A research centre being called the first of its kind in Canada will be opening at the Saint-Justine Hospital this fall.
The new Innovation Centre in Applied Micro-Analytics for Pediatric Medicine, or I-CAMP, will bring engineers, doctors and biomedical researchers together.
The goal: to uncover faster detection and treatment methods for the most common cancers that target children.
Together we will focus on improving methods of detection, discovery of novel biomarkers including therapeutic avenues, as well as attracting other ecosystem players to broaden the pool of expertise for this unique initiative," said Iain Stewart, President of the National Research Council of Canada, which partnered with the hospital to develop I-CAMP. "Our vision is to enable clinicians to test these jointly developed innovations, such as lab-on-a-chip, to improve the health of children."
I-CAMP researchers, which will include postdoctoral fellows and graduate students working at the hospital, will use microscopic machines—a form of nanotechnology—combined with traditional health science to discover new ways to diagnose and treat specific cancers and diseases.
Cancer is the leading cause of death from disease among children in Canada. Leukemia is the most diagnosed cancer among young Canadians.