New Investigator Clinical Trials Course

August 19-21, 2026
Donald Gordon Hotel & Conference Centre
Kingston, Ontario

Educating new Canadian investigators in clinical trial conduct

The biennial New Investigator Clinical Trials Course (NICTC) is an important component of the Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCTG) mandate to provide and facilitate investigator education and training. It is a 2.5 day course designed to educate new investigators from across the country about the essentials of clinical trial conduct in the Canadian research environment.

This year marks the tenth biennial offering of the course, which was established in 2007.

What to expect

Using lecture and interactive workshop formats, this course will provide an overview of clinical trial design and conduct for investigators in the field of cancer medicine. Topics will include the fundamentals of phase I-III clinical trial design, biostatistics in clinical trials, correlative biology, quality of life and economic evaluation in the research setting. Practical aspects of clinical trial conduct will also be addressed including how to set up a clinical trials unit, understanding and complying with national and international regulatory standards, contract negotiation, and career planning for the clinical trialist.

2026 Course Application and Eligibility

Participants must be fellows or junior faculty members in their first five years of staff appointment in medical, hematologic, radiation and surgical oncology programs from across Canada.

The Call for Applications is sent to the Canadian Cancer Trials Group Disease Site Committee Chairs / Co-Chairs, Directors of Training Programs in the oncology disciplines across Canada, as well as the professional associations of each subspecialty (Canadian Association of Medical Oncologists, Canadian Association of Radiation Oncologists, Canadian Oncology Societies).

Applicants are asked to provide a current curriculum vitae and their research interests as they relate to clinical trials. The selection process will be based on the need for broad representation of the different subspecialties, and geographical distribution from across Canada. Please note that applications from previous course attendees will not be accepted.

Successful applicants will receive funding support from the Canadian Cancer Trials Group for travel and accommodation. Course material including faculty biographies, presentations, and session bibliographies will be made available to course participants on the Canadian Cancer Trials Group website.

For more information please contact: meetings@ctg.queensu.ca.

Application and CV submission deadline June 26th or until course is full.

2026 Canadian Cancer Trials Group NICTC Meeting Supporters

Comments from 2024 Course Attendees

"I would suggest having this course offered/or be part of curriculum in Canadian Medical Oncology residency training program."

"A wonderful course and very glad it was in person as it was much easier to stay engaged. Also, I found that the networking was very beneficial."

"The course was well organized and brought important topics for us, young investigators."

"An excellent keynote talk, fantastic ideas presented about how to really involve patients into clinical trial design and planning."

"Extremely beneficial, learned a lot, great advice from mentors, and very inspiring."

Past Course Information - 2022

Comments from 2022 Course Attendees

"This was a great course. The information provided throughout the course is paramount for future involvement and collaboration with CCTG. "

"CCTG couldn’t have made it easier for me to attend. Thank you to all who helped coordinate this."

"Thank you for inviting me to participate in the course and my only regret is that I cannot take it again. "

"The whole idea of the program and the way it has been put forward is highly commendable."

"Well organized meeting that fills a gap in many training programs and provides a foundation of basic knowledge to the next generation of clinical trials. "

Past Course Information - 2019

Comments from 2019 Course Attendees

Love the enthusiasm of leaders, speakers and organizers
Very informative course
Great workshops
Will recommend to other future applicants
Overall great experience

Past Course Information - 2017

Comments from 2017 Course Attendees

Thank you for an excellent educational experience
Well organized, fantastic course.
Thank you, very inspiring and practical.
Great Course! So delighted to have the opportunity to come.
Great overview/introduction to clinical trials and correlative studies. Workshops useful in learning more about particular areas of interest.

Past Course Information - 2015

Comments from 2015 Course Attendees

Great course lots of high yield topics.
This course was amazing, informative and inspiring, thank you!
Fantastic speakers and topics. A wonderful opportunity for Young Investigators.
I highly recommend this course for all New Investigators.
Great job folks! Keep it up. This was enough to trigger my brain cells for a long time.

Past Course Information - 2013

Comments from 2013 Course Attendees

The Canadian Cancer Trials Group provided a valuable course for fellows like myself at an early stage of subspeciality training. I plan on disseminating what i learned here to my fellow colleagues. Thank you for all your hard work in organizing a great educational course!
Thank you for this opportunity. Truly a wonderful learning experience. Congratulations to the organizing committee and all the great speakers who offered their time and expertise. Highly recommended!
This was a great course and i would recommenced to every New/Young Investigator.
Great course, well prepared and instructive!
This is a brilliant advocacy of the Canadian Cancer Trials Group which is a very good opportunity for us fellows to learn what goes on before a clinical trial gets to the clinics.
I really enjoyed the course. Great topics, great set-up and very informative. All the faculty was well informed and motivated which motivates me to further undertake clinical trials.