Patricia Happ Buffler (August 1, 1938 — September 26, 2013) was an American epidemiologist and cancer researcher, known for her work on childhood

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

and environmental health. She was dean of the School of Public Health at the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant uni ...

, and was inducted into the

Texas Women's Hall of Fame The Texas Women's Hall of Fame was established in 1984 by the Governor's Commission on Women. The honorees are selected biennially from submissions from the public. The honorees must be either native Texans, or a resident of Texas at the time of th ...

in 1985.

Early life and education

Patricia A. Happ was born in

Doylestown, Pennsylvania Doylestown is a borough and the county seat of Bucks County in Pennsylvania, United States. It is located northwest of Trenton, north of Center City, Philadelphia, southeast of Allentown, and southwest of New York City. As of the 2020 ...

. She attended Catholic University of America, where she earned a bachelor's degree in 1960, in nursing and biology. As a young woman Happ worked as a public health nurse in Harlem. After moving to California in the 1960s, she pursued graduate studies at Berkeley, earning a master's degree in public health administration in 1965, and completing doctoral work in

epidemiology Epidemiology is the study and analysis of the distribution (who, when, and where), patterns and determinants of health and disease conditions in a defined population. It is a cornerstone of public health, and shapes policy decisions and evide ...

in 1963.Sarah Yang
"Patricia Buffler, Renowned Childhood Cancer Researcher, Dies at 75"
''Berkeley News'' (September 30, 2013). Her dissertation was titled "Coronary Risk Factors in Japanese-Caucasian Mixed Marriages," and followed the health of Japanese war brides, whose environments changed dramatically between childhood to adulthood.

Career

Buffler was on the faculty at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas. It was founded in 1883 and is the oldest institution in the University of Texas System. With 40,916 undergraduate students, 11,075 ...

from 1974 to 1991, finishing her time there as a professor of epidemiology at the School of Public Health in Houston. While in Texas, she launched a study of liver cancer in the state, focused on industrial exposure. Her work was recognized in 1985 when she was inducted into the

. She was inducted into the Galveston Women's Hall of Fame that same year. In 1995, Buffler launched the California Childhood Leukemia Study, one of the largest and broadest studies of its kind. She also headed the Center for Integrative Research on Childhood Leukemia and the Environment, begun in 2001. She formed the Childhood Leukemia International Forum in 2006, to link studies across national borders. Buffler was an expert advisor to the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

, the United States Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and others. She was a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and served on the Texas Air Control Board's Research Advisory Council.

Personal life

Patricia Happ married Richard Thurman Buffler, a geologist, in 1962. They had two children, and lived for three years in Alaska. Patricia Happ Buffler died suddenly in her office at age 75. At the time of her death, she was President Elect of the

International Epidemiological Association The International Epidemiological Association (IEA) is a worldwide association with more than 2000 members in over 100 different countries, who follow the aims of the association to facilitate communication amongst those engaged in research and t ...

.Eduardo Franco
"Pat Buffler, 1938-2013"
''International Epidemiological Association'' (September 29, 2013).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Happ Buffle, Patricia 1938 births 2013 deaths People from Doylestown, Pennsylvania American women epidemiologists American epidemiologists 20th-century American scientists 20th-century American women scientists Catholic University of America alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni University of Texas faculty Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Scientists from Pennsylvania American women academics 21st-century American women Members of the National Academy of Medicine

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

Further reading

References