CAPT Brown began her career at NIH in 1978 as an epidemiologist at NCI where she participated in ground breaking research that helped link excesses of lung cancer along the Atlantic coast to asbestos exposure among shipbuilders exposed during World War II, work that contributed to the development of a number of Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) public service announcements. CAPT Brown received the Commendation Medal in 1989 for this and other significant accomplishments including identifying risk factors for testicular cancer, clarifying the distribution of immunologic markers for AIDs in healthy populations, and documenting elevated lung cancer risks among residents living near a zinc smelter which emitted inorganic arsenic. In 1979, CAPT Brown began the first of three investigations into the etiology of esophageal cancer. She is one of only a few researchers in the world to have extensively studied the determinants of esophageal cancer in African Americans and reasons for their exceptionally high rates of squamous cell esophageal cancer. She received the Outstanding Service Medal in 1994 in recognition of her scientific contributions. CAPT Brown received the Meritorious Service Medal (MSM) in 2005 for her extraordinary contributions during 1979 to 2003 in the area of cancer health disparities research which has contributed to the understanding of disparate incidence and mortality rates in racial and ethnic subgroups; administrative activities related to health disparities, specifically her work on the NCI Director’s Bypass Budget and the Trans-HHS Cancer Health Disparities Progress Review Group; and leadership role as co-investigator on an 8-year randomized trial in Shandong Province, China, to evaluate three interventions on gastric cancer progression.
Since her MSM, CAPT Brown has continued to investigate and update the descriptive epidemiology of esophageal cancer in both the United States and internationally. She authored invited chapters for Alcohol, Tobacco, and Cancer and for the 7-volume Encyclopedia of Public Health, a new publication involving over 600 scientists worldwide. This resource will further the understanding of public health epidemiology and practice around the world by making available in both hard copy and online information that is often difficult for students and researchers to obtain. In addition, CAPT Brown served as an advisor to the National Commission on Digestive Diseases (NCDD) working group on esophageal cancer. The NCDD was authorized by Congress to assess the current state of research in digestive diseases and provide recommendations to the NIH Director and Congress.
In 2006, CAPT Brown and co-authors published findings from the Shandong Intervention Trial that one-time H. pylori treatment with antibiotics reduced the prevalence of precancerous gastric lesions and may reduce gastric cancer incidence in high risk regions. Although further research is needed, these results suggest that routine screening for H. pylori and subsequent treatment could be a viable option in preventing gastric cancer.
CAPT Brown continues to expand her areas of epidemiologic expertise and has teamed with other researchers to investigate health-related issues for cancer survivors who get a second/new cancer. In 2004, she co-chaired a NCI-sponsored workshop to identify research issues, priorities, resources, and infrastructure requirements needed to advance the field of second cancers and genetic susceptibility. She is currently the co-investigator on an international study to investigate radiation dose-response and second cancers of stomach, esophagus, and pancreas. She recently authored a chapter on Buccal Cavity and Pharynx in a just-released NCI Monograph New Malignancies among Cancer Survivors and has published scientific papers on suicide and second cancers after breast cancer. These findings are of particular interest to the millions of breast cancer survivors and their physicians and support recommendations for resources devoted to psychosocial concerns and better predictive markers for use as part of routine care.
CAPT Brown’s recent administrative contributions in the area of health disparities include her participation on the NCI-Wide Health Disparities Workshop Planning Committee and as Co-Chair of the Session on Genetics and Biological Differences. As a result of this successful workshop, the NCI Executive Committee formed an Integration/Implementation Team for Health Disparities in 2006 to identify and prioritize NCI strategic efforts to reduce cancer health disparities. CAPT Brown was invited by the NCI Director to serve on this team. CAPT Brown also represented NIH on the HHS Transformation Workgroup and currently serves as NIH Representative on the PHS Resource Group.
In addition to her extensive research responsibilities, CAPT Brown serves as Assistant Chief responsible for administrative leadership and management of the 25-member Biostatistics Branch. She provides outstanding leadership in the formulation and review of operating budgets, the oversight of the multi-million dollar support services contract, the recruitment of new staff, and the coordination of periodic and special projects.
Over and above her NIH duties, CAPT Brown has a long history of service to the Corps. She was elected Health Services (HS) Representative to the National Commissioned Officers Association’s Board of Directors during which time she served as Chair of the Board. CAPT Brown was a member of the Public Health Service (PHS) Disaster Medical Assistance Team where she served as Newsletter Editor and Recruitment and Retention Coordinator. She was also among the first Corps officers to join the Commissioned Corps Readiness Force and to receive the Field Medical Readiness Badge. She participated in numerous deployments including the Anthrax attacks and Hurricane Katrina and received a number of awards for her response activities. Currently, CAPT Brown serves as Chief Liaison/Public Information Officer on the PHS-2 Rapid Deployment Force Team.
CAPT Brown’s contributions to the HS category and the Office of the Surgeon General have been particularly noteworthy. In 1996, CAPT Brown was appointed to the HS Professional Advisory Committee (PAC) where she served as Communication Subcommittee Chair, Chair-elect, and Chair for which she received the Surgeon General’s Exemplary Service Medal. In 2002 she served as Acting Chair at the request of the HS-PAC before being appointed Chief Professional Officer (CPO) which she held from 15 May 2002 to 31 July 2006. As CPO, CAPT Brown provided valuable advice and guidance to the Surgeon General, HS-PAC, and hundreds of HS officers (HSOs). Under her leadership, the HS-PAC developed eight new Professional Advisory Groups (PAGs) to provide effective and efficient discipline-specific guidance and support, and established an HS Applicant Placement Program to assist applicants in identifying and applying for Federal positions. Through these and other recruitment and retention efforts, the HS category grew from 650 to over 835 officers. CAPT Brown served on a number of Corps workgroups including the Promotion Task Force and the Ad-hoc Force Readiness Workgroup. In addition, she served as Chair of the Chiropractor Ad-hoc Review Group, Chair of the Medical Services Corps Section of the Association of Military Surgeons of the United States Planning Committee, and Co-Chair of the CPO Board. Her exemplary service and outstanding leadership as CPO was recognized with the Surgeon General’s Exemplary Service Medal and by tributes from the CPO Board, HS-PAC, and PAGs.
CAPT Brown’s dedication and service has led to the expansion of recruitment and career opportunities for HSOs serving in the Corps. Her mentorship of junior and senior officers and her efforts to build an esprit de corps, have energized HSOs to embrace new opportunities and important responsibilities as officers. Currently, over 800 HSOs serve in the Corps and actively represent its mission, including meeting basic readiness requirements. Through her leadership and active encouragement of HSOs to achieve basic readiness standards, CAPT Brown was instrumental in helping the HS category achieve the high percentage of readiness set forth by the Office of Force Readiness and Deployment. Since her term as the HS CPO, CAPT Brown has remained immensely active in Corps activities. She continues to serve on the Commissioned Corps Resource Group (ORC Macro) as NIH representative and was selected in December 2006 to serve as the HS representative and Chair of the newly formed Commissioned Corps Research Functional Advisory Committee.
CAPT Brown is recognized for her outstanding leadership and service in the research community as a dedicated epidemiologist which resulted in over 130 publications in scientific and medical journals and books. Her involvement in Corps activities strengthened the functioning and visibility of the HS category. In recognition of her impressive career of extraordinary scientific expertise, CAPT Linda Morris Brown is truly deserving of the 2007 Stanley J. Kissel Award.