Ottawa Hospital Research Institute

Research News

	Researchers at The Ottawa Hospital awarded $3.9M from BioCanRx to develop new cancer immunotherapies April 9, 2025 - Researchers at The Ottawa Hospital have been awarded $3.9 million from BioCanRx to develop cutting-edge biotherapeutics that harness the immune system to fight cancer.
	Tumour engineering could provide a powerful new approach to make more cancer patients eligible for targeted immunotherapies September 26, 2024 - There are many highly-effective immunotherapies available in the clinic, but few cancer patients are eligible for these treatments because their tumours must have specific targetable proteins. A new tumour engineering approach could help.
	Immunotherapy improves survival with mesothelioma lung cancer January 4, 2024 - An international clinical trial published in The Lancet shows that immunotherapy improves survival in people with an aggressive type of lung cancer called pleural mesothelioma.
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	The Ottawa Hospital, the University of Ottawa, and McMaster University join forces to prepare Canada for future pandemics March 2, 2023 - Building on the knowledge gained over nearly three years of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Ottawa Hospital (TOH), the University of Ottawa and McMaster University are joining forces with partners to create the Canadian Pandemic Preparedness Hub (CP2H).
	Canadian-Led Immunotherapies in Cancer (CLIC) program inspires innovative CAR-T trial in Denmark December 8, 2022 - CAR-T therapy is a groundbreaking cancer treatment that involves genetically engineering a patient’s own immune cells to attack their cancer. While this therapy is commercially available in many countries, cancer researchers are also developing their
	Drilling down to improve CAR T therapy May 4, 2022 - Dr. Dean Fergusson and his team are drilling down into clinical trial data, which is normally reported at an aggregate level, at the individual patient level to get more information about who benefits most from CAR T therapy and under what conditions
	Kiss of sleep: how blood cancer cells put the immune system’s Natural Killer cells to sleep April 13, 2022 - Researchers at The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa have discovered that a kind of kiss between cells, called trogocytosis, plays a key role in the battle between the immune system and blood cancer cells.
	Personalized anti-cancer vaccine shows promise in mice January 28, 2022 - Treatments for cancer are becoming increasingly personalized, not just to a type of cancer, but even to an individual patient. A new study successfully applies this strategy in a new way in mouse models.
	Translational research grant could help to develop new immunotherapies for leukemia April 5, 2021 - While CAR-T and other forms of immunotherapy are providing new hope for people with acute B-cell leukemia (B-ALL), much less progress has been made in treating acute T-cell leukemia (T-ALL).
	Cancer team awarded $5M for cell-based immunotherapy research March 3, 2021 - Researchers at The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa are partnering with colleagues across the country to expand Canada’s capacity to develop new cell-based immunotherapies for cancer with a $5.2 million grant from the Canada Foundation fo
	Protecting cancer patients from COVID-19 July 8, 2020 - In the race to find new ways to prevent and treat COVID-19, Canadian researchers have launched an innovative clinical trial focussed on strengthening the immune system for one of the most vulnerable populations – cancer patients.
	Often-overlooked Natural Killer cells may be key to cancer immunotherapy September 10, 2018 - Immune checkpoint inhibitors are revolutionizing the treatment of cancer, but new research challenges the central dogma of how these drugs work. This research, published in the prestigious Journal of Clinical Investigation, shows for the first time t
	Researchers uncover possible new mechanism to enhance cancer-killing viruses July 11, 2018 - Cancer-killing (oncolytic) viruses have shown promise in the lab and the clinic, but they don’t always work. New research led by Dr. Carolina Ilkow could help change this. While normal cells often lose their first line of antiviral defenses when they
	Sex, viruses and cancer: Erectile dysfunction drugs and flu vaccine may work together to help immune system fight cancer after surgery May 17, 2018 - A new study suggests that a common treatment for erectile dysfunction combined with the flu vaccine may be able to help the immune system mop up cancer cells left behind after surgery. The study, published in OncoImmunology, shows that this unconvent
	Could viruses take cancer immunotherapy to the next level? Study shows viruses and checkpoint inhibitors work together to cure resistant breast cancer in mice January 3, 2018 - Immunotherapy, which helps the body’s immune system attack cancer, has revolutionized treatment for cancers such as melanoma and leukemia. However, many other kinds of cancer remain resistant. A new study led by researchers at The Ottawa Hospital and
	Ottawa researchers to play lead role in new cancer immunotherapy studies February 15, 2017 - BioCanRx funds research into CAR-T and virus-infected cell therapy Researchers from The Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa will play a lead role in cutting-edge research on cancer immunotherapy, thanks to five new peer-reviewed researc
	Virus vs. Prostate Cancer: Canadian Researchers Pioneer Next-generation Therapy -- Prostate Cancer Canada and the Movember Foundation partner to make innovative work possible September 30, 2015 - A multi-disciplinary team of scientists and clinicians led by Dr. John Bell of The Ottawa Hospital is developing a treatment for prostate cancer using viruses that destroy cancer cells and boost the anti-cancer immune response, all the while leaving

Researchers

Name	Scientific appointment	Diseases, conditions and populations of interest	Research and clinical approaches
Ardolino, Michele PhD	Senior Scientist (Cancer Research)	Blood cancer, Brain cancer, Breast cancer, Cancer, Colorectal cancer, Head and neck cancer, Liver cancer, Lung cancer, Ovarian cancer, Pancreatic cancer, Prostate cancer, Skin cancer, Soft tissue sarcoma	Basic research, Cancer immunotherapy, Cell therapy, Clinical research, Disease models, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Model organisms, Molecular and cellular biology, Transgenic/knockout models, Translational research
Atkins, Harold MD, FRCPC	Senior Clinician Investigator (Cancer Research)	Autoimmune disease, Autoimmune diseases of the nervous system, Blood cancer, Cancer, Multiple sclerosis, Myasthenia gravis, Stiff person syndrome	Basic research, Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Cell therapy, Clinical trials, Immunotherapy, Oncolytic viruses, Regenerative medicine, Stem cells, Translational research, Transplantation, Viral therapy
Auer, Rebecca MD, MSc, FRCSC	Senior Scientist (Cancer Research)	Cancer, Colorectal cancer, Ovarian cancer, Pancreatic cancer	Basic research, Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Cell therapy, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Oncolytic viruses, Peri-operative medicine, Quality Improvement, Surgery, Translational research, Viral therapy
Bell, John PhD, FRSC, FCAHS	Senior Scientist (Cancer Research)	Cancer, COVID-19	Basic research, Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Cell therapy, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Oncolytic viruses, Translational research, Viral therapy
Berardi, Philip MD, PhD, FRCPC	Clinician Investigator (Cancer Research)	Aging, Anemia, Bleeding disorders, Blood cancer, Cancer, COVID-19, Health equity, Health in older peoples, Sickle cell anemia, Thalassemia, Thrombosis / thromboembolism	Artificial intelligence and data science, Basic research, Bioinformatics, Biomarkers, Cancer biotherapeutics, Cell therapy, Epigenetics, Gene expression, Genetics, Genomics, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Stem cells, Translational research
Cameron, Bill MD FRCPC FACP FIDSA	Senior Scientist (Inflammation and Chronic Disease)	Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COVID-19, Cystic fibrosis, HIV, Infectious disease, Sexually transmitted infections, Tuberculosis	Clinical research, Epidemiology, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Pharmacology
Cook, David PhD	Scientist (Cancer Research)	Cancer, Ovarian cancer	Artificial intelligence and data science, Basic research, Big data, Bioinformatics, Biomarkers, Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Cell therapy, Drug development, Epigenetics, Gene expression, Genomics, Imaging, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, RNA sequencing, Systems biology, Translational research
Coutu, Daniel PhD	Scientist (Regenerative Medicine)	Aging, Arthritis, Autoimmune disease, Bleeding disorders, Blood cancer, Bone and joint degeneration, Bone and joint injuries, Musculoskeletal conditions, Osteoporosis	Basic research, Bioinformatics, Biomaterials, Cell therapy, Gene expression, Gene therapy, Genetics, Genomics, Imaging, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Proteomics, Regenerative medicine, Stem cells, Surgery, Systems biology, Transgenic/knockout models, Translational research
Cowan, Juthaporn MD, PhD, FRCPC	Associate Scientist (Inflammation and Chronic Disease)	Autoimmune disease, COVID-19, Infectious disease	Immunization, Immunotherapy, Patient engagement
Crawley, Angela Ph.D.	Senior Scientist (Inflammation and Chronic Disease)	Cancer, COVID-19, Hepatitis C, HIV, Infectious disease, Liver cancer, Liver disease	Basic research, Cancer immunotherapy, Clinical research, Disease models, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, RNA sequencing, Translational research
Diallo, Jean-Simon PhD	Senior Scientist (Cancer Research)	Cancer, COVID-19, Infectious disease	Artificial intelligence and data science, Basic research, Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Drug development, Gene therapy, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Oncolytic viruses, Translational research, Viral therapy
Fadda, Giulia MD	Associate Scientist (Neuroscience)	Autoimmune diseases of the nervous system, Multiple sclerosis	Bioinformatics, Biomarkers, Biostatistics, Clinical research, Imaging, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Patient engagement, Translational research
Ilkow, Carolina PhD	Senior Scientist (Cancer Research)	Breast cancer, COVID-19, Ovarian cancer, Pancreatic cancer	Basic research, Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Extracellular vesicles / exosomes, Gene therapy, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Oncolytic viruses, Translational research, Viral therapy
Kekre, Natasha BSc, MD, MPH, FRCPC	Scientist (Cancer Research)	Blood cancer, Cancer	Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Cell therapy, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Epidemiology, Immunotherapy, Patient engagement, Translational research, Transplantation
Nessim, Carolyn MD, MSc, FRCSC, FACS	Clinician Investigator (Cancer Research)	Cancer, Colorectal cancer, Gastric cancer, Gastrointestinal disease, Gastrointestinal stromal tumours (GIST), Soft tissue sarcoma, Skin cancer	Biomarkers, Clinical trials, Gene expression, Immunotherapy, Surgery, Translational research, Viral therapy, Clinical research, Immunotherapy
Quizi, Jennifer PhD	Investigator (Cancer Research)	Cancer, Infectious disease	Cancer biotherapeutics, Cancer immunotherapy, Cell therapy, Drug development, Gene therapy, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Oncolytic viruses, Translational research, Viral therapy
Ramsay, Timothy PhD	Senior Scientist (Methodological and Implementation Research)	Addiction, Alzheimer's, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Anxiety, Ataxia, Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Autism, Bipolar, Brain and neuromuscular disease, Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Colorectal cancer, Concussion, Cystic fibrosis, Dementia, Depression, First Nations, Inuit and Métis Health, HIV, Immigrant and refugee health, Influenza, Kidney disease, Lung cancer, Macular degeneration, Men's health, Multiple sclerosis, Muscular dystrophy, Myasthenia gravis, Obesity, Ovarian cancer, Parkinson's, Pulmonary hypertension, Septic shock, Spinal cord injury	Artificial intelligence and data science, Behaviour, Biomaterials, Biostatistics, Cell therapy, Clinical decision rules, Clinical research, Clinical trials, Cohort studies, Critical care, Drug development, Emergency medicine, Epidemiology, Health professional behaviour change, Health promotion, Health research methods, Health services research, Health technology, Immunization, Immunotherapy, Palliative care, Patient decision aids, Pharmacology, Pharmacy, Prevention, Psychology, Psychometrics, Public health, Qualitative methods, Quality Improvement, Regenerative medicine, Rehabilitation, Risk assessment, Shared decision making, Surgery, Surveys, Systematic reviews, Transfusions, Translational research, Transplantation, Viral therapy
Vanderhyden, Barbara PhD	Senior Scientist (Cancer Research)	Cancer, Infertility, Ovarian cancer, Women's health	Basic research, Bioinformatics, Biomarkers, Cancer biotherapeutics, Disease models, Drug development, Epigenetics, Gene expression, Genomics, Immunotherapy, Model organisms, Molecular and cellular biology, Oncolytic viruses, Stem cells, Transgenic/knockout models, Translational research, Viral therapy
Devasia, Anup MD	Clinician Investigator (Cancer Research)	Blood cancer	Immunotherapy
Litvinov, Ivan M.D, Ph.D., FRCPC	Affiliate Investigator (Cancer Research)	Skin cancer	Immunotherapy, Molecular and cellular biology, Stem cells, Translational research, Viral therapy
Ungerechts, Guy MD, PhD	Affiliate Investigator (Cancer Research)	Cancer	Immunotherapy, Translational research, Viral therapy

Related Resources

Cancer immunotherapy research at The Ottawa Hospital