PHYSICIAN
Frances Oldham Kelsey
1914 - 2015

Frances Oldham Kelsey
Dr Frances Kathleen Oldham Kelsey (née Oldham; July 24, 1914 – August 7, 2015) was a Canadian-American pharmacologist and physician. As a reviewer for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), she refused to authorize thalidomide for market because she had concerns about the lack of evidence regarding the drug's safety. Her concerns proved to be justified when it was shown that thalidomide caused serious birth defects. Kelsey's career intersected with the passage of laws strengthening FDA oversight of pharmaceuticals. Read more on Wikipedia
Her biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Frances Oldham Kelsey is the 388th most popular physician (up from 452nd in 2019), the 186th most popular biography from Canada (up from 226th in 2019) and the 7th most popular Canadian Physician.
Memorability Metrics
Page views of Frances Oldham Kelsey by language
Among PHYSICIANS
Among physicians, Frances Oldham Kelsey ranks 388 out of 726. Before her are Eugene Botkin, Gottfried Reinhold Treviranus, Carlos Chagas, Ferdinand Sauerbruch, Willi Graf, and Filippo Pacini. After her are Luigi Carlo Farini, Moritz Kaposi, Robert Liston, Paul Hermann, Emil Aarestrup, and Johann Lukas Schönlein.
Most Popular Physicians in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsEugene Botkin
1865 - 1918
HPI: 61.29
Rank: 382
Gottfried Reinhold Treviranus
1776 - 1837
HPI: 61.29
Rank: 383
Carlos Chagas
1879 - 1934
HPI: 61.26
Rank: 384
Ferdinand Sauerbruch
1875 - 1951
HPI: 61.23
Rank: 385
Willi Graf
1918 - 1943
HPI: 61.19
Rank: 386
Filippo Pacini
1812 - 1883
HPI: 61.18
Rank: 387
Frances Oldham Kelsey
1914 - 2015
HPI: 61.16
Rank: 388
Luigi Carlo Farini
1812 - 1866
HPI: 61.11
Rank: 389
Moritz Kaposi
1837 - 1902
HPI: 61.10
Rank: 390
Robert Liston
1794 - 1847
HPI: 61.06
Rank: 391
Paul Hermann
1646 - 1695
HPI: 61.03
Rank: 392
Emil Aarestrup
1800 - 1856
HPI: 61.02
Rank: 393
Johann Lukas Schönlein
1793 - 1864
HPI: 61.02
Rank: 394
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1914, Frances Oldham Kelsey ranks 150. Before her are Bernd Freytag von Loringhoven, Gino Colaussi, Michael Grant, Yuri Levitan, Paul Tortelier, and Noor Inayat Khan. After her are Patrick O'Brian, Arno Schmidt, Jens Otto Krag, Hernán Siles Zuazo, Harry F. Byrd Jr., and Kazimierz Świątek. Among people deceased in 2015, Frances Oldham Kelsey ranks 148. Before her are Carlo Furno, Harald Nielsen, Sergio Sollima, Władysław Bartoszewski, Klaus Roth, and Robert Conquest. After her are Egon Bahr, Dean Jones, Ernst Fuchs, Saud bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Mile Mrkšić, and Ján Chryzostom Korec.
Others Born in 1914
Go to all RankingsBernd Freytag von Loringhoven
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1914 - 2007
HPI: 61.47
Rank: 144
Gino Colaussi
SOCCER PLAYER
1914 - 1991
HPI: 61.45
Rank: 145
Michael Grant
WRITER
1914 - 2004
HPI: 61.43
Rank: 146
Yuri Levitan
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1914 - 1983
HPI: 61.25
Rank: 147
Paul Tortelier
MUSICIAN
1914 - 1990
HPI: 61.23
Rank: 148
Noor Inayat Khan
WRITER
1914 - 1944
HPI: 61.19
Rank: 149
Frances Oldham Kelsey
PHYSICIAN
1914 - 2015
HPI: 61.16
Rank: 150
Patrick O'Brian
WRITER
1914 - 2000
HPI: 61.08
Rank: 151
Arno Schmidt
WRITER
1914 - 1979
HPI: 61.03
Rank: 152
Jens Otto Krag
POLITICIAN
1914 - 1978
HPI: 61.02
Rank: 153
Hernán Siles Zuazo
POLITICIAN
1914 - 1996
HPI: 61.02
Rank: 154
Harry F. Byrd Jr.
POLITICIAN
1914 - 2013
HPI: 61.01
Rank: 155
Kazimierz Świątek
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1914 - 2011
HPI: 60.97
Rank: 156
Others Deceased in 2015
Go to all RankingsCarlo Furno
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
1921 - 2015
HPI: 61.35
Rank: 142
Harald Nielsen
SOCCER PLAYER
1941 - 2015
HPI: 61.33
Rank: 143
Sergio Sollima
FILM DIRECTOR
1921 - 2015
HPI: 61.24
Rank: 144
Władysław Bartoszewski
POLITICIAN
1922 - 2015
HPI: 61.23
Rank: 145
Klaus Roth
MATHEMATICIAN
1925 - 2015
HPI: 61.22
Rank: 146
Robert Conquest
HISTORIAN
1917 - 2015
HPI: 61.19
Rank: 147
Frances Oldham Kelsey
PHYSICIAN
1914 - 2015
HPI: 61.16
Rank: 148
Egon Bahr
POLITICIAN
1922 - 2015
HPI: 61.16
Rank: 149
Dean Jones
ACTOR
1931 - 2015
HPI: 61.00
Rank: 150
Ernst Fuchs
PAINTER
1930 - 2015
HPI: 60.94
Rank: 151
Saud bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
POLITICIAN
1940 - 2015
HPI: 60.89
Rank: 152
Mile Mrkšić
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1947 - 2015
HPI: 60.88
Rank: 153
Ján Chryzostom Korec
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
1924 - 2015
HPI: 60.87
Rank: 154
In Canada
Among people born in Canada, Frances Oldham Kelsey ranks 186 out of 1,622. Before her are Lorne Greene (1915), Nelly Furtado (1978), Christian Cage (1973), Brian Kernighan (1942), Evangeline Lilly (1979), and Wilfrid Laurier (1841). After her are Alex Wilson (1905), Vanity (1959), Maynard Ferguson (1928), Robert Langlands (1936), Bret Hart (1957), and Henry Czerny (1959).
Others born in Canada
Go to all RankingsLorne Greene
ACTOR
1915 - 1987
HPI: 61.29
Rank: 180
Nelly Furtado
SINGER
1978 - Present
HPI: 61.24
Rank: 181
Christian Cage
WRESTLER
1973 - Present
HPI: 61.21
Rank: 182
Brian Kernighan
COMPUTER SCIENTIST
1942 - Present
HPI: 61.20
Rank: 183
Evangeline Lilly
ACTOR
1979 - Present
HPI: 61.17
Rank: 184
Wilfrid Laurier
POLITICIAN
1841 - 1919
HPI: 61.16
Rank: 185
Frances Oldham Kelsey
PHYSICIAN
1914 - 2015
HPI: 61.16
Rank: 186
Alex Wilson
ATHLETE
1905 - 1994
HPI: 61.07
Rank: 187
Vanity
ACTOR
1959 - 2016
HPI: 61.03
Rank: 188
Maynard Ferguson
MUSICIAN
1928 - 2006
HPI: 61.03
Rank: 189
Robert Langlands
MATHEMATICIAN
1936 - Present
HPI: 60.96
Rank: 190
Bret Hart
WRESTLER
1957 - Present
HPI: 60.87
Rank: 191
Henry Czerny
ACTOR
1959 - Present
HPI: 60.77
Rank: 192
Among PHYSICIANS In Canada
Among physicians born in Canada, Frances Oldham Kelsey ranks 7. Before her are Frederick Banting (1891), Oswald Avery (1877), David H. Hubel (1926), Charles Brenton Huggins (1901), Norman Bethune (1890), and William Osler (1849). After her are Édouard Gagnon (1918), Lucille Teasdale-Corti (1929), Maude Abbott (1868), James Heilman (1979), and Alaa Murabit (1989).
Frederick Banting
1891 - 1941
HPI: 71.11
Rank: 1
Oswald Avery
1877 - 1955
HPI: 67.58
Rank: 2
David H. Hubel
1926 - 2013
HPI: 67.03
Rank: 3
Charles Brenton Huggins
1901 - 1997
HPI: 66.89
Rank: 4
Norman Bethune
1890 - 1939
HPI: 63.71
Rank: 5
William Osler
1849 - 1919
HPI: 63.22
Rank: 6
Frances Oldham Kelsey
1914 - 2015
HPI: 61.16
Rank: 7
Édouard Gagnon
1918 - 2007
HPI: 56.02
Rank: 8
Lucille Teasdale-Corti
1929 - 1996
HPI: 54.46
Rank: 9
Maude Abbott
1868 - 1940
HPI: 48.86
Rank: 10
James Heilman
1979 - Present
HPI: 42.49
Rank: 11
Alaa Murabit
1989 - Present
HPI: 32.35
Rank: 12