UBC Reports | Vol. 47 | No. 12 | August 9, 2001

Centre to train young cancer researchers

Facility aimed at attracting the best and brightest

Graduate students and post-doctoral fellows interested in prostate cancer research now have greater opportunity, thanks to a three-year $600,000 grant for a new training and education centre.

Awarded by the Canadian Prostate Cancer Research Initiative, the grant will help create a comprehensive training program at the Prostate Centre at Vancouver General Hospital (VGH). It will be one of only two such centres in Canada.

"This funding is a testament to the excellence of prostate research in B.C.," says dean of Medicine Dr. John Cairns. "Our young researchers will benefit enormously from the opportunity of working with world-class investigators."

Over the next three years, the centre will train five clinical research fellows, three post-doctoral fellows, three graduate students and will provide funding for four medical student summer fellowships. Funding for the new centre will be matched by various sources and by the Vancouver Hospital and Health Sciences Centre, creating a total of $1.2 million in support.

"Many of our best and brightest move to the U.S. because of the perceived superiority of facilities there," says Martin Gleave, a professor of Surgery who will co-direct the new training centre with Dr. Michael Cox, an assistant professor of Surgery. "This centre is a significant step in encouraging scientists to develop their education and careers in Canada."

About 17,000 new cases of prostate cancer are diagnosed in Canada annually, making it the most frequently diagnosed cancer in Canadian men and the second leading cause of male cancer death after lung cancer.

The Prostate Centre at VGH investigates new procedures and technologies aimed at prevention, diagnosis, treatment and education.

More information

www.prostatecentre.com