When the human genome was sequenced 20 years ago, there was a great excitement at the possibility of personalized medicine. Once the genetic makeup of a person’s disease was known, hopes were high that researchers could design specifically matched and targeted treatment for many patients. It turns out, dealing with real-world disease is not so straightforward. Now scientists at the Ovarian Cancer Research Centre (OVCARE) are trying to harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance personalized medicine.

Each year, Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute (VCHRI) promotes excellence in health research through the annual VCHRI Investigator Awards. These awards recognize outstanding health investigators and support their research efforts through peer-reviewed salary support awards. The awards provide an opportunity for investigators to reduce their clinical practice commitments and build their research capacity to expand the possibilities of improving health research. They are supported by VGH & UBC Hospital Foundation.

The 2019 VCHRI Investigator Awards recipients are: 

Few conditions affect more men than prostate cancer. Approximately one in seven Canadian men will develop the disease at some point during his lifetime, according to the Canadian Cancer Society. For around one in 29, a prostate cancer diagnosis will prove fatal. 

Innovations in artificial intelligence and deep learning are pushing technology closer to being able to perform complex clinical skills, such as diagnosing cancers. Neuropathologist and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute scientist, Dr. Stephen Yip, is at the forefront of developments in this area. He explains how deep learning is being used now and its potential impact in the future.  

An in-home exercise program reduced subsequent falls in high-risk seniors by 36 per cent, according the results of a 12-month clinical trial published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

With the rising popularity of vitamins and supplements in the health product market, it’s important to be aware of their effects. Vancouver Coastal Health pathologists Drs. Morris Pudek and Sophia Wong, who recently published a paper describing the impact of biotin on laboratory test results, emphasize that caution is needed when taking any supplement.

For Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute scientist Heather McKay, it is all about scalability. McKay studies ways to improve senior’s health, mobility and social connectedness through physical activity. But it is one thing to study a small group in a controlled setting; it is quite another to scale-up those results more broadly in the real world. McKay says scalability is a crucial factor in successful research, especially when it comes to changing unhealthy behaviors into healthier ones at the population level.

Around 500 patients across Canada require reconstructive jaw surgery every year, mostly due to oral cancer. The surgery requires a high degree of precision, and in-house software and 3D printing technology could not only improve patient care but save health care dollars, according to research led by Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute physician Dr. Eitan Prisman. 

Cancer researcher Dr. Mads Daugaard knows first-hand how out-of-the-box thinking can lead to major discoveries. The Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute senior scientist was recognized with the St. Baldrick’s Foundation Robert J. Arceci Innovation Award to support his investigations into childhood cancer treatments.

Dr. Patricia Mills, a Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute clinician-researcher, specializes in treating a condition that affects approximately 1 in 3 people who experience a traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI). The condition, called problematic spasticity, is experienced as persistent muscle spasms that can result in a dramatic reduction in quality of life.

“For people with a spinal cord injury, problematic spasticity can be the biggest health challenge that they face.”