May 12, 2009

PREMIER’S SUMMIT AWARD IN MEDICAL RESEARCH

The Premier’s Summit Award builds Ontario’s research prowess by recognizing exceptional medical researchers and helping them expand their programs. These winners are internationally recognized leaders whose work is transformative in their fields.

Each winner will receive up to $5 million over a five-year period: a $2.5 million contribution from the award program matched by $2.5 million from their sponsoring institution. As the following profiles demonstrate, the Premier’s Summit Award supports researchers who have made a substantial contribution and show promise to do even more.

PREMIER’S SUMMIT AWARD RECIPIENTS 2009

Dr. Benjamin Neel
The Campbell Family Cancer Research Institute at the Princess Margaret Hospital, University Health Network
Toronto

Dr. Benjamin Neel is one of the world’s leading authorities on cancer cell research. Recruited from Harvard Medical School in 2006, Dr. Neel’s focus is cell signalling, and how it can go wrong and cause disease. His particular interest is signalling abnormalities associated with two types of human disease: a set of developmental disorders often linked with several types of childhood and adult leukemia and HER2+ breast cancer. These conditions affect thousands of Ontarians every year. Dr. Neel’s goal is to identify novel cancer targets, which will lead to new and more personalized treatments for patients. A charismatic leader, Dr. Neel is helping attract and retain the finest scientists from around the world to ensure Ontario is a global leader in innovative cancer research.

Dr. John Wallace
McMaster University
Farncombe Family Digestive Health Research Institute
Hamilton

Recently described as an international superstar in the field of gastrointestinal research, Dr. John Wallace came to Ontario from the University of Calgary. His focus is on gaining a better understanding of the causes of some of the most common digestive disorders, including irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease and colon cancer, as well as the ulcers that can arise from using painkillers and arthritis medication. In particular, Dr. Wallace is interested in learning what role the bacteria that live inside the human digestive system play in the development of these diseases. His ultimate aim is to design and produce better therapies for these conditions, which affect millions of Canadians each year, and as co-founder of pharmaceutical company NicOx, he has demonstrated the ability to move his scientific discoveries from the lab to the marketplace.

SPONSORING INSTITUTIONS FOR PREMIER’S SUMMIT AWARD WINNERS:

MaRS Discovery District

MaRS is a not-for-profit corporation dedicated to maximizing the economic and social impact of innovation. MaRS does this by connecting and fostering collaboration between the communities of science, business and capital.

The MaRS Centre is located in Toronto’s renowned “Discovery District” – Canada’s largest concentration of biomedical research, spread across major teaching hospitals, the University of Toronto, and more than two dozen affiliated research centres.

The MaRS model uses place and partnerships to build a community in which innovators, entrepreneurs, scientists, professionals and investors can exchange knowledge, share best practices, and expand their networks. MaRS offers a broad range of educational programs and business services to address the needs of emerging and growth-oriented companies. Public outreach activities span both science and culture, while entrepreneurship programs for students reach a wide cross-disciplinary audience and create a culture that celebrates innovative ideas, entrepreneurship and commercialization.  

University Health Network (UHN)

With an operating budget of more than $850 million, the University Health Network is one of Canada's largest teaching hospitals. University Health Network is made up of Toronto General Hospital, Toronto Western Hospital and Princess Margaret Hospital. Each hospital retains its identity and name within the network.

UHN's research institutes comprise the Ontario Cancer Institute, The Campbell Family Cancer Research Institute, The Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Toronto General Research Institute and Toronto Western Research Institute.

Approximately 2,500 scientists, technical staff, students and trainees at University Health Network are working together to solve fundamental and applied research problems.

Primary funding for University Health Network comes from the Ontario Ministry of Health. Other funding sources include the Ontario Ministry of Research and Innovation, patient services, grants and donations from individuals and corporations.

McMaster University

McMaster University, one of four Canadian universities listed among the Top 100 universities in the world, is renowned for its innovation in both learning and discovery. It has a student population of 23,000, and more than 140,000 alumni in 128 countries. Known for its research intensity, for four years in a row McMaster has ranked second in Canada for its biomedical research revenues.

Its Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine is internationally renowned for its development of small group, problem-based learning, now used by medical and health science programs around the world.

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See also:

• Backgrounder: Premier’s Catalyst Awards
• Backgrounder: Premier’s Discovery Awards
• Multimedia: Premier’s Innovation Awards 2009