Brain
Every week, 40 people are newly diagnosed with a brain tumour at The Princess Margaret. Along with symptoms that include confusion, memory loss, difficulty walking, nausea, vision problems, personality changes, and seizures, they’ll also be facing a 23% chance of surviving the next five years.
The Princess Margaret is doing everything possible to better those odds through extensive clinical trials and research at The Gerry & Nancy Pencer Brain Tumor Centre. It’s the largest brain tumour centre in Canada, and one of the largest in the world, in terms of patient visits.
The Pencer Centre was on the frontlines of a groundbreaking discovery in the treatment of the deadliest and most common form of brain cancer, glioblastoma multiforme. Patients who received the chemo drug temozolomide during and after radiation had a 26% survival rate, compared to 8% for those who only had radiation. This improved the odds of being alive 2 years after diagnosis from 1 in 10 to better than 1 in 4. For the first time in 3 decades, there is new hope for brain tumour patients at The Princess Margaret and around the world.
As more promising research continues, The Pencer Centre continues to offer treatment, education and support for brain tumour patients and their families. Patients receive constant support from one team member throughout the course of their treatment, whether it involves surgery, radiation or drug therapy.
This consistency was important to Gerry Pencer, the legendary Canadian entrepreneur who donated $5 million with his wife Nancy to establish The Pencer Centre. The centre opened nine months after his death from glioblastoma multiforme in 1998.
For more information on supporting brain cancer at The Princess Margaret, please contact Andrea Orr at (416) 946-2906 or [email protected]
Breast
The M. Lau Breast Centre at The Princess Margaret is the largest and most comprehensive breast centre in Canada, with more than 19,000 patient visits a year. From screening, diagnosis and treatment through to survivorship, our centre continually strives to set global standards for breast cancer care.
The Centre offers full diagnostic and assessment services, integrated medical, surgical and radiation cancer care, along with counselling and support. The Centre also houses a resource library, two digital mammography machines, operating rooms and post-op recovery rooms, as well as areas for chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
The Princess Margaret has raised the bar on breast cancer diagnosis through the Gattuso Rapid Diagnostic Centre. Typically, patients used to wait weeks or even months to find out if they had breast cancer. The centre cuts the time between first appointment and diagnosis to less than 48 hours and in many cases, less than 8 hours. Patients can have a physical exam, mammogram, ultrasound and biopsy, if needed, and review their tests with a doctor. If tests confirm the presence of cancer, the patient can leave that day with a treatment plan.
Our award-winning QuickStart Radiation Program offers same-day radiation planning for early stage breast cancer. This globally-unique program offers rapid access to radiation by combining medical expertise with advanced technology to streamline scans, treatment planning and delivery of the first treatment, all in one day. QuickStart is now a standard treatment option offered to women with early stage breast cancer.
We are the only centre in Canada to offer radiation treatment during lumpectomy surgery for patients with early stage breast cancer. Complete surgical and radiation treatment can take as little as three hours!
The Familial Breast and Ovarian Cancer Clinic offers services for people at high risk of developing breast cancer. A team of counsellors and cancer specialists provide risk assessment, genetic testing and counselling to help patients choose among their options for risk reduction.
As a centre for both the Ontario Breast Screening Program and the Ontario High Risk Breast Screening Program, The Princess Margaret offers the highest quality mammograms to promote the early detection of breast cancer. Our advanced imaging technology includes breast MRI and breast tomosynthesis, a kind of mammography that produces a 3D image of the breast by using several low-dose x-rays taken at different angles.
Our Breast Restoration team provides comprehensive treatment to post-mastectomy patients from all over Canada. They perform more than 500 procedures a year, and lead innovative clinical trials to develop and test improved restorative techniques, including procedures that initiate reconstruction at the same time a breast is removed. Cancer treatment can have unfortunate disfiguring side effects for some, and the skill and compassion of reconstruction surgeons enable these patients to heal physically and emotionally as they regain their confidence and positive self-image.
Through The Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, led by world-renowned researchers Drs. Tak Mak and Pamela Ohashi, we’re making breakthroughs in the search for new drugs, new surgical techniques, and new radiation therapies. Dr. Normal Boyd has pioneered research in breast density and its impact as a risk factor for breast cancer. Dr. Mak was instrumental in developing a new “sharpshooter” drug that slows the progression of cancer, now in early clinical trials.
For more information on supporting breast cancer at The Princess Margaret, please contact Shannon Stuart at (416) 946-6571 or [email protected].
Endocrine
Endocrine tumours are abnormal growths from hormone-secreting cells and tissues. Endocrine cancer can appear throughout the body, including the thyroid, pituitary gland, pancreas and adrenal glands. The rate of thyroid cancer is increasing and affects mainly young women.
Because the tumours start in glands that produce hormones, the tumour itself can make hormones and cause serious illness. Tumours can be benign or malignant (they spread). Often the distinction between cancerous and non-cancerous can be difficult to determine, even after they’re removed. In some patients, removal of what was thought to be a benign growth may come back as a cancerous recurrence.
The Princess Margaret is world-renowned for its treatment and research into the complexities of endocrine cancers. Our team of medical, radiation and surgical cancer specialists work together to diagnose, plan treatments, and manage a wide range of endocrine cancers.
They draw on cutting-edge technology and treatments that arise out of the research conducted at The Princess Margaret. These studies focus on the underlying genetic causes of endocrine cancers. This will lead to improved diagnostics and the development of new targeted drug therapies for individual patients. Our scientists are also trying to determine if there are genetic risks that run in families and to develop screening tools to support early diagnosis.
For more information on supporting endocrine cancer at The Princess Margaret, please contact Malka Greene at (416) 946-4668 or [email protected].
Gastrointestinal
The Princess Margaret’s Gastrointestinal (GI) group treats patients with some of the most challenging cancers of any site in the body, including the colon, rectum, liver, pancreas, bile ducts, gallbladder, esophagus and stomach.
The Princess Margaret sees the most complex GI cases of any Ontario cancer centre, which require close coordination of care from specialists in medical, surgical, and radiation oncology, along with excellent diagnostic, imaging and pathological expertise.
Many GI cancers are located deep in the body and have complicated symptoms, like pain, weight loss, diarrhea, jaundice and fatigue. Patients can often feel quite well right up until a few months before diagnosis. As a result, by the time they are diagnosed, their cancer is usually well advanced. Survival rates can be among the lowest of any cancer.
The Princess Margaret has the largest pancreatic cancer clinic and the only comprehensive research program in Canada. Through the Wallace McCain Centre for Pancreatic Cancer, the wait time for a patient’s first appointment has been reduced from 3 weeks to 1. The streamlined process enables a patient to be seen by a surgeon, doctor and radiation specialist all on the same day, and leave with a personalized treatment plan. The Princess Margaret is seeking to build on this rapid diagnostic and assessment model to benefit patients with all kinds of GI cancer.
We’ve also made great strides in surgical techniques for abdominal cancers, thanks to advances in imaging technology such as CT and PET scans, as well as MRIs. Because doctors can now determine more precisely if a patient’s tumour is operable or not, more patients are getting the surgery they need. Patients are also able to recover faster, with less pain, thanks to minimally invasive (“keyhole”) surgery that uses tiny incisions.
A third of our patients have colorectal cancer. The Princess Margaret offers them a full range of state-of-the-art surgical services, including precision robotics and minimally invasive techniques.
For more information on supporting Gastrointestinal Cancers at The Princess Margaret, please contact Christy Morrow at (416) 946-2107 or [email protected].
Genitourinary
The Princess Margaret is a world leader in managing cancers of the genitourinary tract, which includes the urinary system and the male reproductive organs. Our Genitourinary (GU) clinic provides personalized care and innovative research for GU tract cancers, including prostate cancer and testes tumours.
Over 23,000 Canadian men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year, approximately 1 in 7, and almost 4,000 men will die from it.
The Princess Margaret is home to one of the largest databases for prostate cancer, which includes information on side effects, outcomes, survival rates, and emotional wellbeing. The data has not only helped doctors improve treatments for their patients, it’s also enabled The Princess Margaret to upgrade our post-treatment support. New projects like our rehab clinic, exercise program and psychological counselling have created one of the world’s most sophisticated survivorship programs.
Our doctors are also doing trailblazing work in developing less invasive therapies, such as cryotherapy (freezing and killing cancer cells), focused thermal lasers (using MRIs to precisely locate tumours and kill them with heat), high-intensity focussed ultrasound and robot-assisted laparoscopic surgery. Techniques such as cone-beam radiation allow surgeons to precisely target tumours, while leaving surrounding tissue undamaged.
Prostate Centre researchers continue to push the envelope. They’re currently using nanotechnology to create substances resembling colourful balloons that are the size of molecules. Their plan is to fill these “nano ninjas” with drugs and send them to attack cancerous cells.
Our scientists are also looking into the genetic markers for prostate cancer – BRCA1 and BRCA2. These mutations increase the risk of developing prostate cancer and could tell us how prostate cancer develops.
The GU BioBank contains hundreds of thousands of blood and urine specimens from patient volunteers. These specimens provide an important pool for our researchers, who are looking for new genetic “biomarkers.” Once identified, these biomarkers can help them to identify patients at risk of GU cancer, determine if cancer is present and how aggressive it is, and predicting the best course of treatment for individual patients.
For more information on supporting genitourinary cancer at The Princess Margaret, please contact Clayton Atto at (416) 946-2128 or [email protected].
Gynecological
As the largest comprehensive gynecologic cancer centre in Canada, Princess Margaret's Gynecologic Site Group sees more than 17,000 women with, or at risk of gynecologic cancers every year. In 2013, there were 5,600 new cases of uterine cancer in Canada, and 890 deaths. Uterine cancer affects mostly post-menopausal women (average age 55-65), and is the 5th most common cancer in women around the world. Because of visible symptoms and warning signs, uterine cancer is usually caught early and solved by minimally invasive surgery.
Incidence rates for cervical cancer have been cut in half, and death rates reduced by 60%, since 1977, largely due to regular Pap test screening. About 1,450 women are diagnosed every year with cervical cancer and about 400 currently die from it. Virtually 100% of cervical cancer is caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). There are now vaccines available that protect against the two types of HPV that cause 70% of cervical cancers. The HPV vaccine has been given millions of times, and its safety and efficacy have been widely and rigorously tested to meet Canadian and international health standards.
The Princess Margaret is home to one of the largest ovarian cancer programs in the world. Roughly 1 in 92 women are at risk of dying from ovarian cancer and 1,700 women will actually die from the disease annually. Ovarian cancer has the 5th highest cancer mortality rate in women, and in 2013 alone, there were 2,600 new cases of ovarian cancer. Women diagnosed with ovarian cancer referred to The Princess Margaret benefit from the knowledge and expertise of globally recognized doctors and scientists who are pushing the boundaries of cancer knowledge and clinical practice each day.
Surgical robots now play an important role in treating gynecological cancers at The Princess Margaret. Our surgeons use the advanced technology to reach tumours with the tiniest of incisions. This minimally invasive surgery lessens pain, allows for faster recovery, and reduces the risk of infection
For more information on supporting gynecological cancer at The Princess Margaret, please contact Shannon Stuart at (416) 946-6571 or [email protected].
Head & Neck Cancers
The Princess Margaret is an international frontrunner in head and neck cancer research and patient care. The Head & Neck team focuses on cancers affecting the mouth, throat, tongue, sinuses, and thyroid.
About 4,300 Canadians are diagnosed with head and neck cancer every year, and 1,700 will die from it. The demographics and causes of this particular cancer have shifted over the past few decades. Historically, head and neck cancer occurred in men, in their 60s and 70s, who were heavy smokers or drinkers.
While men are still four times as likely as women to get head and neck cancer, the average age is dropping to the mid-40s to 50s and mostly among non-smokers and non-drinkers. Plus, a third of recently diagnosed cases are linked to the human papillomavirus (HPV).
Over a five-year study, The Princess Margaret documented that 65% of all patients with throat cancer also had the human papillomavirus (HPV). We were the first centre in Canada to routinely screen newly diagnosed throat cancer patients for HPV.
The special difficulty in treating head and neck cancers is that it can affect a person’s facial structure or crucial actions like speech and swallowing. Whenever possible, our cancer specialists avoid surgery by using advanced radiation techniques.
For those who do require surgery, our doctors have developed a number of advanced reconstructive strategies that allow them to recreate parts of the face, skeleton, larynx and tongue.
For example, instead of removing a patient’s voice box completely, they’ve found a way to remove only part of the voice box and supplement the rest with transplanted tissue. For advanced upper jaw cancers, our surgeons have developed a one-of-a-kind technique to rebuild the patient’s facial skeleton, so the patient can look and function normally. Our Head & Neck team has achieved many innovations for patients through intense collaboration and use of sophisticated technology. We partner internationally with other cancer centres to ensure these breakthroughs rapidly become available to people around the world.
We’re the only non-U.S. cancer research centre to be part of an American-based study doing molecular profiling of head & neck tumours. Our scientists are boosting the search for new genetic markers that will lead to better prevention, screening, diagnosis and treatment.
For more information on supporting head & neck cancers at The Princess Margaret, please contact Clayton Atto at (416) 946-2128 or [email protected].
Leukemia
Leukemia develops when blood stem cells in the bone marrow make abnormal blood cells. These cancerous cells multiply and eventually crowd out normal cells. Almost 6,000 Canadians are diagnosed with leukemia every year, and 2,600 die from it.
The Princess Margaret has a world-class leukemia program that’s one of the largest in North America. Bone marrow and blood transfusions are used for patients receiving high-dose chemotherapy. Stem cells help patients recover from chemo treatment by helping their blood cells to regrow.
Our large patient numbers provide a special opportunity for clinical trials into new and newly purposed drugs – more than 90 trials since 2006. Our pioneering work has led to discoveries that make headlines around the world, such as the study that found a way to prevent resistance to anti-cancer drugs. Using a mouse model, our researchers used an experimental anti-cancer drug that interfered with a specific protein on cancer stem cells to cure a type of leukemia.
The future promise for patients is that working together, doctors and scientists will be able to turn our normal defending cells into “smart cells” capable of killing cancer cells in a patient’s own body. Our researchers are now doing experiments to find the best ways to trigger such cells.
For more information on supporting leukemia at The Princess Margaret, please contact Christina Lebesis at (416) 946-2138 or [email protected].
Myeloma
Myeloma is a blood cancer affecting plasma cells – white blood cells that are a crucial part of the immune system and responsible for the production of antibodies. About 2,500 new cases of multiple myeloma (occurring in more than one place in the body) are diagnosed every year in Canada.
In the past 10 years, new drugs have been extending the survival of patients to an average of five years, but multiple myeloma is still incurable.
The Princess Margaret sees the most patients with this type of cancer in Canada. We were first in the country to perform stem cell transplants, and today we continue to be the nation's largest stem cell transplant program.
We’re also one of the top 5 multiple myeloma research centres in the world. Our investigations into the genetic mutations that cause cancer have led to the development of “sharpshooting” drugs that can zap specific genes and kill cancer cells.
These new “smart drugs” are now being tested in early clinical trials with patients, giving them early access to promising new treatments that are already achieving results. Our goal is to deliver better results with few side effects and longer remissions.
For more information on supporting myeloma at The Princess Margaret, please contact Christina Lebesis at (416) 946-2138 or [email protected].
Lymphoma
Lymphoma develops in the lymphatic system, which is a kind of drainage system that collects excess fluid from all over the body. This clear “lymph” fluid is filtered through the lymph nodes to trap and destroy harmful organisms, before returning to the bloodstream.
The two main types of lymphoma are Hodgkin, one of the most curable forms of cancer, and non-Hodgkin disease, the most prevalent kind of lymphoma.
Every year, doctors at The Princess Margaret see over 500 patients with lymphoma and have been leading the way in stem cell transplantation since the 1980s. Our radiation specialists are known for their innovative use of precise radiation techniques that shrink tumours while sparing normal healthy tissue as much as possible.
Our researchers are also internationally recognized for their studies into new drugs, successful combination of therapies and strategies to reduce side effects for patients. Currently, our scientists are looking into ways to “starve” cancer cells of energy, find genetic markers that signal patients at a high risk of relapse, and discover why lymphoma in some patients is resistant to drugs.
For more information on supporting lymphoma at The Princess Margaret, please contact Christina Lebesis at (416) 946-2138 or [email protected].
Lung
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in Canada and kills more people than breast, colorectal and prostate cancer combined. While lung cancer in men has been steadily decreasing since the ‘80s, it’s still on the rise for women. This is despite a reduction in smoking rates among both women and men. Many of the lung cancers occur in ex-smokers or even never smokers.
Overall, the five-year survival rate for lung cancer remains stubbornly low at 17%. One of the reasons lung cancer is so lethal is that it’s difficult to find at earlier stages. Symptoms often don’t appear until the cancer is advanced, making it one of the most difficult cancers to treat. But when detected early, the cure rate skyrockets to 70-80%.
That’s why The Princess Margaret developed the first comprehensive lung cancer screening program in Canada for current or former smokers aged 50+ in general good health. Of the 5,000 people screened by low-dose CT scanning, 2 out of every 100 had a “silent” lung cancer in early stages that could be cured. Our researchers are on the hunt for even better screening methods, such as genetic markers that may predict a risk or the presence of lung cancer.
The Princess Margaret is a recognized world leader in lung cancer. In everything from basic molecular science to pioneering new ways of diagnosis and treatment, we’re changing the way the international cancer community looks at lung cancer. Some recent advances include:
· • The first trial in 40 years to show a convincing benefit of chemo after surgery for early stage lung cancer (improving cure rate at 5 years by an unprecedented 15%), now a new standard of care around the world.
· • Identifying some gene mutations involved in lung cancer, and then using those markers through genetic “fingerprinting” to predict which patients are most likely to benefit from certain treatments.
· • Developing a process that cuts the time from referral to first consultation in half, then reducing the time from consultation to treatment decisions from 17 to 12 days.
The Princess Margaret has also developed a way to give high-dose, high-precision radiation therapy that can eradicate early-stage lung cancer. That means that only the tumour and the smallest amount of healthy tissue are affected. Minimally invasive, video-assisted or “keyhole” (“VATS”) surgery is also proving effective against early stage tumours, while reducing pain and improving recovery time.
From diagnosis to treatment and beyond, The Princess Margaret constantly strives to push the boundaries of what we know about lung cancer to give our patients personalized care that’s among the best in the world.
For more information on supporting lung cancer at The Princess Margaret, please contact Malka Greene at (416) 946-4668 or [email protected].
Melanoma
More than 5,600 new cases of melanoma (the most dangerous form of skin cancer) are diagnosed in Canada every year. Treatment for melanoma can include a combination of surgery, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and immune therapy medication.
After 30 years of no new advances, a seismic shift in treating melanoma came when a gene defect called B-RAF was found to exist in 50% of patients with melanomas. Oncologists at The Princess Margaret began to work with pathologists to isolate the B-RAF gene in their patients and then used targeted drug therapies to block the mutation and shrink tumours.
Our doctors have also been harnessing the power of the body’s immune system against cancer. The Princess Margaret became the first cancer centre in Canada to offer immune therapy for advanced melanoma in 2012. A world leader in targeted drug therapies, The Princess Margaret has been successfully using new drugs designed to trigger the body’s immune system to find and destroy the melanoma.
The Princess Margaret recently began clinical trials on a revolutionary treatment that uses a type of white blood cell. Called lymphocytes, these cells are generated by the immune system to defend the body against cancer, infections and foreign matter. In promising clinical trials, lymphocytes are removed, boosted in the lab and then reintroduced to the patient so they can attack the tumour and control cancer long-term.
With your support, our researchers can continue to strive for answers on why current treatments only help some patients, and work to develop new treatments that will save lives.
For more information on supporting melanoma at The Princess Margaret, please contact Shannon Stuart at (416) 946-6571 or [email protected].
Mesothelioma
Mesothelioma is an aggressive form of cancer common among construction and industry workers that starts in the lining of the lungs. The vast majority of mesothelioma cases are caused by exposure to asbestos.
The only one of its kind in North America, The Princess Margaret’s Mesothelioma Program offers early detection, rapid assessment and treatment for almost half of all Canadian cases of mesothelioma. The number of new cases is on the rise – more than 500 a year – even though asbestos was banned in most Western countries in the ‘70s and early ‘80s.
No matter how careful trade workers are, it’s extremely difficult for them to completely avoid asbestos, a carcinogen that infiltrates a lot of construction materials and dust, especially in older buildings. When swallowed or inhaled over the long-term, asbestos fibres settle into the lungs and can develop into tumours. Mesothelioma typically appears 20-40 years after exposure, and if untreated, can spread to other organs. This insidious cancer can be difficult to treat because some of the fibres and cancer cells often escape during surgery, causing the cancer to spread.
But if mesothelioma is diagnosed early enough, patients can benefit from a number of treatment options and have a better chance of survival. That’s why The Princess Margaret began an early detection screening program for workers who have been exposed to asbestos. We’re the only facility in the world to use low-dose CT scans to look for early stage mesothelioma, and we’ve already screened over 1,300 people.
When tumours are found, The Princess Margaret offers patients the world’s only “one-stop shop” resource for mesothelioma, with screening, diagnosis and assessment completed in a day.
Because of a unique collaboration between radiation oncologists and surgeons at The Princess Margaret, we were the first in the world to give mesothelioma patients radiation before surgery. This revolutionary approach has more than doubled (from 32% to 72%) the survival rate of patients over four years, compared to surgery first. A shorter course of highly precise radiation targets the tumour and reduces the treatment cycle from five months to one. It also decreases the risk of mesothelioma reoccurring, because the radiation wipes out the cancer’s ability to seed itself elsewhere in the chest or stomach during surgery.
Our researchers continue to investigate promising new treatments for mesothelioma, including new drugs and new combinations of chemotherapy, surgery and radiation; a blood test to detect new tumours or a reoccurrence; and immune therapy, which uses the body’s own immune system to fight cancer.
For more information on supporting mesothelioma at The Princess Margaret, please contact Christina Lebesis at (416) 946-2138 or [email protected].
Sarcoma
A rare and aggressive disease, sarcoma is often called the “forgotten cancer.” Most Canadians say they’ve never heard of sarcoma, even though it claimed the life of Canadian icon Terry Fox.
Sarcoma is a cancer of the bone, muscles, nerves, fat, blood vessels or connective tissue. It can be found anywhere in the body, from arms and legs to internal tissue and even the chest and back. These tumours often appear in younger people, but can affect people of all ages.
The Princess Margaret is considered an international leader in sarcoma research and patient care. Our doctors and scientists are making pivotal contributions that have led to significant improvements in the way sarcoma is managed around the world.
Our surgeons are using sophisticated technology to more precisely remove pelvic tumours. Bone sarcomas in the pelvis are often large and close to major nerves and blood vessels. Plus, surgeons can’t accurately see the extent of the tumour because it’s inside the bone. Using advanced CT and MRI imaging, and a computer program that “paints” the contours of the tumour, they’re able to map out a surgical plan that takes all of the tumour, while sparing as much surrounding normal tissue as possible.
Our sarcoma program treats very rare cancers, like a soft tissue sarcoma called retroperitoneal sarcoma (RPS). The Princess Margaret is the only Canadian centre in an international collaboration of 16 cancer centres looking at ways to better manage this disease. They have created a biobank of tumour samples to help study the genetic underpinnings of soft tissue sarcoma. A database has also been created to track clinical and treatment information to better understand patient outcomes over time.
Researchers and doctors at The Princess Margaret are delving into the roots of sarcoma at the molecular level to identify genetic mutations that cause this type of cancer. Their goal is to deliver personalized cancer medicine that targets these mutations by developing new drugs and other treatments to offer a better quality of life to our patients.
Thanks to advances in research and treatment, today 70% of sarcoma patients with the type of sarcoma that Terry Fox had will survive their disease.
For more information on supporting sarcoma at The Princess Margaret, please contact Malka Greene at (416) 946-4668 or [email protected].
Genitourinary
The Princess Margaret is a world leader in managing cancers of the genitourinary tract, which includes the urinary system and the male reproductive organs. Our Genitourinary (GU) clinic provides personalized care and innovative research for GU tract cancers, including prostate cancer and testes tumours.
Over 23,000 Canadian men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer this year, approximately 1 in 7, and almost 4,000 men will die from it.
The Princess Margaret is home to one of the largest databases for prostate cancer, which includes information on side effects, outcomes, survival rates, and emotional wellbeing. The data has not only helped doctors improve treatments for their patients, it’s also enabled The Princess Margaret to upgrade our post-treatment support. New projects like our rehab clinic, exercise program and psychological counselling have created one of the world’s most sophisticated survivorship programs.
Our doctors are also doing trailblazing work in developing less invasive therapies, such as cryotherapy (freezing and killing cancer cells), focused thermal lasers (using MRIs to precisely locate tumours and kill them with heat), high-intensity focussed ultrasound and robot-assisted laparoscopic surgery. Techniques such as cone-beam radiation allow surgeons to precisely target tumours, while leaving surrounding tissue undamaged.
Prostate Centre researchers continue to push the envelope. They’re currently using nanotechnology to create substances resembling colourful balloons that are the size of molecules. Their plan is to fill these “nano ninjas” with drugs and send them to attack cancerous cells.
Our scientists are also looking into the genetic markers for prostate cancer – BRCA1 and BRCA2. These mutations increase the risk of developing prostate cancer and could tell us how prostate cancer develops.
The GU BioBank contains hundreds of thousands of blood and urine specimens from patient volunteers. These specimens provide an important pool for our researchers, who are looking for new genetic “biomarkers.” Once identified, these biomarkers can help them to identify patients at risk of GU cancer, determine if cancer is present and how aggressive it is, and predicting the best course of treatment for individual patients.
For more information on supporting genitourinary cancer at The Princess Margaret, please contact Clayton Atto at (416) 946-2128 or [email protected].
Ocular
Patients travel from all over Canada to be diagnosed and treated for cancers of the eye at The Princess Margaret. Cancer that starts in the cells of the eye is called primary eye cancer. Secondary eye cancers, which are more common, spread from another part of the body, often the lung or breast. About 355 Canadians are diagnosed with eye cancer every year.
Dr. Brenda Gallie, a Senior Scientist at The Princess Margaret, led an international team that recently discovered a new type of retinoblastoma (cancer in the retina) that affects babies. Her breakthrough work was recognized last year with a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Ophthalmology Society.
The new director of our Ocular Oncology Clinic, Dr. Hatem Krema, is working to broaden the scope of our work to include treatment of all intraocular and extraocular tumours (located both inside and outside the eye).
A new Ocular Oncology Imaging Suite was recently added to the clinic, which offers modern investigative equipment for more accurate imaging of eye tumours. In addition, new projects are underway to improve the patient experience, update staff knowledge and expertise, and enhance The Princess Margaret’s reputation internationally as a referral centre for all eye tumours.
Future focus will be on increasing research capacity, stimulating educational pursuits, and creating a digital database for patient information
For more information on supporting ocular cancer research at The Princess Margaret, please contact Andrea Orr at (416) 946-2906 or [email protected]