Research chair in molecular pathology for Kingston hospital

Ottawa, ON – Kingston General Hospital (KGH) has appointed Dr Jeremy Squire as research chair in molecular pathology in the department of pathology and molecular medicine – the hospital’s first-ever research chair.

Dr Squire, considered one of the foremost cytogeneticists in the world, has spent more than 25 years as a research scientist and, most recently, has held senior positions with Princess Margaret Hospital and the University Health Network in Toronto. As a cytogeneticist, he looks for genetic abnormalities that might help uncover the onset, cause and progression of cancer as well the most appropriate and effective forms of treatment or therapy. Currently, he is focused on research involving prostate cancer and osteosarcoma. These projects are funded by the Canadian Cancer Society.

As research chair, he will continue his research while fostering and developing interdisciplinary research collaborations at KGH and across Kingston’s academic health sciences centre, affiliated with Queen’s University.

“Close interactions between basic scientists and clinicians from various disciplines such as pathology, oncology and genetics help create a very dynamic environment,” he says. “By bringing these multidisciplinary teams together, we can apply our research discoveries directly to patients, where it will have the greatest impact and opportunity for further advances.”

He will also serve as director of translational laboratory research with the National Cancer Institute of Canada’s clinical trials group based at Queen’s University’s Cancer Research Institute. In this role, he will facilitate all research projects across the country as well as help lead the establishment of future strategic directions related to translational research – the application of basic research in a clinical setting. He will work closely with Dr Janet Dancey, who recently joined NCIC CTG as director of translational clinical research through a collaboration with the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research. Together, they will promote and support taking research findings from the bench to the bedside and back.

“Drs Squire and Dancey bring great strengths and expertise to our group,” says Dr Ralph Meyer, director of the NCIC CTG. “We look forward to their efforts to lead clinical trials that are national and international in scope and result in better outcomes for cancer patients.”