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New PFAC Chair takes lead of growing, evolving community of OICR patient partners

Blood cancer survivor Terry Hawrysh is the new Chair of OICR’s Patient and Family Advisory Council (PFAC).

Though Terry Hawrysh has seen major strides in patient partnership since he first got involved in cancer research, he thinks we’re just scratching the surface of what patient partners can achieve.

So he’s excited to help lead the next evolution of patient partnership in cancer research as the new Chair of OICR’s Patient and Family Advisory Council (PFAC).

“As Chair, I have a wonderful opportunity to draw on the collective knowledge and experience of many diverse and dynamic patients partners,” Hawrysh says. “Together, I believe we help ensure cancer research meets and exceeds the needs of cancer patients.”

Hawrysh has been a member of OICR’s PFAC since its inception in 2021 and has been involved in research as a patient partner for more than six years. He’s a semi-retired engineer who got interested in contributing to cancer research after his own experience with blood cancer, which he says changed him physically and mentally.

“Being treated for a life-threatening disease changed my sense of what’s important,” Hawrysh says. “I just want to be a good human and do whatever I can to improve the experiences of patients and their families.”

Since joining PFAC, he’s watched patient partnership grow and evolve at OICR. Patient partners are now embedded throughout OICR’s research programs, helping evaluate, shape and execute research projects.

But with a strong PFAC and a growing community of more than 70 patient partners, he thinks patients have even more to offer cancer research in Ontario. He looks forward to supporting more patients in co-designing research projects, authoring academic papers, and speaking up on important issues in cancer research and care.

“Patients and their families are the largest and most important group of stakeholders in cancer research,” he says. “Our collective voice can be very influential.”

Hawrysh took over as Chair from Beth Ciavaglia, who stepped down in February but will continue as a regular member of PFAC.

“My time as chair, although short, was very fulfilling. The PFAC crew and all OICR staff I encountered were incredibly supportive and encouraging,” says Ciavaglia, who has also been a PFAC member since 2021. “I am over the moon that Terry is picking up the role. His wealth of patient partnership experience, inside of OICR and out, will no doubt guide the group in the right direction.”

Hawrysh says Ciavaglia has left him big shoes to fill as chair.

“Beth was a very enthusiastic and effective chair and a wonderful bridge between PFAC and the OICR community,” he says. “I look forward to representing her and the rest of PFAC as we continue fostering meaningful collaborations between patients and researchers.”

Ask a cancer researcher: How can Ontarians get tested for hereditary cancers?

Medical Geneticist Dr. Raymond Kim answers a question about what genetic testing is available in Ontario.

Having close family members with cancer could mean you have a higher risk of developing certain cancers.

And so people with a family history of cancer may want to get genetic testing to better understand their risks.

In our latest Ask a Cancer Researcher video, University Health Network Medical Geneticist Dr. Raymond Kim answers a question from Coburg resident Jo Ann Kropf-Hedley about what genetic testing is available in Ontario.

Kim also explains how the Ontario Hereditary Cancer Research Network, which he created with OICR, aims to better understand hereditary cancers and improve how they are managed and treated.

AI helps find new leads for brain cancer drug discovery

Research led by OICR and SickKids used machine learning to find links between cancer outcomes and druggable proteins.

Ontario scientists used advanced computing techniques to generate a catalogue of potential targets for future drug discovery research, as well as two promising targets for brain cancer drugs.

In a study published in the EMBO Journal, researchers used machine learning — a type of artificial intelligence (AI) that can learn from data and make predictions — to analyze the gene expression of more than 9,000 tumour samples across 33 cancer types.

They looked specifically at a group of proteins called “ion channels”, which have been targeted by drugs for cardiovascular disease but have been understudied for cancer therapeutics. By looking at the expression of these ion channels in the tumour samples, the machine learning algorithm identified about 400 potential targets that linked to patient survival in one of 33 cancers.

“These proteins may have a role in how cancers grow, and the catalogue we developed could be a useful resource for researchers looking to develop or repurpose drugs for cancer,” says OICR Investigator Dr. Jüri Reimand, whose lab led this research alongside Dr. Xi Huang’s lab at SickKids.

From this catalogue, Reimand and colleagues noticed that four proteins seemed particularly linked to patient outcomes in glioblastoma, the most common and deadliest brain cancer. The team at SickKids then did experiments on two of these proteins in their brain cancer research lab. They discovered that the two ion channels help control how rapidly glioblastoma cells grow, and that when the proteins are disabled in brain cancer cells the tumours become less aggressive in mouse models. One of the ion channels also appears to control cell-cell communication networks of brain cancer cells.

“That opens the door for further work developing brain cancer therapeutics and also adds to our understanding of how brain cancer cells work,” says Reimand, who is also Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular Genetics at the University of Toronto.

Alexander Bahcheli

The study is the culmination of long-term collaboration between Reimand and Huang that began when they were both postdoctoral researchers. This latest work was led by PhD students Alexander Bahcheli and Nicolaes Hyun-Kee Min, who are members of the Reimand and Huang labs and PhD students at the Department of Molecular Genetics at the University of Toronto.

“It’s exciting to explore these different classes of proteins from a cancer perspective,” says Bahcheli, who completed this research as part of his PhD. “Machine learning allows us to find the strongest associations that may be most relevant to future research.”

Machine learning has shown promise in drug discovery research because of its ability to parse through huge amount of data relatively quickly. With machine learning, the teams at OICR and SickKids were able to focus in on two promising targets without having to run hundreds of experiments to identify and validate targets, which could take years to complete.

Ask a cancer researcher: What are ‘imaging probes’ and how can they help diagnose prostate cancer?

PhD student Pamela Penawou answers a question from a prostate cancer survivor.

One of the most exciting new innovations in diagnosing cancer is the development of ‘imaging probes’ that attach themselves to cancer cells to show the precise location of a tumour.

In our latest Ask a Cancer Researcher video, prostate cancer survivor and retired medical physicist Jerry Battista asks about how these probes work, and how they can be harnessed to improve the way prostate cancer is diagnosed and treated. His question is answered by McMaster PhD student and radiochemistry researcher Pamela Penawou. See Penawou’s answer below, and if you have your own question you want answered by a cancer researcher, you can submit it here.

Working with racialized communities to improve access to genetic testing

OICR-supported research led by Dr. Yvonne Bombard aims to understand and overcome barriers that have kept racialized populations from accessing genetic services.

Genetic testing can help detect cancer early, when it is most treatable, and even help prevent it altogether.

A genetic test can tell you if you inherited variations in your DNA that make you more likely to develop cancer. From there, you can be referred to high-risk screening programs designed to find cancer as early as possible, or surgeries that can reduce your risk of developing cancer at all.

But genetic testing is only beneficial if you can get a test in the first place and get meaningful results from it. Unfortunately, people from certain racial and ethnic backgrounds have largely been excluded from genetic testing and research.

Data from the U.S. suggests that people from Black communities are about 16 times less likely to get referred for a genetic test than white people, and are also less likely to receive conclusive test results. A small number of Canadian studies suggest that racialized communities face similar challenges in Canada.

Dr. Yvonne Bombard has dedicated much of her career to studying how to improve genetic services, including tackling issues around access. As Genomics Health Services Researcher at St. Michael’s Hospital (Unity Health), Associate Professor in the University of Toronto’s Institute of Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, and Canada Research Chair in Genomics Health Services and Policy, she works closely with patients and healthcare providers on solutions.

In one of her latest studies, funded through OICR’s Innovation to Implementation program, Bombard is engaging directly with racialized communities in Ontario to understand the barriers stopping them from accessing genetic testing.

OICR News recently spoke to Bombard about this study and her other work to make genetic services more equitable.

What sort of challenges do racialized populations face in getting a genetic test?

There are barriers present across the whole healthcare journey.

To start, you need a referral from your family physician to get an appointment for genetic testing. That requires that you have a family physician in the first place. Unfortunately, many people have trouble accessing a family physician, and these challenges disproportionately affect racialized populations.

There are also eligibility criteria for genetic testing related to your family history of cancer that can be a barrier for some communities. If you’ve been separated from your family because of historical or recent strife, for example, you may not know your complete family history and or have access to health records. In some communities, it’s taboo to discuss personal health information, even within your family members, and all of this can prevent someone from meeting the criteria for genetic testing.

What if someone from a racialized background is able to get a referral for a genetic test. Are there still barriers?

The other big issue is that the genomic databases we use to interpret people’s genetic test results are mostly made up of data from people of European ancestry. We simply don’t have enough genomes from Black, Indigenous and other racialized communities to determine whether  changes found in their DNA are harmless or harmful.

Without enough data, these populations are more likely to get inconclusive results from genetic tests. That means their care isn’t managed any differently and they don’t get access to high-risk screening programs, surveillance, or prophylactic surgeries. Therefore, it’s not surprising that racialized individuals also see higher rates of morbidity and mortality from cancer.

How are you hoping to address these inequities in your OICR-supported research?

We’re starting with a qualitative study where we interview people from these communities and ask them about their lived experience with genetic services. We want to hear from them about any barriers they face, and we’d love to hear about any potential enablers to access as well. We’ll also be interviewing genomics researchers, healthcare providers and other stakeholders to understand the full scope of the issues.

We’ve started conducting those interviews and it has been hugely insightful and illuminating. We’re learning so much, including some things we were expecting as well as some surprising revelations.

What will you do with this information once you’ve completed the interviews?

Once we’re able to characterize some of the barriers and enablers to accessing genetics services, we’ll begin phase two of the project, which involves working with people from racialized communities to co-design and test interventions based on what we learned. Those interventions will target the barriers across the entire care pathway – from referral, to testing, to anywhere else they are happening.

We’ll be partnering with a wide range of stakeholders as part of this research, including hereditary cancer patient organizations and organizations representing racialized communities. We also have engagement from different levels of government. Everyone recognizes this as a multi-pronged problem that requires system-level change. Having everyone at the table gives me hope that we can action our findings and hopefully make a difference for these communities.

Newest OICR Investigator seeks to develop precision treatments for young people with high risk leukemia

OICR recently welcomed Dr. Grace Egan to the OICR community as the recipient of an Early-Career Investigator Award.

As a staff physician at the Hospital for Sick Children, Dr. Grace Egan sees firsthand the need for better, more-targeted treatments for children, adolescents and young adults with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). This is what compelled her to explore the underlying biology of different subtypes of AML, so that therapies can be tailored to the specifics of each patient’s cancer.

Dr. Egan joined OICR News and explained how she is helping to bring a badly-needed upgrade of AML treatments to her patients and others around the world.

How did you become interested in cancer research and in particular childhood and young adult leukemias?

My work as a pediatric oncologist motivated me to explore and understand the biology of high risk leukemia so that we can develop more effective, targeted therapies for this disease.

Many of the chemotherapies that we use in the clinic target both leukemic and healthy cells, resulting in a lot of side effects for patients. In addition, chemotherapy regimens and hematopoietic stem cell transplants for high risk patients, have been maximized to the limits of toxicity in AML.

The only way to improve outcomes for children and young adults with AML is to understand the biology of the disease so that we can identify vulnerabilities in leukemia cells that can be selectively targeted, while sparing healthy cells.

Can you tell us about your research and how it will help patients?

The primary goal of my research program is to identify new therapeutic targets for childhood AML. We know that the biology of AML in children and young adults is very different to the biology of AML in older adults. We need to identify targets specifically for this younger population, instead of assuming drugs effective in older adults with AML will be effective in younger patients, as frequently they are not.   

Currently, I’m focused on studying importins and exportins, which are the gatekeepers that allow proteins into and out of the nucleus. The nucleus of a cell is where the cell gets the instructions on how to behave, grow and divide. If proteins move into or out of the nucleus at the wrong time, this can give faulty instructions to the cell that can cause cancer to develop. There are a number of different importins and exportins and many of these have not been studied extensively in leukemia.

We have identified that childhood and young adult AML may be uniquely reliant on some of these exportins, and this offers avenues for potential treatment, if specific inhibitors can be developed.

What inspires or drives you to push forward with your research?

Working on the wards and treating children and adolescents with high risk leukemia, is daily inspiration to keep pushing forward tenaciously with my research.

I have witnessed first-hand how cancer research has revolutionized the treatment of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), where survival outcomes are now higher than 90 per cent. In contrast to ALL, AML remains more difficult to treat at both diagnosis and recurrence, and survival outcomes are very poor in children who relapse.

The only way to improve outcomes for children and AYA with AML is to identify novel, preclinical targets that focus exclusively on biologic vulnerabilities unique to younger AML patients.

How do you think new technologies and other advancements will change clinical trials and treatment for childhood and young adult leukemias?

Technology is already changing how we treat children and young adults on clinical trials.

Next generation sequencing, including the use of RNA sequencing, has enabled us to identify patients whose leukemia cells contain high risk genetic abnormalities – previously these high risk patients would have slipped through the cracks and relapsed. For these high risk patients we can intensify treatment with the use hematopoietic stem cell transplant and more recently, specific targeted agents for some subsets, for example, AML with a mutation in the FLT3-ITD gene.

The challenge now, is that most high risk genetic abnormalities in AML are not directly druggable and their role in downstream biologic processes is still not well understood. The future of AML treatment requires understanding the mechanisms that drive distinct subsets of childhood and young adult AML so that we can tailor treatment to the unique biologic drivers of each patient’s leukemia, thus improving treatment efficacy and reducing off-target side effects. Efforts are underway to make this vision a reality though international collaborative research groups including the Pediatric Acute Leukemia Master Clinical Trial (LLS PedAL).

How will joining OICR as an Early-Career Investigator advance your research?

I’m very grateful to be an Early-Career Investigator with OICR. The support of OICR enables me to accelerate the work I am doing and offers exciting opportunities to advance our discoveries to the next step, through use of the Cancer Therapeutics Innovation Pipeline initiative, for example.

In addition, the ability to work with, and learn from international experts in AML research, including Dr. Aaron Schimmer and Dr. John Dick has been an incredible opportunity for me. I am looking forward to continued collaborations with researchers at OICR, SickKids Research Institute, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, and across Ontario’s research community.

Healthy diet linked to reduced risk of colon cancers in men

Data from a Canadian population health study confirms the association between diet and colon cancers.

Eating a diet rich in fruit, vegetables and other healthy foods could cut men’s risk of colon cancers in half, according to a new study based on Canadian data.

In the study, published in Cancer Epidemiology, researchers from OICR and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York looked at data from the Canadian Study of Diet, Lifestyle and Health, a cohort of 73,000 Canadian residents recruited in the 1990s and followed for up to 18 years.

They found that men who scored in the highest category on the Healthy Eating Index were 56 percent less likely to develop colon cancer compared to those who scored in the lowest category. No significant link was found between healthy eating and colon cancers in women.

Study author Dr. Victoria Kirsh says the findings corroborate earlier studies linking healthy eating patterns to a decreased risk of colorectal cancer and point to action that people can take to reduce their risk of cancer.

Dr. Victoria Kirsh

“Diet is a modifiable risk factor – it’s something people have control over,” says Kirsh, one of the study’s three authors and Scientific Associate at the Ontario Health Study (OHS), which is hosted by OICR. “Our research shows that changing your diet is something you can do to protect yourself from colorectal cancers, which are among the leading causes of cancer death in Canada.”

Kirsh says this is one of just a few studies to look at the impact of dietary patterns and risk of colorectal cancer among Canadians. To measure diet, researchers used the Healthy Eating Index, which scores people from zero to 100 based on their intake of a range of healthy and unhealthy foods.

Kirsh and colleagues dug deeper into the numbers, looking at how diet might impact the risk of specific types of colorectal cancer. They found that men who scored in the highest quintile on the Healthy Diet Index were 74 per cent less likely to develop cancers of the proximal colon, which includes the first two sections of the large intestine.

Researchers also looked at how other risk factors for cancer might influence the link between diet and colorectal cancers. Data showed that a healthy diet had the greatest impact among non-smokers, non-drinkers and people with normal or above average body mass index.

As Scientific Associate at OHS, Kirsh hopes to further investigate the links between diet and cancer within the OHS cohort of 225,000 participants. Though the OHS doesn’t currently have extensive data about participants’ diets, she says the study is exploring the potential of collecting dietary information.

“That could present some really exciting opportunities, including identifying genetic variants that modify the association between diet and disease risk,” Kirsh says.

For now, she says that people should use studies like this one to make informed choices about their diet, especially with rates of colorectal cancer rising among young people.

“Our study reinforces the importance of eating a diet high in fruits, vegetables, dairy products, whole grains, and seafood and plant proteins and low in saturated fats and added sugars,” Kirsh says.

New tech could modernize recovery from gynecological cancers

With support from FACIT, Hyivy Health aims to improve pelvic rehabilitation with a new, patient-centred device.

It was painfully obvious to Rachel Bartholomew back in 2019 that women’s pelvic rehabilitation needed to be brought into the 21st century.

Bartholomew was on bedrest, dealing with side effects from treatment for cervical cancer that “wreaked havoc” on her body. But she found the device that was meant to help her recover was causing her undue pain and didn’t seem designed for her body.

As an entrepreneur, Bartholomew recognized an opportunity to make pelvic rehabilitation more comfortable, more user-friendly and more effective.

“The device I was supposed to use just didn’t make sense,” Bartholomew says. “It seemed like the right time to make a change for myself and other women who go through this.”

Bartholomew used her downtime during recovery to design Floora, a new patient-centred technology to help women recover from pelvic health problems caused by cancer and other gynecological conditions.

Four years later, Bartholomew’s start-up Hyivy Health is manufacturing Floora in her hometown of Kitchener. And thanks in part to investments and support from FACIT, Bartholomew and Hyivy could be on the verge of shaking up women’s pelvic health.

The idea for Floora came to Bartholomew shortly after she was diagnosed with high-risk Stage 1B1 cervical cancer and underwent a full hysterectomy and radiotherapy. Like many women who undergo these invasive treatments, she faced a range of potentially long-term side effects including pain and neuropathy in her vagina and serious bladder issues.

At just 28 years old, her future was full of uncertainties. Would she need a urostomy bag? Could she ever enjoy being intimate with a partner again?

The solution she was given was a device called a vaginal dilator. Traditional dilators are a set of plastic or silicon tubes of varying sizes – which Bartholomew likens to Russian dolls – that are inserted into the vagina to help break down scar tissue and stretch out damaged muscles.

Bartholomew found that these dilators, which were designed in 1938, were painful and awkward to use.

“It felt like the design didn’t consider what women actually want and need,” she says.

She turned to a support group on Facebook and found that other women shared her frustration. And the issue went beyond just cancer. Dilators are used for recovery after childbirth, during menopause and after gender-affirming care, and Bartholomew felt users deserved better.

After speaking to about 500 women, she came up with a rough design and presented it to her radiologist while she was receiving treatment at the Grand River Cancer Centre in Kitchener. The idea quickly made its way around the local oncology community, and Bartholomew continued to do more research. Before too long, Bartholomew created Hyivy Health and built a prototype.

Floora is different from existing dilators in several ways, starting with a more anatomical shape – “women are not just straight lines,” Bartholomew emphasizes – that makes it more comfortable to use. It dilates by gradually filling two balloons with air, making it gentler than ‘static’ dilators. Floora also incorporates heat to make the pressure of dilation more tolerable for users.

Bartholomew says one of the most exciting parts of Floora is the pressure sensors, which can collect data about the user’s rehabilitation progress and feed it back to patients and doctors via an app. The device also features a heat sensor that can provide data about a woman’s general gynecological health, and could potentially help diagnose endometriosis and other conditions.

“That data can really empower women to understand what is happening with their bodies and make decisions with their healthcare professionals,” Bartholomew says.

In 2022, Bartholomew’s innovation caught the attention of OICR’s strategic partner FACIT, which supports commercialization of new cancer technologies discovered and developed in Ontario. Bartholomew pitched Hyivy and Floora at the 2022 FACIT Falcons’ Fortunes competition. Though she didn’t win the pitch competition, her story and entrepreneurial drive left a memorable impression. Later that year, Bartholomew was selected for a FACIT investment grant through the Prospects Oncology Fund, an Ontario-first source of dedicated capital that drives the advancement of transformative oncology discoveries by supporting proof-of-concept studies.

Bartholomew leveraged Prospects funding to submit its technology for regulatory approval by Health Canada. Then FACIT invested in Hyivy again in July 2023 through the Compass Rose Oncology Fund, which is designed to anchor and scale biotechs in Ontario. Capital from FACIT is now helping Hyivy run studies to validate Floora in healthcare settings, and take steps to make it available to women who need it. Bartholomew says FACIT also helped Hyivy make connections across the cancer community, which will help the device make a greater impact in the future.

“Rachel encouraged us with her strong business acumen and ability to recognize a challenge in women’s health and develop an innovative solution, especially as she continued to deal with her own health challenges,” says FACIT President Dr. David O’Neill. “FACIT is proud to support Rachel and other creative, resilient entrepreneurs across Ontario.”

Hyivy is set to launch a clinical trial to test Floora with patients at Grand River Cancer Centre. The company is also making inroads in the U.S., where they hope Floora will get approval from the Food and Drug Administration within the coming months.

Bartholomew is excited to offer women a more comfortable and more personalized tool to get their lives back after cancer and other pelvic health issues.

“I’m hoping we can help women feel more supported and connected to their care,” says Bartholomew. “I want to give them a better quality of life and help them stay healthier throughout their lives.”

Ask a Cancer Researcher: How can we address bias in cancer research?

In our latest Ask a Cancer Researcher video, Peter Goodhand, CEO of the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health, responds to a question about bias in cancer research. Watch the clip to hear his thoughts on how scientists, research institutions and funding organizations can all play a role in avoiding bias in research.

Three research and healthcare leaders join OICR’s Board

OICR welcomes Dr. Jennifer Chan, Laurie Harrison and Dr. Nancy Ross to its Board of Directors.

Three leaders in science, medicine and healthcare administration joined OICR’s Board of Directors in recent months. They bring decades of experience that will strengthen OICR’s efforts to tackle the big challenges in cancer and deliver solutions to patients.

Dr. Jennifer Chan, Laurie Harrison and Dr. Nancy Ross were elected to three-year terms that run until Fall 2026.

  • Dr. Jennifer Chan is Director of the Arnie Charbonneau Cancer Institute and an Associate Professor in the Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine at the University of Calgary. She is a pathologist-scientist and research leader with over 14 years of experience and serves as Consortium Leader of the Prairie Cancer Research Consortium in the Marathon of Hope Cancer Centres Network.

“Joining OICR’s Board is a great opportunity to contribute to world-class research that is making a difference for people all over the world,” Dr Chan says. “I look forward to helping the OICR community advance new discoveries and bring them to patients who need them.”

  • Laurie Harrison recently retired from her role as Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of SickKids Hospital. She has 35 years of experience in administrative and operational roles in Ontario academic health science centres, and significant experience in Finance, Treasury, Supply Chain, Operations, Business Development and Risk Management in the not-for-profit sector.

“OICR has an excellent reputation, and I’m glad to contribute to the success of this dynamic organization,” Harrison says. “I hope to bring my expertise to the Board and my support to management with the goal of meeting OICR’s strategic objectives.”

  • Dr. Nancy Ross held positions as Professor, Canada Research Chair, and Associate Vice-Principal Research and Innovation at McGill University from 2001-2021 after beginning her research career at Statistics Canada (1997-2001). Dr. Ross currently serves as Vice-Principal Research at Queen’s University. She also holds a faculty position in the University’s Department of Public Health Sciences, where she is a recognized expert in population health.

“I am excited to contribute to an organization that plays an essential role in Ontario’s globally significant research ecosystem,” Dr. Ross says. “I hope to help OICR continue to accelerate and translate discoveries that reduce suffering for people affected by cancer and improve their quality of life.”

Chaired by Dr. Susan Fitzpatrick, OICR’s Board of Directors is comprised of 14 volunteers from different academic and professional backgrounds.

“Our newest Board members will be a tremendous resource to OICR’s Executive team, our staff, and to people affected by cancer in Ontario and around the world.” says Dr. Laszlo Radvanyi, President and Scientific Director of OICR. “We’re so grateful that Nancy, Laurie and Jennifer are volunteering their time to our important mission, and I can’t wait to see what we will accomplish together for cancer patients and their families.”