Canadian Cancer Research Alliance announces award winners

CCRA has announce the recipients of the 2017 awards: former CCTG Director,  Dr. Elizabeth Eisenhauer (Queen's University) will receive the Exceptional Leadership in Cancer Research award, Dr. John Bell (University of Ottawa and The Ottawa Hospital) and Dr. Marco Marra (The University of British Columbia and BC Cancer Agency) will receive the Outstanding Achievements in Cancer Research award, Dr. Eduardo Franco (McGill University) will receive the Distinguished Service to Cancer Research award, and Dr. Michael A.S. Jewett (University of Toronto and Princess Margaret Cancer Centre) and Ms. Judy Needham (Canadian Cancer Trials Group and Canadian Cancer Clinical Trials Network) will receive the Exceptional Leadership in Patient Involvement in Cancer award.

Judy Needham - Chair of the Canadian Cancer Trials Group Lay Representative Committee

Former cancer patient, Judy Needham and Chair of the Canadian Cancer Trials Group Lay Representative Committee, has been named as the recipient of the Exceptional Leadership in Patient Involvement in Cancer Research. A breast cancer survivor, Judy is passionately committed to improving outcomes for individuals with cancer through the direct engagement of patients in the development of research clinical trial questions and protocols.

Dr. Elizabeth Eisenhauer 

Former CCTG Director, Dr. Eisenhauer is renowned for her research in ovarian cancer, malignant melanoma, and malignant brain tumours has been recognized for exceptional leadership in cancer research. Dr. Eisenhauer was instrumental in creating the Investigational New Drug (IND) Program for the Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCTG). Under her directorship, the IND program offered an opportunity for clinical investigators and patients to obtain new cancer drugs and contribute to their evaluation and development. During her tenure, which ended in 2012, Dr. Eisenhauer presided over 200 phase I-III clinical trials involving more than 5,500 patients and more than 100 new cancer-fighting drugs. Many of these drugs led to new international standards of cancer treatments.

The awards will be presented at the 2017 Canadian Cancer Research Conference, which will be held from November 5 to 7, 2017 in Vancouver, British Columbia.