Evelyn Brower Man (October 7, 1904 – September 3, 1992) was an American biochemist. She was a leading woman in developing the first test to detect hormone levels in the thyroid gland. [1]
Evelyn B. Man was born in Lawrence, New York, but she grew up in North Stonington, Connecticut. [2] Man's father, Edward Man, was an attorney from New York City and her mother was Mary Hewitt Man. [3]
Man graduated from Wheeler High School, and then, in 1925, she graduated from Wellesley College with a degree in chemistry. [2] Man graduated from Yale with a doctorate degree in physiological chemistry in 1932. [1]
From 1928 to 1961, Man worked as a researcher, and technician, and then a professor at Yale. [4] She worked at a lab at Yale with John P. Peters and Herman Yannet where they developed the first test to detect hormone levels in the thyroid gland. The test was called Butanol-Extractable Iodine (BEI) test. [2] In 1961, Man continued her research at Brown University, where she discovered infants with low hormone levels in the thyroid gland later developed a cognitive disability as children. Man advocated for infants to get their thyroid hormone levels tested. [2] Man also studied the effects of nuclear radiation on the thyroid gland in Japanese survivors. [1]
In 1970, Man retired from Brown University. Throughout her career, Man published 156 scientific papers and published her last paper in 1991. [1]
For her work, Man was awarded the American Thyroid Association's Distinguished Service Award in 1976 [5] and the United Cerebral Palsy Award for Research. [1]
On September 3, 1992, Man died of lung cancer in her home in West Hartford, Connecticut. Man was 87 years old at the time of her death. [1]