Foundation letter from leadership - Research

The exciting potential of the research conducted by Lunenfeld investigators was recognized many times this year, as one significant discovery after another made headlines. These included:

  • Dr. Andras Nagy, who received worldwide coverage for his astonishing discovery of a method of creating stem cells from adult skin cells without disrupting healthy genes, news which has implications for treatment of spinal cord injury, macular degeneration, diabetes and Parkinson’s disease.
  • Dr. Jeff Wrana, Mary Janigan Research Chair in Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, announced DyNeMo, a new technology tool that analyzes breast cancer tumours to determine their severity and provide critical treatment information.
  • Dr. Daniel Drucker, whose new diabetes study could change the daily lives of millions of people: Dr. Drucker found that a once-a-week treatment could replace the twice-daily injection for Type 2 diabetes.
  • Dr. Isabella Caniggia’s diagnostic test for preeclampsia, a form of hypertension that affects some seven per cent of all pregnancies, may be available in less than five years.
  • Dr. Pamela Goodwin, Marvelle Koffler Chair in Breast Research, revealed that healthy levels of vitamin D are related to a lower incidence of breast cancer and higher overall survival rates.
  • Dr. Tony Pawson, Apotex Chair in Molecular Oncology, became the first Canadian scientist to win the Kyoto Prize, for his revolutionary work in signal transduction – the way in which cells control one another’s behaviour.

Donors responded to the Lunenfeld’s achievements with meaningful financial support. Thanks to the extraordinary vision of Mark Krembil, President of the Krembil Foundation, the Lunenfeld received a $1-million commitment in support of genomic research and computational biology.

After just one year, Leadership Sinai, our young philanthropic leaders group, has raised one-third of its $3 -million pledge to support cancer research at the Lunenfeld.

The Oakdale Golf and Country Club and the George Knudson Oakdale Pro-Am committed $1 million to establish the Oakdale Golf & Country Club/George Knudson Research Chair in Gastrointestinal Cancer, held by oncologist and scientist Dr. Steven Gallinger.

Research also received support from TD Securities, which donated $20,000 to women’s and infants’ health research.