Chan School of Public Health (HSPH), and Lemuel Shattuck Research Professor of Statistical Science (the first recipient).
"[3] Zelen was noted for his developing some of the statistical methods and study designs still used in clinical cancer trials, in which experimental drugs are tested for toxicity, effectiveness, and proper dosage.
Zelen helped transform clinical trial research into a well-managed and statistically sophisticated branch of medical science.
[5] Visiting faculty member: Marvin Zelen was born and reared in New York City, where he attended and in 1944 received a diploma from Evander Childs High School.
They agreed with Zelen, and along with his longtime collaborator Paul Carbone, he established research standards and practice now used in clinical trials for many infectious diseases.
Zelen’s colleague and successor (as Department Chair), biostatistics professor Nan Laird, recalled that “those first few years of integrating twelve new faculty members from Buffalo with half as many from Harvard were part of Marvin’s grand plan to make Harvard the nation's leading biostatistics department — which it is and has been for quite some time.
In 2007, Zelen became the first holder of the newly named (by Harvard President Derek Bok) Lemuel Shattuck Research Professor of Statistical Science at HSPH.
[7] Zelen was known for developing the statistical methods and study designs that are used in clinical cancer trials, in which experimental drugs are tested for toxicity, effectiveness, and proper dosage.
Mitchell H. Gail, MD, PhD,[8] senior investigator in the biostatistics branch of NCI's Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics and president of the American Statistical Association (1995), commented: Marvin had a lot of guts and a vision for what was important.
Zelen also achieved another level of fame in the early 1980s when he and his late colleague (died 2009) in the biostatistics department, Stephen Lagakos,[9] launched a study of a possible connection between a cluster of childhood leukemia cases in Woburn and the town's water supply.
Richard D. Gelber, professor of biostatistics of HSPH and at DFCI,[10] and winner of the 2008 Komen Brinker Award for Scientific Distinction, noted: This is another excellent example of how Marvin established an environment within which others could flourish.
Their partnership is a role model of working together, and she has been a major force in the formation and administrative leadership of Frontier Science as its chief operating officer for almost 40 years.
and, adding his voice of praise for Prof. Zelen's mentorship and generosity During the past 39 years, Marvin taught me much about the importance of collaborative research, and how progress is fueled by statistical and clinical scientists working together as partners.
[11] Symposia Current HSPH biostatistics chair Victor de Gruttola said Scientists from around the world have benefited from Dr. Zelen’s innovative ideas and transformative effect on biomedical research, but those of us associated with the Harvard Department of Biostatistics are particularly grateful for Dr. Zelen’s commitment to educating students and advancing the careers of junior scientists.