SickKids staff recognized for outstanding achievements

Congratulations to the following SickKids staff members who have been recognized by the health-care and science communities for their outstanding achievements and groundbreaking work.

Ron Laxer honoured with Distinguished Rheumatologist Award

Dr. Ron Laxer, Staff Rheumatologist, has been recognized for his outstanding contribution to rheumatology in Canada by the Canadian Rheumatology Association (CRA). Laxer was awarded the CRA’s Distinguished Rheumatologist Award for his work that has significantly furthered rheumatology in Canada and that has benefited patients with rheumatic disorders considerably.

“I am honoured and humbled to receive this award, which has previously been given to the giants of Canadian rheumatology,” said Laxer during his award presentation. “Rheumatology has been very good to me, and in response, I have tried my very best to be good to rheumatology. This award from the CRA provides validity for me that my efforts have been successful.”

Laxer is known for his clinical and teaching excellence and the compassionate care he provides his patients. His clinical and research interests include localized scleroderma – a condition in which the patient’s skin becomes unusually thick and hard, auto-inflammatory diseases and the management of juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Uri Tabori receives Bernard and Francine Dorval Prize

Congratulations to Dr. Uri Tabori, Staff Physician, Haematology/Oncology and Senior Scientist, Genetics and Genome Biology on receiving the Bernard and Francine Dorval Prize from the Canadian Cancer Society. Tabori was recognized for his research that has advanced the scientific community’s understanding of childhood brain tumours, specifically children with cancer predisposition syndromes.

Tabori is a world leader in paediatric oncology research and practice. In particular, he is known for his demonstration of the role of maintaining the ends of chromosomes (telomeres) in the biology of childhood brain tumours. He has also helped explain the molecular basis of paediatric low-grade gliomas, the most common brain tumour that occurs in children.

Read more about Tabori’s work and the Bernard and Francine Dorval Prize on the Canadian Cancer Society’s website.

Translating genomics research into a novel cancer immunotherapy

A $4.2 million federal investment for four new projects that will use genomic technologies to drive innovation and commercialization across diverse sectors was announced on March 10 by Kirsty Duncan, Minister of Science.

A collaboration between Drs. Jayne Danska, Senior Scientist, SickKids, Jean Wang, Affiliate Scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, their teams and Trillium Therapeutics Inc. (TTI), a biotech company in Toronto, is leading a project to realize the commercial potential of a novel therapeutic that fights acute myeloid leukemia (AML).

AML kills 96 per cent of people aged 65 or older and two-thirds of younger patients within five years of diagnosis. With previous support from Genome Canada and TTI, the team, led by Wang, developed SIRPαFc, a novel therapeutic that blocks a signal preventing the immune system from attacking leukemia stem cells. The group is now working together to complete formal preclinical studies and will carry out clinical trials aimed at demonstrating the safety and efficacy of this promising discovery. The entire project is receiving $3.4 million funding from Genome Canada.

Visit the Genome Canada website for more information.

SickKids named one of Forbes 2016 Canada’s Best Employers

SickKids has been named one of Canada’s Best Employers for 2016! The list, which consists of the top 250 employers across 25 industries in Canada, was created based on feedback from more than 8,000 Canadian workers, according to Forbes. These individuals were asked to determine, on a scale of zero to 10, how likely they were to recommend their employer to someone else. Further, employees were asked how they felt about other employers in their industry.