May 2017

WCRG Matters
A newsletter to keep members and partners informed.
WCRG 2016 Impact Report Released

WCRG has released its 2016 Impact Report showcasing progress over the past year. It  highlights the different ways that cancer research activities are growing in our region, community support, outreach and education opportunities and the work of the WCRG student volunteers. 

Thank you for contributing to WCRG's success. We look forward to continuing this momentum in 2017.
 
Partnering for a Cancer Smart Community

Windsor Cancer Centre Foundation (WCCF) and WCRG have partnered t
o build a Cancer Smart Education Program that translates and connects cancer research within the Windsor-Essex community.

We will be sharing more details on the specific initiatives in the months to come. Thank you WCCF for your continued commitment to supporting innovative cancer research and education in our own community.

 
Official Launch of Nucleus
On May 23rd Caesars Windsor kicked off WCRG's Nucleus initiative with a generous $20,000 donation. Windsor has pockets of facilities and equipment housed in university researchers' labs, in clinical trials, pathology and diagnostic imaging departments at local hospitals and with industrial partners locations. 'Nucleus' brings these spaces together by creating a virtual inventory that links these facilities under one umbrella. This enahnces collaboration, reduces duplication, increases usage and allows for strategic planning and purchasing of needed equipment. Find our more about Nucleus.

Read the coverage in the Windsor Star
Public Outreach and Education
May was a busy month for WCRG! Thanks to our student volunteers, we shared information on cancer research at the University of Windsor's Research Showcase and Science Rendezvous. New activities were developed by our student volunteers and the public loved them! Check out some great pictures from the event.

Get Connected at the Next Cancer Research Think Tank
On April 7th, WCRG held it's 5th Think Tank with a record attendance of almost 40 people! The objective of the Think Tank series is to bring people together and share research ideas in an effort to build collaborative projects and increase the number of cancer research grant submissions. Summaries of the past sessions can be found on  our website.

Everyone is welcome! 


WHEN:
Friday July 14, 2017 from 1:30-4:30pm 
WHERE: Auditorium, Windsor Regional Hospital    

RSVP to Karen Metcalfe at karenmet@uwindsor.ca  
Member Accomplishments
Letting us know about  the accomplishments of you and your colleagues allows us to  celebrate the great work being done in our region and further  build collaborations. Here are a few of your latest successes.

Publications
 
Blaszak, M., El-Masri, M., Hirmiz, K., Mathews, J., Omar, A., Elfiki, T., Gupta, R., Hamm, C., Kanjeekal, S., Kay, A., Kulkarni, S., Ghafoor, A. (2017). Survival of patients with pancreatic cancer treated with varied modalities: A single-centre study. Molecular and Clinical Epidemiology. 6: 583-588.

Jarry, J.L. Chang, F, & La Civita, L. (in press). Ashtanga Yoga for Psychological Wellbeing: Initial Effectiveness study. Mindfulness.

Sameni, M., Cavallo-Medved, D., Franco, O.E., Chalasani, A., Ji, K., Aggarwal, N., Anbalagan, A., Chen, X., Mattingly, R.R., Hayward, S.W., and Sloane, B.F. (2017) . Pathomimetic avatars reveal divergent roles of microenvironment in invasive transition of ductal carcinoma in situ. Breast Cancer Res. 19:56-74.


Awards


Dora Cavallo-Medved, UWSA Excellence in Teaching Award


WCRG Student Volunteers Receiving Awards


Rachel Andrews, Best Presentation in Cell Biology at Ontario Biology Day for her entry, entitled "The role of cortex (CORT) in sex determination of Drosophila."

Ashley Howard, Gail Rosenblum Memorial Scholarship in Breast Cancer Research

Alexander Rodzinka, Research Studentship, Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada. Project: Targeting Unique Aspects of Cell Cycle Signalling as Therapeutic Direction for Glioblastoma Multiforme

UWindsor, Faculty of Science Student Awards

  • Ingrid Qemo, Ambassador Award
  • Melanie Grondin, Impact Award
  • John Kelly, Above and Beyond Award (Undergrad)
  • Abed Alkhateeb, Above and Beyond Award (Grad)
  • Youshaa El-Abed, Leadership Award
  • Rachel Andrews, TA Excellence Award
  
Be sure to submit any news items as they happen and we will include them. Pictures and links to details are welcome!
 
Remember, we can't share it if we don't know it!
 
Funding Opportunities

 

Go to  our website to see a complete list of funding opportunities for cancer researchers. We invite you to use the resource as a tool to plan your grant submissions over the next year. Please contact us if we can help facilitate collaborations or provide feedback to strengthen submissions.