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Message
from the Chairs of the CCRA Board of Directors
Elizabeth A. Eisenhauer,
MD, FRCP, is the Research Action Group Chair for the
Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, Director of the
Investigational New Drug Program at the NCIC
Clinical Trials Group, and Senior Scientist &
Professor at Queen’s University in Kingston,
Ontario.
Morag Park,
PhD, is the Scientific Director of the CIHR Institute of Cancer Research,
Director of the Molecular Oncology Group at McGill University Health Centre,
and James McGill Professor at McGill University in Montréal, Quebec.
Ontario.
In October 2009, CCRA
released its third report on cancer research
investment by the government and voluntary sectors
in Canada.
This report is based on an expanded survey of 37
organizations and summarizes their investment in
peer-reviewed cancer research projects in calendar
2007. The report details how $402.4M was invested in terms of research areas and
cancer sites. A special topics report on the
investment in cancer research focused on children
and adolescent cancers is also provided. This is a
timely report given that the number of
childhood/adolescent cancer survivors is growing,
and that many childhood/adolescent cancer survivors
experience serious and long-term health effects as a
consequence of their cancer and/or treatment. Both
reports were made possible through a financial
contribution from Health Canada, through the
Canadian Partnership Against Cancer.
CCRA’s main activities have been, to
date, to function as the Research Action Group of
The Canadian Partnership against Cancer and
recommend investment in two large partnered cancer
research initiatives, which address some of the
urgent needs within the global cancer research
arena. In terms of the first project, CCRA has been
involved in facilitating the creation of a
300,000-person Canadian cancer cohort, based on a
confederate model that builds on five identified
nodes across the country. A unique component will be
an environmental study, built on emerging new
technologies, to assess environmental influences on
cancer and other chronic diseases. The Partnership,
along with the The Tomorrow Project (Alberta), Atlantic Partnership for Tomorrow's Health
(The Atlantic PATH), BC Generations Project, Ontario Health Study, and CARTaGENE (Quebec),
will provide financial support to
facilitate planning and start-up over a five year
period. The ultimate goal will be to link with
similar cohort studies in other countries and
establish an international population health
research laboratory.
In terms of translational research,
CCRA worked through The Partnership to partner with
the Terry Fox Research Institute (TFRI) on an
initiative intended to develop a roadmap for
biomarker development. TFRI was launched in 2007
with new funds raised by The Terry Fox Foundation.
Using a network of four nodes in well-established
cancer research centres in British Columbia,
Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, the objective is to
rapidly move research discoveries into clinical
practice leading to improvements in standard patient
care. The biomarker initiative will focus on studies
of the detection and therapeutic aspects of cancer
control, and projects have already been identified
for lymphoma and leukemia, and breast, ovarian, lung
and prostate cancers.
While many member organizations play
pivotal roles in key international efforts, such as
the Cancer Stem Cell and International Cancer
Genomics Consortiums, there may be future
international partnership opportunities that arise
through CCRA’s membership in the International
Cancer Research Partners, as this group expands its
membership and widens its scope and direction.
In terms of our other major
activity, the Alliance is currently engaged in the
development of a pan-Canadian cancer research
strategy. The proposed pan-Canadian cancer
research strategy will provide a framework to guide
cancer research investment in Canada, highlight
gaps and opportunities for new collaborations, and provide a vision for Canadian
cancer research achievements over the next five years. This
process has, and will continue over the next few
months, to involve consultations with
researchers, research funders, decision-makers,
cancer patients, their families, and other members of the public. We
anticipate release of the strategy in early 2010.
This
page was last edited on
19 October, 2009.
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