Burton Silbert MD

Burton Silbert died on August 24, 2024. Born in Brooklyn, NY on July 8, 1933, son of Donnie Rahinsky Silbert and David Silbert. Treasured son-in-law of Herman and Lillian Kushner. He and his wife Estelle, whom he adored, raised their family in Nashville, TN, their beloved home for decades. In retirement, they moved to Longboat Key and later to Plymouth Harbor. They celebrated 70 years of a wonderful marriage on June 19, 2024.

Survived by children Diedra Silbert, Ridgway, CO; Michael Silbert (Kathy), Boulder, CO, Shelley Silbert (Steve), Durango, CO; and Daniel Silbert (Becky), Atlanta, GA, and by grandchildren, Laiken Jordahl, Tucson, AZ; Erika Silbert, Boulder, CO; Nicole and David Silbert, Atlanta, GA.

Educated in NYC public schools at P.S. 135 and Tilden HS, Burt earned his Bachelor of Arts from New York University, University Heights and his Medical Degree from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in 1958, as a member of AOA, the Honor Medical Society. He interned at Butterworth Hospital and was a radiology resident at the Grace Hospitals in Michigan. He then returned to Nashville as Instructor in Radiology at Vanderbilt School of Medicine, continuing as Clinical Assistant Professor until 1979. In 1964 he joined a private practice in diagnostic radiology as the group’s fifth member. It became Radiology Consultants of Nashville, now Radiology Alliance, and grew to 17 members by his retirement in 1997.

He performed Nashville’s first mammogram in 1973 and was dubbed “the father of mammography” by his peers. In 1974, he was appointed co-director of the Vanderbilt Breast Center Detection & Demonstration Project, part of a national study to determine the effectiveness of mammography.

He was a member of the Nashville Academy of Medicine, the Tennessee Medical Society, the Tennessee Radiological Society, and was chairman of the state Committee on Mammography. He was also an Honorary Fellow of the American College of Radiology.

Actively engaged with organizations he cared about, he served in leadership roles at West End Synagogue, Players Club of Longboat Key, and Plymouth Harbor.

He was an exceptionally loving and devoted husband, father, and grandfather, cherished by his family. Throughout his life and in retirement, he enjoyed travel, food and friendship, sharing stories and jokes, playing tennis and golf, and was an avid fan of Vanderbilt basketball and the Brooklyn Dodgers. His doctors repeatedly called him “amazing” for his resilient spirit and positive attitude in dealing with significant health issues in his later years of life.

Services will be held on Wednesday, August 28 at 2 pm in the Plymouth Harbor Chapel. Donations, in lieu of flowers, can be sent to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society or your favorite charity.