GenomeBC

We’re very excited to share that Sally Greenwood has been appointed to the role of Chief Operating Officer at Genome BC, while continuing to lead the communications and societal engagement portfolio in her role as VP, Public Affairs.

This appointment recognizes the tremendous work Sally has done behind the scenes to support teams across the organization, strengthen operations and help move key priorities forward. Her leadership, strategic thinking, collaboration and ability to bring people together have made a lasting impact across Genome BC.

Sally is deeply deserving of this recognition and we’re thrilled to see her contributions reflected in this new role.

Please join us in congratulating Sally on this exciting and well-earned achievement.

What if a vaccine could stop bladder cancer from coming back? 💫

Thirty-seven Canadians are diagnosed with bladder cancer every day and with a recurrence rate of 60–70% it's one of the most relentless and costly cancers to treat. A Genome BC-funded research team is analyzing the bladder cancer genome to identify molecular patterns that help the immune system recognize and attack cancer cells, then combining those findings with AI and Eyam Health's Gemini platform to design prototype vaccines.

Led by Dr. Peter Black (Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia) and Dr. Wilfred Jefferies (Eyam Health), this genomics informed research holds the potential to:
🧬Reduce bladder cancer recurrence rates
🧬Improve long-term patient outcomes
🧬Ease pressure on Canada's healthcare system
🧬Advance BC’s leadership in precision oncology

This project harnesses Eyam Health’s two proprietary platforms: Jennerator, which uses AI to identify the molecular signatures most likely to trigger a powerful immune response, and Gemini, which delivers those targets with sustained immune activation lasting weeks to months, without requiring cold-chain storage.

Learn More: https://www.genomebc.ca/?p=36442

Earlier this week, our Senior Advisor, Interdisciplinary Research and Programs, Anita Charters, moderated a panel at the Annual Health Summit titled “Genetic Privacy & Security: Intersecting Public and Private Information Ecosystems.”

The panel explored the "social life" of genomic data as it travels between public health authorities, private labs and direct-to-consumer apps.

Thank you to our panelists Dr. Samantha Pollard, Nilou Noursadeghi and Dr. Peter Chow-White for exploring how we can balance data sharing for public benefit with responsible governance and highlighting the vital role of patient-oriented research in advancing data practices.

On International Day of Action for Women’s Health, we’re reflecting on the importance of advancing women’s health research through science, innovation and collaboration.
Earlier this year, members of the Genome BC team attended the Women’s Health Research Symposium and the National Women's Health Summit, where researchers, clinicians and innovators came together to explore how discovery science can help improve health outcomes for women.

The conversations reinforced an important reality: women’s health research remains under-studied, under-diagnosed and poorly understood — but genomics has the potential to help close these gaps.

In her article, Advancing Women’s Health Through Genomics: Why Now Is the Time to Act, Dr. Chen Wan, Genome BC’s Director, Research and Innovation, Health, explores why greater investment and attention in this area is urgently needed and how genomics can help drive progress.

Read Dr. Wan’s perspective and learn more about Genome BC’s upcoming women’s health-focused Sector Innovation Program ⬇️

https://lnkd.in/gJi2Yy2k

Illustrator: ILYA ROSLAN

In this article, "'Stored in Canada’ Isn’t Enough: The need for Canadian-controlled digital infrastructure,” published today in Research Money, our Senior Advisor, Policy and Societal Engagement, George Poulakidas, argues that data residency is no longer the key issue for Canada’s health data systems. Instead, the focus is shifting to deeper questions of control, access and who benefits from the value created by health data.

As Canada modernizes its health-data infrastructure, George argues for a sovereignty-aware approach that strengthens domestic capacity, supports innovation and ensures public value remains in Canada.

But how does this look exactly? Read the article to find out: https://statics.teams.cdn.office.net/evergreen-assets/safelinks/2/atp-safelinks.html