A physician and professor of Chemotherapy and Pharmacology, Silvio Garattini was born in Bergamo in 1928.

He established and led the Mario Negri Institute for Pharmacological Research (IRCCS) from its inception in 1963 until June 2018, after which he became President. A prolific author, he has published hundreds of scientific papers in both Italian and international journals, as well as numerous books on pharmacology. He is a member of Gruppo 2003, a group of highly cited Italian researchers. In 1962 he co-founded the European Group for Anticancer Chemotherapy (GECA).

Throughout his distinguished career, he has held many prominent positions, including Chair of the Anti-Cancer Chemotherapy Committee for the International Union against Cancer, President of the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), and consultant to the World Health Organization.