1. Brian MacMahon was a British-born American epidemiologist who chaired the Department of Epidemiology of the Harvard School of Public Health from 1958 until 1988.
17 Facts About Brian MacMahon
1. 2.
Brian MacMahon had a brother, Paddy, who was a doctor in the British Army.
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Brian MacMahon emigrated to the United States in the late 1950s, and became a US citizen in 1962.
4.
Brian MacMahon died at Boston, Massachusetts in 2007, aged 84, following a stroke.
5.
Brian MacMahon studied medicine at the University of Birmingham, gaining the diplomas of the Royal College of Physicians and Royal College of Surgeons in 1946, and the MB BChir in 1948.
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Brian MacMahon later said that these experiences left him "somewhat dispirited about a future in clinical medicine".
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Brian MacMahon built the Harvard School of Public Health into a world-class research institution; he particularly prided himself on nurturing students, many of whom went on to become leaders in the field of epidemiology.
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Brian MacMahon co-authored the textbook Epidemiologic Methods, later reissued as Epidemiology: Principles and Methods, with Thomas Pugh.
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Brian MacMahon co-edited Preventive Medicine, later republished as Preventive and Community Medicine, with Duncan W Clark.
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Brian MacMahon was unusual in focusing on the epidemiology of chronic diseases, in particular cancer, at a time when most epidemiologists concentrated on infectious diseases.
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An international study, published in 1970, on which Brian MacMahon was the lead author showed for the first time that the age at which a woman first gives birth significantly affects her risk of later developing breast cancer; giving birth at a young age was found to be protective.
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Brian MacMahon's group studied other factors associated with breast cancer risk, including age at menarche and menopause, lactation, alcohol consumption and diet.
13.
Brian MacMahon was one of the first to study the effect of diet on cancer; this work was continued by his student Walter Willett.
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Subsequent studies, including one by Brian MacMahon's group, failed to confirm the association.
15.
Brian MacMahon studied Hodgkin's lymphoma, providing evidence that the disease might be caused by more than one agent.
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Brian MacMahon's work focused attention on the effect of environmental factors on this disease.
17.
Brian MacMahon became a member of the Institute of Medicine in 1973, and later received honorary doctorates from the University of Birmingham, University of Athens and the State University of New York.