David Zaridze
Visiting Professor
David Zaridze was born in Tbilisi, Georgia. He graduated from the Medical Institute in Tbilisi, Georgia (MD). In 1969 he received a PhD from the Institute of Experimental and Clinical Oncology in Moscow and a DSc from the Cancer Research Centre in Moscow in 1976.
Initially trained as a pathologist, he has pursued a second career in the epidemiology of chronic diseases. He worked at Oxford University with Professor Richard Doll in 1977-78. From 1979 to 1985 he was affiliated with International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in Lyon, working in the Unit of Analytical Epidemiology.
His main interest during that time was the relationship between diet and cancer, and it was during this period that the IARC programme on diet and cancer began to be developed. In 1986, he was appointed as Director of the Institute of Carcinogenesis, which is a part of the N. N. Blokhin Russian Cancer Research Centre. Today he is Director of the Department of Epidemiology and Prevention in and President of the Russian Cancer Society.
Professor Zaridze has made a significant contribution to epidemiological research. He has clearly shown the impact of smoking and excessive alcohol drinking on life expectancy and several key diseases including cancer. This represents a major contribution to the control of non-communicable diseases. The preventive measures implemented in Russia based on the results of these studies have saved several millions of lives.
David Zaridze has authored or co-authored over 400 peer-reviewed publications. He is member of Russian Academy of Sciences. In December 2011, he received the title of Visiting Professor of Epidemiology of Oxford University. At the 11th Annual Meeting of Cancer Institute Directors (NCID2016), Professor David Zaridze was presented with the World Prevention Alliance/International Prevention Research Institute award in recognition of his contribution to Cancer Control.