In this episode of ‘Behind the Breakthrough’ Princess Margaret Cancer Centre scientist Dr. Michael Hoffman explains how he leverages the power and speed of computers to understand the origins of cancer. He says cancer is a disease of the DNA –the genetic code that determines our individual characteristics. Essentially, our DNA acts as a program telling our cells what to do. In the case of cancer the wrong program gets run and cells divide in an unrestricted manner. The goal of Dr. Hoffman’s lab is to determine if there is a way of predicting when the wrong program gets run –before it ever happens.
We also learn that from age 4 Dr. Hoffman was in awe of the magic of computers, and how he turned his love for computers into a career in the emerging field of computational biology. He also speaks to the critical importance of training the next generation of cancer researchers, and how he views Twitter as a virtual meeting place for scientific exchange
Check out season 3 of Your Complex Brain
Dr. Gelareh Zadeh’s pioneering research in brain tumours
Dr. Howard Abrams champions innovative housing solution to help seniors age at home
Sleep disruption research by UHN’s Dr. Tatyana Mollayeva shows the impact on recovery from brain injury, cognitive reaction
Hunting the origin cell of Head and Neck Squamous Carcinoma
Leveraging the human microbiome to be a therapeutic agent
UHN’s Dr. Cristina Nostro pioneers stem cell research to cure Diabetes
Identifying novel acute pain treatments following major surgery
Pioneering UHN research targets long-term complications of liver transplantation
Dr. Andrew Boozary prescribes housing to curb homelessness
Checkout Season 2 of Your Complex Brain
Dr. Shaf Keshavjee has transformed lung transplant worldwide with his medical discoveries
Pioneering the use of virtual reality devices to restore vision
Dr. Rama Khokha on her breakthrough to map the biology of pancreatic cancer
Promising new treatment for Parkinson’s Disease
Dr. Eleanor Fish pioneers research using Interferons to treat virus outbreaks
Dr. Jonathan Irish pioneers Augmented Reality in Cancer Surgery
Pioneering a Diagnosis for CTE
A new toolkit for LTC to help care of residents during an outbreak
Dr.Gordon Keller on his ground breaking research to advance stem cell based therapies
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