CENTRE FOR IMAGING TECHNOLOGY COMMERCIALIZATION RECEIVES OICR FUNDING
Dual-site Centre supports Canadian Imaging Researchers

London and Toronto (April 23, 2012, 10:00 a.m.) – Dr. Calvin Stiller, chair of the board of directors of the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) today announced OICR is awarding $4 million over four years to the Centre for Imaging Technology Commercialization (CImTeC), which is hosted by Sunnybrook Research Institute in Toronto, and Western University in London. The award will enable CImTeC to support researchers as well as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) translate groundbreaking developments in medical imaging and digital pathology into new clinical tools for cancer diagnosis and treatment.

OICR is supporting CimTeC as one of the initiatives in their Imaging Translation Program, which is accelerating the development of imaging tools and techniques for earlier detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The program, which is a key component of OICR’s strategic plan, ensures discoveries in the laboratory are used in a clinical setting as quickly as possible.

“We’re building on Ontario’s acknowledged strength in medical imaging,” states Dr. Aaron Fenster, CImTeC’s Director and Acting CEO, and a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair. “CImTeC will help to capture these exciting innovations and deliver them to the patient bedside, where we will all see the value of this important work. These funds will help us make this happen.”

“The benefits to health care are obvious: finding cancer earlier and treating it more effectively, which reduces both the human and health care costs of this disease. At the same time, we’re helping to maximize the return on research investment, which will mean increased economic growth for Ontario and Canada,” says Dr. Martin Yaffe, CImTeC’s Associate Centre Director and Tory Family Chair in Cancer Research. Dr.Yaffe is also a Senior Scientist in Imaging Research at Sunnybrook Research Institute and a Professor in the departments of Medical Biophysics and Medical Imaging at the University of Toronto.

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About CImTeC
CImTeC works with researchers and SMEs in medical imaging and digital pathology to enable and accelerate translation of developments and innovations for commercial and clinical use. This will lead to improved understanding, diagnosis and treatment of disease. The Centre will provide researchers and SMEs with critically needed business expertise, technical capabilities, links to clinicians and infrastructure to assist them in becoming internationally competitive. CImTeC is funded by the Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) through its Centre of Excellence for Commercialization and Research (CERC) program. CImTeC is also supported by the (OICR and hosted by Sunnybrook Research Institute in Toronto and Western University in London.

Contacts:
Laurie Bursch
Communications Officer Centre for Imaging Technology Commercialization (CImTeC)
laurie.bursch@cimtec-canada.ca
519-661-2111 ext. 24294

Natalie Chung-Sayers
Communications Advisor
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
416-480-4040