust Diesel exhaust is the exhaust gas produced by a diesel engine, plus any contained particulates. Its composition may vary with the fuel type, rate of consumption or speed of engine operation (e.g., idling or at speed or under load), and whether ...

. Silverman is the chief of the occupational and environmental epidemiology branch at the

National Cancer Institute The National Cancer Institute (NCI) coordinates the United States National Cancer Program and is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which is one of eleven agencies that are part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ...

Life

Silverman was born December 31, 1948. She completed a B.A. in Mathematics at

Brooklyn College Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...

in June 1970. Silverman earned a Sc.M. in

health statistics Medical statistics (also health statistics) deals with applications of statistics to medicine and the health sciences, including epidemiology, public health, forensic medicine, and clinical research. Medical statistics has been a recognized branc ...

from the

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is the public health graduate school of Johns Hopkins University, a private university, private research university primarily based in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded as the Johns Hopkins ...

. Her master's degree was funded by a

U.S. Public Health Service The United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) is a collection of agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services which manages public health, containing nine out of the department's twelve operating divisions. The assistant se ...

traineeship. Her 1972 thesis was titled ''Maternal smoking and birth weight''. Her advisor was James Tonascia. Professor

George W. Comstock George Wills Comstock (January 7, 1915 – July 15, 2007) was a public health physician, epidemiologist, and educator. He was known for significant contributions to public health, specifically in the fields of micronutrient deficiencies, tuberculo ...

had suggested the idea for her thesis and allowed Silverman to use data collected during the 1963

Washington County, Maryland Washington County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Maryland. The population was 154,705 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Its county seat and largest city is Hagerstown, Maryland, Hagerstown. The ...

census. When Silverman completed her training in

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, she interviewed for a number of positions at the

National Institutes of Health The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...

(NIH) and was not sure which institute to join. Silverman asked

Abraham Lilienfeld Abraham Morris Lilienfeld (November 13, 1920 – August 6, 1984) was an American epidemiologist and professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health serving in various roles; from lecturer in 1950, he rose to head of the Departme ...

, who was chair of epidemiology at Johns Hopkins University, what he thought. And he said, "Oh, go to cancer. That’s where all the money was." This was in 1972; the

National Cancer Act The "war on cancer" was launched in 1971 by President Richard Nixon to find a cure for cancer by increased research. The goals were to improve the understanding of cancer biology and to develop more effective cancer treatments, such as targeted ...

was passed in 1971 and the field was growing tremendously. Silverman joined the

(NCI) as a

biostatistician Biostatistics (also known as biometry) is a branch of statistics that applies statistical methods to a wide range of topics in biology. It encompasses the design of biological experiments, the collection and analysis of data from those experimen ...

in 1972. After three years at NCI, Silverman decided to go back to school to get her doctorate. NCI paid her tuition and full salary. In 1981, she completed a Sc.D. in epidemiology from the

Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health is the public health school at Harvard University, located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. It was named after Hong Kong entrepreneur Chan Tseng-hsi in 2014 following a US$350 ...

. Her doctoral studies built on previous bladder cancer epidemiologic research conducted by her professor Philip Cole and her mentor Robert N. Hoover. Her dissertation was titled, ''A case-control study of lower-urinary-tract cancer in Detroit''. Silverman returned to NCI and has worked as a cancer epidemiologist since 1983. During the mid-1980s into the 1990s, her supervisor, Joseph F. Fraumeni Jr. allowed Silverman, and her colleagues Shelia Hoar Zahm and Patricia Hartge to all work part-time so they could raise families. She was part-time for 16 years, having her first daughter in 1986. Alan S. Morrison served as an additional mentor of Silverman. Silverman is chief of the NCI Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch within the Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics (DCEG). She specializes in

epidemiology and the

. Silverman has received awards, including the Harvard School of Public Health Alumni Award of Merit for the scientific importance and public health impact of her research; the PHS Special Recognition Award for research on environmental determinants of bladder and other cancers; the

American Occupational Medical Association American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) is a United States-based professional society for health care professionals in the field of occupational safety and health Occupational safety and health (OSH) or occupational ...

Merit in Authorship Award for her contributions to a paper on a job/exposure linkage system; the NIH Director’s Award, the NCI Special Act Award, the

NIOSH The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH, ) is the United States federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury, illness, disability, and death. It ...

Alice Hamilton Science Award for Occupational Safety and Health, and the

British Occupational Hygiene Society The British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS) is a Chartered, science-based, charitable body that provides information and expertise about workplace health risks or occupational hygiene. As of 2023, its president is Alex Wilson and its chief exe ...

Award in recognition of her work on the Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study; the NIH Merit Award for her contributions to pancreatic cancer research; and the DCEG Exemplary Service and Investigator Award. Silverman is an elected member of the

American Epidemiological Society The American Epidemiological Society is an American honorary society dedicated to epidemiology. It was established in 1927, and has held annual meetings since 1968. It is the oldest epidemiology organization in the United States. Past members of the ...

and a Fellow of the

American College of Epidemiology The American College of Epidemiology (ACE) is an American organization incorporated in 1979 to support and promote the work of American epidemiologists. It is based in Raleigh, North Carolina. Members of the American College of Epidemiology are ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Silverman, Debra T. Living people Place of birth missing (living people) 1948 births 20th-century American mathematicians 21st-century American mathematicians 20th-century American women scientists 21st-century American women scientists American biostatisticians American women statisticians American women epidemiologists American epidemiologists Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health alumni Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health alumni National Institutes of Health people 20th-century American biologists 21st-century American biologists Cancer epidemiologists Fellows of the American College of Epidemiology Members of the American Epidemiological Society Brooklyn College alumni