Coming Events

Christine Williams, PhD, “Moonshots & Groundshots” at the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, February 25, 2025

Dr. Christine Williams is an immunologist and currently serving as Acting President at the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) and is the Executive Director at the Canadian Pediatric Cancer Consortium.

As part of OICR’s executive team, Dr. Williams develops and implements strategic priorities across the Institute’s translational cancer research programs. She leads engagement and communications strategies with a broad range of provincial, national and international partners. Through the Implementation Science program, she promotes the uptake of evidence-based practice and research into use by policymakers and healthcare providers.

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As the Executive Director of the new Canadian Pediatric Cancer Consortium, she is establishing a multi-stakeholder network to support pediatric cancer research and promote health system change leading to better outcomes and quality of life for all Canadian children with cancer.

Dr. Williams received a degree in Life Sciences from Queen’s University and a PhD in Immunology from the University of Toronto. She received postdoctoral training at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University where she studied the molecular pathways involved in the development of leukemia and lymphoma in children. Prior to her role at OICR, she held leadership positions at the National Cancer Institute of Canada and the Canadian Cancer Society.

She is currently a member of a number of boards and advisory committees, including the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, North York General Hospital, The Canadian Cancer Trials Group and various other research, healthcare and community organizations.

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The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) is a collaborative research institute that conducts and enables high-impact translational cancer research. We help to accelerate the development of discoveries for patients around the world while maximizing the economic benefit of this research for the people of Ontario.
 
OICR strives to turn insights in cancer research into precision medicine innovations that are implemented into Ontario’s health system to transform patient outcomes for the better.
 
In collaboration with our partners in healthcare, research, government and the private sector, we:
  • Conduct cross-disciplinary cancer research in fields such as genomics, immuno-oncology, informatics, drug discovery and molecular pathology
  • Enable research in Ontario and worldwide by building collaborative networks, securely sharing data, and making tools and resources available to the research community
  • Translate our research findings to the clinic by developing clinical guidelines, supporting clinical trials and working with our strategic partner FACIT to advance the commercialization of our innovations and IP.
All our funded research goes through independent peer review and is overseen by external scientific advisory committees.
At OICR, translational research is about facilitating real-world impact. This means ensuring promising cancer research discoveries are developed into new diagnostics, treatments and practices that can help people in Ontario and beyond.
ACCESS is a national research network empowering the Canadian childhood cancer community to transform the health and experiences of children and their families. It is the expert voice of pediatric cancer research and care in Canada.
 
Pediatric cancers are rare diseases and different from adult cancers. And children are not simply small adults. Despite significant advances in pediatric cancer research globally over the past 30 years, challenges in the treatment and care for hard-to-treat pediatric cancers and the long term late-effects of cancer treatments remain.
 
Canada’s collective capacity for world-leading science and clinical programs can provide high-quality, equitable, efficient, and sustainable systems of care for all children with cancer. But only if we work together.
 
ACCESS is integrating the voice of people with lived experience with those of researchers, healthcare providers, industry leaders, and partner organizations who are committed to achieving better health outcomes and quality of life for children with cancer and their families. By doing so, ACCESS is advancing pediatric cancer experience, science and survivorship – and transforming lives.
 
ACCESS Mission Statement

Every child with cancer in Canada will have access to the latest scientific advances, diagnostic tools, innovative therapies and supportive care leading to better outcomes and quality of life.

Presentation - Why does Canada need ACCESS?

 

Join fellow Whiffers on Tuesday, Feb 25th to hear Dr Williams discuss how innovations emerging from new fields of science will transform how cancer is prevented, diagnosed and treated in Canada.
The reception at the RCYC begins at 6:00 pm.

Please note that there is a limit of 72 attendees for this meeting.

 
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