Debra Silverman Receives 2020 EPICOH Lifetime Achievement Award
, by DCEG Staff
Debra T. Silverman, Sc.D., Chief of the Occupational and Environmental Epidemiology Branch (OEEB), is the recipient of the 2020 EPICOH Lifetime Achievement Award. Over the past 48 years at the NCI, Dr. Silverman has made numerous seminal contributions to the field of occupational cancer epidemiology. She calculated the first national estimates of occupational-induced bladder cancer in the United States in the 1980s and has continued to identify and characterize occupational bladder carcinogens. A major focus of Dr. Silverman’s research has been the evaluation of the carcinogenic effects of diesel exhaust. She initiated and led the Diesel Exhaust in Miners Study, which was the first study to estimate the exposure-response curve for lung cancer due to diesel exhaust. From its inception, this high-profile study withstood extraordinary legal and political challenges and was highly influential in regulatory policy; its completion is a testament to Dr. Silverman’s persistence. In addition to her extensive research portfolio, Dr. Silverman has mentored and supported countless junior researchers in occupational epidemiology who have gone on to successful careers in government, academia, and industry.
Dr. Silverman will receive her award and give a keynote lecture titled, “Diesel Exhaust and Lung Cancer: A 20-Year Saga” at the EPICOH virtual webinar on December 9, 2020.
The Scientific Committee on Epidemiology in Occupational Health (EPICOH) is an international society of occupational epidemiologists, industrial hygienists and other occupational health scientists. The EPICOH Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes an individual for their sustained outstanding contributions to occupational epidemiology, and the impact of their work on the field and public health policy. Awards are based on nominations by their peers in the field and selected by the EPICOH Management Group.