Dr. Silva earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in biochemistry from the University of Texas at Austin in Austin, Texas, and received his medical doctorate and Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. He completed his internship in general surgery at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, and his residency in radiation oncology at Loyola University in Chicago, Illinois, where he served as Chief Resident.

In addition to his education and medical training, Dr. Silva has edited and written papers and book chapters on subjects in his field and has been bestowed numerous honors and awards. He is a member of the American Society of Therapeutic Radiology and Oncology (ASTRO), the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA), and the American Association of Cancer Research (AACR).