DaCosta Lab
Dr. DaCosta and other scientists discuss the opportunities for scientific breakthrough at PMCC as a result of the historic donation of $50 million in honour of the late Canadian philanthropist, Allan Slaight. Allan Slaight The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation announced a historic $50 million gift for cancer research in honour of the late Allan Slaight, a Canadian broadcast mogul, radio…
read moreWe would like to welcome a new research technician to our lab: Dr. Emily Chen, MD, Research Technician II Emily was previously part of our lab from 2009-2016, during which she helped to pioneer our first animal window chamber models to study the tumor microenvironment. In re-joining our lab, Emily will be responsible for conducting animal surgeries involving the use…
read moreWe would like to welcome a new research technician to our lab: Michael Edson, MSc., Research Technician III The DaCosta lab is thrilled to have Michael Edson join us in 2022. Michael is an experienced and talented researcher who will help to manage all wet lab operations and preclinical projects. Michael earned a MSc in Pathobiology from the University of…
read moreAfter a lengthy journey, our paper “Intraoperative fluorescence imaging with aminolevulinic acid detects grossly occult breast cancer: a phase II randomized controlled trial” has been published in Breast Cancer Research as an open access article. The journal is widely read globally by general surgeons and breast cancer clinicians, so we are pleased it will receive broad clinical exposure and impact specifically…
read moreWe would like to welcome 5 high school and undergraduate summer students who will be joining the lab this year: Ben Daynes (Aurora High School, Grade 12) Project: Developing health monitoring spectrometer with built-in light source for detection of urine biomarkers. Rachel Jacobson (Wilfred Laurier University, 1st year) Project: Investigating immunotherapy in acute myelogenous leukemia. Christos Kapetanios (Queen’s University, 2nd…
read moreThe St. Michael’s Hospital Research Student Association’s annual Life Sciences Career Symposium aims to connect trainees to distinguished experts in the Life Sciences. This year’s Symposium will take place on July 9th, 2021, featuring keynote speakers Dr. Samantha Yammine and Dr. Ralph DaCosta. Dr.DaCosta will headline the Biotechnology and Innovation session (1-3PM), sharing his experiences on his journey to becoming…
read moreThe annual MBP Symposium (which combines the James Lepock Memorial (JLM) Symposium and the annual MBP Alumni Night) is an important MBP event that provides an opportunity for MBP students to present their research in a conference setting. The MBP Symposium fosters scientific debate across disciplines, streams and institutes. MBP students have the opportunity to showcase their research in the…
read moreNiloufar Khosravi, a DaCosta Lab PhD student alumna was recently featured on U of T’s Faculty of Dentistry site. In the Article, “U of T Researchers Map Regenerative Cells in Implant Wounds” Niloufar summarized her work recently published in Biomaterials.
read moreIn 2009, the first patient was enrolled at Princess Margaret Cancer Center in this Phase II randomized controlled trial led by Dr. DaCosta in collaboration with surgeons Drs. Wey Leong and Alexandra Easson and pathologist Dr. Susan Done. The goal was to evaluate the clinical safety, feasibility and diagnostic performance of the PRODIGI handheld fluorescence imaging device combined with 5-ALA…
read moreToday marks an important milestone for SBI Canada’s Phase III RCT entitled “Fluorescence Imaging of Carcinoma During Breast Conserving Surgery”, as the first patient surgery was performed successfully at Orlando Health in Orlando, Florida. (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04815083) This trial utilizes the tumor selectivity of 5-ALA combined with the handheld Eagle fluorescence imaging device to enable surgeons to conduct improved…
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