Tomohiro Aoki, PhD

Clinician Scientist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Tomohiro Aoki is a clinician scientist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and an assistant professor at the University of Toronto. Throughout my clinical career as a hematologist, I have treated numerous patients with lymphoid cancers and have witnessed many suffer from progressive or refractory disease. These experiences ignited a strong desire to pursue translational research aimed at improving patient survival through the development of more effective therapies.

Dr. Aoki was named a Lymphoma Scientific Research Mentoring Program (LSRMP) Scholar in 2021 and has been an active member of the Lymphoma Research Foundation community ever since. In fact, he is the first person to receive all three of the Foundation's major research grants, including an LSRMP grant, a Postdoctoral Fellowship Grant, and a Career Development Award (CDA).

As a CDA recipient, he looks forward to giving back to the Foundation's community and supporting other aspiring lymphoma scholars. "I aim to be actively involved in mentoring activities for the next generation of scientists and physicians," he says.

"I have treated numerous patients diagnosed with cancers, including lymphoid cancers, as a physician and witnessed many of my patients suffering from progressive/refractory diseases," says Dr. Aoki. "From this experience, I felt a strong desire to pursue translational research to improve patient survival by developing more effective therapies."

Looking ahead to the future, Dr. Aoki is optimistic that advancements in immunotherapy will continue to improve outcomes for lymphoma patients, and he looks forward to contributing to the research that drives this progress. "I would like to continue innovative research that leads to clinical trials and contributes to improving clinical outcomes of lymphoid cancer patients," he says.

Sita Bhella, MD, MSc (HPE), FRCPC

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Sita Bhella completed her medical school training at University of Western Ontario. She completed internal medicine and hematology residency at the University of Toronto, and then went on to do a Leukemia and Allogeneic Bone Marrow Transplant Fellowship at Princess Margaret Cancer Center in Toronto.

She completed a Master’s in Education, with a focus in Health Professionals Education, at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education. Dr. Bhella has a strong interest in quality improvement and innovation and has completed several courses in the area. From 2015-2019, Dr. Bhella was an assistant professor at Queen’s University, where she was the Autologous Stem Cell Transplant Medical Director. She was engaged and involved in medical education as well as quality improvement in the complex malignant hematology program. Dr. Bhella joined Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in 2019, as an assistant professor. She is the medical director of the Autologous Stem Cell Transplant Program and the deputy quality director of the Blood and Marrow Transplant- Immune Effector Cell Therapy program at Princess Margaret. 

Duke Boampong RPh., Pharm D., BSc.

Systemic Therapy Pharmacist

After graduating from the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy with a Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 2015, Duke worked in community pharmacy for the next 4 years before joining the Princess Margaret Outpatient Pharmacy (PMOP) team in 2019, focusing on providing pharmaceutical care to outpatients receiving oral/injectable oncology therapy. He subsequently transitioned into the role of the Multiple Myeloma (MM) ambulatory clinic pharmacist in 2023 where he worked with a multi-disciplinary team to manage MM patients. In April 2025, Duke joined the Systemic Pharmacy Ambulatory Team at Princess Margaret where he covers the systemic therapy unit.

Steven Chan, MD, PhD

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; University of Toronto

Dr. Steven Chan is a Senior Scientist and Staff Physician at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto. He obtained his M.D. and Ph.D. in Immunology from Stanford University, where he also completed his residency in Internal Medicine, fellowship training in Adult Hematology, and postdoctoral research. Dr. Chan established his independent research program at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in 2015. His laboratory is focused on the biology of acute myeloid leukemia and clonal hematopoiesis, with an emphasis on developing novel therapeutic strategies to target malignant and pre-malignant hematopoietic stem cells.

Christine Chen, MHPE, MD, FRCPC

Clinician Investigator, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
Cancer Clinical Research Unit (CCRU), Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Christine Chen is an Associate Professor with the University of Toronto and Head of the Autologous Stem Cell Transplant and Clinical Immune Effector Cell (IEC) Programs at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre at the University Health Network in Toronto, Canada. Princess Margaret Cancer Centre is the largest tertiary care center for cancer in Canada. Dr.Chen is a clinical investigator with a focus on novel approaches, in particular cell-based therapies, for the management of multiple myeloma and related mature B-cell disorders such as chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Dr. Chen underwent her internal medicine training at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver and hematology residency training at McMaster University in Hamilton. Upon completing a transplantation clinical research fellowship at the Princess Margaret, she joined the faculty of the Department of Medical Oncology and Hematology and subsequently obtained her Masters in Education from the Ontario Institute of Studies in Education at U of T. She therefore also takes an active role in medical education, previously acting as the U of T Adult Hematology Training Program Director.

Michael Crump, MD, FRCPC

Clinician Investigator, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
Cancer Clinical Research Unit (CCRU), Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Michael Crumpobtained his M.D. from the University of Toronto in 1984 and completed postgraduate training in Internal Medicine and Hematology at the University of Toronto. He completed fellowships in Medical Oncology and autologous stem cell transplantation at U of T and at Duke University in North Carolina.

Dr. Crump is currently Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto and attending physician in the Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology at the Princess Margaret Hospital, University Health Network. He has served as Clinical Director of the Autologous Blood and Marrow Transplant Service and was the Lymphoma Site Leader at PMH for longer than anyone cares to remember. He had the very good fortune to be serve as co-chair of Canadian Cancer Trials Group Hematology Committee and Lymphoma Working Group Chair from 2005 to 2018.

Dr. Crump’s current research interests include clinical and translational research in lymphoma, with a focus on development of novel therapies, as well as late effects of treatment. He has been the principal investigator for numerous clinical trials in lymphoma and has authored and co-authored more than 200 peer-reviewed publications.

Corey Cutler, MD, MPH, FRCP(C)

Harvard Medical School; Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

Dr. Corey Cutler is the Director of the Stem Cell Transplantation Program at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.   

A lifelong Habs fan, Dr. Cutler graduated from McGill University’s Faculty of Medicine, completed a residency in Internal Medicine at the McGill University Health Science Center, and completed fellowship training in hematology, medical oncology, and stem cell transplantation at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.  Dr. Cutler earned an MPH degree at the Harvard School of Public Health.  

Dr. Cutler’s research is in the prevention and treatment of acute and chronic graft-vs.-host disease. Dr. Cutler also studies the role and timing of transplantation for the myelodysplastic syndromes and is a contributing author on more than 300 peer-reviewed publications.  

Dr. Cutler is the Immediate Past-President of the American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy.

Kalique Dzidah, MN, RN

Clinical Coordinator in the Leukemia Program at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Kalique Dzidah, MN, RN, is a Clinical Coordinator in the Leukemia Program at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. He began his nursing career at Princess Margaret in 2023 as a Registered Nurse on the Malignant Hematology Day Unit, providing comprehensive care to patients with acute and chronic hematologic malignancies. In his current role, Kalique supports care delivery across the leukemia program through Shared Care coordination, program development, and enhancing patient and caregiver education. Prior to joining Princess Margaret, Kalique gained experience in both adult and pediatric hematology/oncology, including outpatient pediatric oncology at Children’s Hospital, London Health Sciences Centre, and the Inpatient Hematology/Oncology Unit at The Hospital for Sick Children. He also served as a clinical instructor at Western University.

His clinical interests focus on providing effective education for newly diagnosed patients and their families, promoting shared communication and coordinated care throughout the leukemia trajectory, optimizing transitional care from pediatric to adult services, and supporting early preparation for allogeneic stem cell transplantation. Kalique holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (2020) and a Master of Nursing (2025) from Western University and is certified in Chemotherapy and Biotherapy through the de Souza Institute.

Inna Gong, MD, PhD

Hematologist, Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Department of Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Inna Gong, MD, PhD, is a Hematologist in the Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario.

She recently completed a Lymphoma Fellowship, which included a combined clinical and post-doctoral program focused on advanced therapies for lymphoid malignancies at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. She participated in both the Eliot Philipson Clinician Scientist Training Program and the Clinical Investigator Program at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Gong holds a PhD in Clinical Pharmacology from Western University and earned her MD from the University of Toronto. She subsequently completed her Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada certification in Internal Medicine and Hematology.

Her research focuses on characterizing immuno-metabolomic variations in patients with lymphoid malignancies and identifying novel immune-based biomarkers to predict therapeutic response.

Jillian Gunther, MD, PhD

MD Anderson Cancer Center

Dr. Jillian Gunther received her MD, PhD at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Dr. Gunther received her residency training at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center before becoming a full time faculty in the Hematology Section of Radiation Oncology in 2017. Her primary clinical goal is patient care with an emphasis on maintaining and improving cure rate in patients with lymphoma while decreasing the short and long term side effects of treatment. She is extensively involved in clinical trials to investigate multiple strategies to deliver better treatment options for lymphoma patients with the goal of minimizing long term side effects.

Vikas Gupta, MD, FRCP, FRCPath

Dr. Gupta is multidisciplinary clinical lead of the Leukemia Program at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, and Director of the Elizabeth and Tony Comper MPN program. He holds the Barbara Baker Chair in Leukemia and Related Disorders at the University Health network. His clinical and research activities are focused on developing novel transplant and non-transplant-based treatment strategies for patients with myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). He is the founding member and past president of the Canadian MPN Group. The MPN program at the Princess Margaret acts as a national resource for the care of complex patients with MPN. The MPN program offers short and long-term skills building opportunities for fellowship training, training of community hematologists/oncologists and other health care providers.

David Hodgson MD, MPH, FRCPC

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; University of Toronto; International Lymphoma Radiation Oncology Group (ILROG); Children’s Oncology Group; US Childhood Cancer Survivor Study

Dr. David Hodgson is a Professor and vice-Chair for research in the Department of Radiation Oncology, University of Toronto.

In addition to practicing radiation oncology at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Dr. Hodgson is a founding member of the International Lymphoma Radiation Oncology Group (ILROG), serves on the Hodgkin Lymphoma Steering Committee of the Children’s Oncology Group and the Scientific Advisory Committee of the US Childhood Cancer Survivor Study. His research is primarily focused on improving the treatment of pediatric and young adult patients, specifically by better understanding the long-term late effects of treatment and how they relate to optimally managing contemporary patients.

Richard Hoppe, MD, FACR, FASTRO, FARS, FASCO

Stanford University;National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN); International Lymphoma Radiation Oncology Group (ILROG); Global nLPHL One Working Group (GLOW)

Dr. Richard Hoppe is the Henry S. Kaplan–Harry Lebeson Professor of Cancer Biology in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Stanford University and a former 19-year department chair. A graduate of Cornell University and Cornell University Medical College, he is an internationally recognized expert in Hodgkin lymphoma, lymphomas, radiation immunosuppression, and late effects, with more than 300 research articles and 100 book chapters.

He serves on the NCCN Hodgkin, T-Cell, and Cutaneous Lymphoma Guidelines Committees; the Steering Committee of ILROG; and the Executive Committee of GLOW. His past leadership roles include President and Board Chair of ASTRO, Trustee of the ABR, Chancellor of the ACR, membership on the NIH/NCI Board of Scientific Counselors, and service on the Board of Stanford Hospital and Clinics.

Dr. Hoppe’s honors include the Gold Medals of ASTRO, ACR, and ARS; the Karl Musshoff Prize; the NCCN Rodger Winn Award; and multiple distinguished lectureships worldwide. He has also received major teaching awards and is an Honorary Professor at Shantou University Medical College.

Brandon Imber, MD, MA

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK)

Dr. Brandon Imber is a radiation oncologist who specializes in treating people with blood cancers — including lymphoma, multiple myeloma, and leukemia — as well as tumors affecting the brain and central nervous system. He cares for patients in Manhattan and through Memorial Sloan Kettering’s Regional Care Network on Long Island, proudly serving the communities where he grew up.

After earning his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in chemistry from Harvard University, Dr. Imber received his medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco, and completed his residency and a clinical research fellowship in lymphoma radiation oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering.

Dr. Imber’s research focuses on improving outcomes and reducing side effects for blood and brain cancers, including studies combining radiation with novel therapies such as CAR T cell treatments and evaluating advanced radiation techniques like stereotactic radiosurgery. He is dedicated to compassionate, collaborative, and personalized care for every patient.

Christopher Kelsey, MD

Christopher Kelsey, MD, is a Professor of Radiation Oncology at Duke University Medical Center with a clinical and research focus on hematologic malignancies. He serves as the department’s Vice Chair of Clinical Research and has several national responsibilities, including membership on the NCI Myeloma Steering Committee and Vice Chair of the NCCN Hodgkin Lymphoma Panel.

Dennis Kim MD, FRCPC

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; University of Toronto

Dr. Dennis Kim, Head of the Malignant Hematology Program for the Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. Dr. Dennis Kim is a Malignant Hematologist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and a Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. Dr. Kim obtained his PhD in Hematology in 2004 from the Kyungpook National University School of Medicine, South Korea. Dr. Kim has over 300+ publications including multiple landmark papers published in Blood, Journal of Clinical Oncology, Leukemia, Haematologica etc., as well as numerous published abstracts and book chapters. He has 3 major subjects of research: 1) genomics in leukemia including chronic and acute myeloid leukemia, 2) genomic-based leukemia monitoring in leukemia/hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT), 3) post-transplant relapse and its mechanism, and 4) clinical trial development in chronic myeloid leukemia (CML).

Robert Kridel, MD, MPH, PhD

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; University of Toronto

Dr. Robert Kridel is an Assistant Professor at the University of Toronto and a Staff Physician at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto, Canada. He earned his medical degree from the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium and his PhD in pathology and laboratory medicine from The University of British Columbia.

Dr. Kridel’s research focuses on understanding how follicular lymphoma (FL) develops and evolves across different patient groups using genomic profiling of tumor samples. His goal is to identify unique molecular vulnerabilities that can be targeted with novel therapies.

He is inspired by his patients and the rapid progress in lymphoma research, particularly the emergence of targeted and immune-based treatments that may one day replace chemotherapy. Dr. Kridel is dedicated to advancing personalized approaches that tailor therapy to the unique characteristics of each patient’s lymphoma.

Vishal Kukreti, MD, FRCPC

Medical Oncologist
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre
University Health Network
Assistant Professor
Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology
Department of Medicine
Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Vishal Kukreti is an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto within the Quality and Innovation stream. He is a Malignant Hematologist with a focus in Multiple Myeloma, Lymphoma and Autotrasplant in the Department of Medical Oncology and Hematology at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. He has completed his medical degree at the University of Calgary and subsequently training in both Internal Medicine and Hematology. He has subsequently done a Masters from the Institute in Medical Sciences with a focus on Quality and Patient Safety. His research interests are in Quality, Patient Safety and Innovation within the fields of Hematology and Oncology with a focus on Implementation, health systems strategy and design, and use of technology. Currently, he is also working for the province at Ontario Health (Cancer Care Ontario) as the Clinical Lead, Health Technology and Information Management.

Rajat Kumar, MBBS, MD, MSc, FRCPC

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; University of Toronto

Dr Rajat Kumar is a Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto and a Malignant Hematologist at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. He works in the Allogeneic Blood and Marrow Transplant (AlloBMT) program. His research focus is on (a) Frailty and Transplants in the Elderly (b) Transplants and Gene therapy for hemoglobinopathies and (c) Aplastic anemia. He earned his medical degree and internal medicine specialization from Delhi University, India and Hematology training at Guy’s Hospital, London, UK. He was a Professor at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, where he had set up a BMT unit, prior to relocating to Canada. He was previously the Head of Malignant Hematology at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. He is currently co-chair of the Hemoglobinopathy Working Committee at Cell Therapy Transplant Canada (CTTC).

John Kuruvilla, MD, FRCPC

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; University of Toronto; Canadian Cancer Trials Group (CCTG); Lymphoma Canada

Guido Lancman, MD, MSc

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; University of Toronto; Canadian Myeloma Research Group

Dr. Guido Lancman is an active staff member within the Lymphoma, Myeloma, and Transplant Program at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. He is a clinician-investigator with a clinical focus on plasma cell dyscrasias and a research interest in optimizing the efficacy and safety of novel therapies for multiple myeloma, with a particular emphasis on immunotherapies.

He is actively involved in the development of multiple myeloma clinical trials through the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and the Canadian Myeloma Research Group, and serves as site principal investigator for several large multi-centre trials.

Jessica Lois, MN, Nurse Practitioner

Autologous Stem Cell Transplant & IEC Therapy; Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Jessica Lois is a Nurse Practitioner in the Autologous Transplant and Cell Therapy Program at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre. She began her nursing career in 2016, and spent eight years working in medical-surgical oncology. She completed her Master of Nursing and Nurse Practitioner certification at the University of Toronto in 2023, and has been working at Princess Margaret for the past three years.

Clinical interests include the management of acute and late-onset CART-related toxicities, as well as the implementation and evaluation of outpatient CAR-T therapy through an NP-led model of care.

Tak Mak, PhD, FAIO

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network

Tak W. Mak is internationally known for his work on the genetics and molecular biology of cancer and the immune system. He has been a major figure in the fields of immunology and molecular and cellular biology for almost 40 years, and is a world leader in basic and translational research into the genetics of immunity and cancer. In 1984, he led the group that cloned the gene encoding a chain of the human T cell receptor. This discovery laid the ground work for our understanding of much of T cell biology and heralded the CAR-T technologies now approved for the treatment of leukemias and lymphomas. Dr. Mak’s lab was also a pioneer in the genetic modification of mouse strains (“knockout mice”) to identify factors associated with susceptibility to immune disorders or various cancers. The Mak team used these mutant animals to elucidate the functions of numerous molecules involved in immune responses, programmed cell death, and tumorigenesis, including the important tumour suppressors p53 and PTEN, and the breast cancer-related genes BRCA1 and BRCA2. Notably, in 1995, his group used mutant mice to show that CTLA4 is a negative regulator of T cell activation, paving the way for the development of T cell checkpoint inhibitor regulators as immunotherapeutic agents. Dr. Mak’s laboratory continues to develop novel approaches for designing and producing TCRs that are specific for antigens appearing on the surfaces of cancer cells. In a different vein of investigation, his team recently showed that the brain communicates with the immune system via T and B cells producing acetylcholine, a finding with implications for future treatments of cancer and autoimmune or neurodegenerative diseases. The Mak group continues to uncover immune cell subsets that can synthesize this prototypical neurotransmitter, and is delving into the novel functions of this molecule outside neurotransmission.

Dawn Maze, MD

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto; Department of Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Dawn Maze is a clinician investigator at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto.

She is a member of the Leukemia Site Group and the Myeloproliferative Neoplasms (MPN) Program and has a clinical research interest in myeloid malignancies. Her primary research focus is in MPN, particularly in risk stratification and management approaches early in the disease course and in the adolescent/young adult population. She is particularly interested in optimizing pregnancy outcomes in this population. She is also actively involved in clinical trials and projects aiming to refine risk stratification in acute myeloid leukemia.

Dr. Maze is an active member of the Canadian MPN Group. She is the Medical Director for the Malignant Hematology Day Unit at Princess Margaret and the Program Director for the Leukemia Fellowship Program.

Ur Metser, MD, FRCPC

Site Director, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre; Division Head, Molecular Imaging

Dr. Ur Metser is the Division Head of Molecular Imaging at the Joint Department of Medical Imaging (UHN, Sinai Health and Women’s College Hospital), Site Director of Medical Imaging at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and holds the position of Professor of Radiology, Department of Medical Imaging at the University of Toronto. He also chairs the Ontario Provincial Positron Emission Tomography Steering Committee at Cancer Care Ontario, responsible for the evidence-based introduction of PET in Ontario. He graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at the Technion (Haifa) and completed his residency training at the Sourasky Medical Center (affiliate of Tel Aviv University) and fellowship programs in abdominal imaging at the University of Toronto, and PET imaging at McMaster University.

After serving as staff radiologist at the Departments of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine in Tel-Aviv, he joined the Joint Department of Medical Imaging in the Divisions of Abdominal Imaging and Molecular Imaging. He is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians (Canada) and an active member in multiple international professional societies including the Radiological Society of North America, and Society of Nuclear Medicine, amongst others. Dr. Metser has published over 150 manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals, as well as multiple review articles, book chapters and practice guidelines. He is also a reviewer for a few of the field’s leading medical journals and is on the editorial board of Journal of Computed Axial Tomography.

George Mikhaeel

Consultant Clinical Oncologist

Guy's Cancer Centre
Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

George Mikhaeel is Professor of Radiation Oncology at King’s College London University and Consultant Clinical Oncologist at Guy’s & St Thomas’ Cancer Centre, where he specialises in the treatment of lymphomas. His academic interest is focused on imaging, advanced radiotherapy techniques and use of RT with CAR-T.

Professor Mikhaeel is a founding member of the International Lymphoma Radiation Oncology Group (ILROG) and a member of its steering committee. He chairs the UK Haematology Radiotherapy Group (UK-HRG). He is co-author of several international guidelines in lymphoma and has lectured in more than 18 countries. He previously chaired the haematology track for the American Society of Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) annual meeting scientific committee and is currently the chair of ASTRO education committee haematology track.

Sarah Milgrom, MD

Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology

Sarah Milgrom, MD, is an Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology. She completed her residency training at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and was on the faculty at MD Anderson Cancer Center, before returning to her hometown of Denver to join the faculty at the University of Colorado. She specializes in the treatment of pediatric and hematologic malignancies.

Ivan Pasic, Hon BSc, PhD, MD, FRCPC

Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto and a staff hematologist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Ivan Pasic, MD, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Toronto and a staff hematologist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, where he specializes in allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation. Since 2019, Dr. Pasic has demonstrated exceptional leadership in research and clinical innovation. He serves as Co-Principal Investigator on a multi-year Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)–funded trial (2025–2028) evaluating a comprehensive rehabilitation program for allogeneic transplant survivors. He is also the Principal Investigator of a multi-center project implementing remote patient monitoring for transplant recipients, supported by the Cancer Research Society and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Canada. In addition, Dr. Pasic participates in collaborative networks, serving as a member of the U.S.-based Blood and Marrow Transplant Clinical Trials Network (BMT CTN) and co-chair of the national Cell Therapy Transplant Canada (CTTC) Registry committee.

Dr. Pasic has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications, including serving as senior responsible author on studies in leading transplant journals. His research spans translational science and clinical innovation in hematopoietic cell transplantation – from pioneering reduced-toxicity conditioning regimens to investigating advanced therapies and prognostic biomarkers for graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). He was principal author of a study demonstrating excellent outcomes with a treosulfan-based reduced-toxicity conditioning regimen, work that directly informed practice and policy, leading to the inclusion of treosulfan as a publicly funded conditioning option across Canada – a development that has advanced the national standard of care for transplant patients.

Equally committed to education and mentorship, Dr. Pasic served as Interim Fellowship Director of the Allogeneic Bone Marrow Transplant program in 2024–2025, supervising and teaching medical students, residents, and clinical fellows in the program. He continues to mentor trainees at all levels and contributes to curriculum development and training initiatives.

Rosemary Pivovarov, RN

Clinical Coordinator - Leukemia Program
Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Rosemary Pivovarov began her nursing career at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in 2008 and has extensive experience in malignant hematology and oncology. She has worked within Malignant Hematology in diverse clinical roles, including the Nursing Resource Unit and the Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplant team, developing strong expertise in complex leukemia and transplant care. She currently serves as a Clinical Coordinator in the Leukemia Program, where she supports care coordination, program development, and patient navigation across care settings.

In 2022, Rosemary joined Hospice Vaughan as a Clinical Resource Nurse, contributing to quality improvement initiatives, policy development, and organizational readiness for Hospice Palliative Care Organization (HPCO) accreditation, while maintaining a casual clinical role with the Allogeneic Transplant team at Princess Margaret.

Rosemary holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Seneca College/York University and is CNA Oncology Certified, with additional certifications in Coronary Care I and II, Wound Care, and Chemotherapy & Biotherapy. She is passionate about helping patient’s access high-quality care closer to home and advancing education to support patients, families, and healthcare providers across the cancer care continuum.

Doris Ponce

Director of the GVHD Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) and co-Chair of the Center for Hematologic Malignancies Research Council

Dr. Doris Ponce is a physician-scientist with a career focused on translational research. She is a hematologist/oncologist with adult BMT training and holds a master’s degree in clinical trial design in oncology. Dr. Ponce serves as Director of the GVHD Program at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) and co-Chair of the Center for Hematologic Malignancies Research Council. She leads the institutional Adult multidisciplinary GVHD clinic, oversees the research portfolio in adult GVHD, and serves as PI on multiple institutional and national studies. Her research is supported by multiple sources, including federal funding, industry, and institutional grants. She serves as Chair of the Toxicity and Supportive Care Committee at BMT CTN. Dr. Ponce participates in lectures and educational activities across Europe and Latin America and recently chaired the GVHD Symposium for the region. She is also a standing reviewer for the Immunology of Transplantation, Alloimmunity (ITA) study section at the NHLBI, as well as for other foundations and institutional programs.

Mitchell Sabloff, MSc, MDCM, FRCPC

Dr. Sabloff is the Head of the Ottawa Hospital Leukemia Program and the Co-Director of the Ottawa Hospital Hematology BioBank. He is an Associate Professor of Medicine at the University of Ottawa, a member of the Blood and Marrow Transplant Program at the Ottawa Hospital and a Clinical Investigator at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. His research is focused on studying patients with refractory acute myeloid leukemia through clinical trials, translational studies and work with several cooperative groups. Locally, Dr. Sabloff, in collaboration with scientists at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, has helped to uncover mechanisms of and potential therapies for refractory acute myeloid leukemia and their team continues to develop these studies supported by funding from the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Department of Medicine of the Ottawa Hospital

Anastasia Tikhonova

Scientist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Tikhonova is a Scientist at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto. Dr. Tikhonova is a recipient of an Investigator Award from the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) to support her research program on dissecting and targeting the tumor microenvironment and contributes to OICR’s Acute Leukemia Translational Research Initiative. Among other honours, Dr. Tikhonova is also a recipient of the Gilead Research Scholar Award and the American Society of Hematology Scholar Award. She is a Founding member and a Co-chair of the Gender Equity Committee at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre.

Dr. Anastasia Tikhonova completed her dissertation research in the laboratory of Dr. Alfred Singer at the National Cancer Institute, as part of the NIH-University of Pennsylvania Graduate Partnership in Immunology (2007-2011). There, she became interested in how microenvironmental factors dictate cell fate choices. Dr. Tikhonova continued her training in the laboratory of Dr. Iannis Aifantis (New York University Medical School), where she identified niche factors that govern hematopoietic stem cell differentiation and leukemia progression (2012-2019).

Suzanne Trudel, MD PFCPC

Hematologist, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, University Health Network
Associate Professor, Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology, Department of Medicine and Department of Medical Biophysics, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto

Dr. Trudel received her MD degree from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto and subsequently completed subspecialty training in Hematology at the University of Toronto affiliated hospitals. This was followed by a research fellowship at Weill Medical College of Cornell in New York City. Dr. Trudel returned to Toronto as a consultant in the department of Medical Oncology and Hematology at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and is currently appointed as Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of Toronto. Dr. Trudel is also a Faculty Member of the Department of Medical Biophysics and Scientist at Ontario Cancer Institute.

Dr. Trudel is an active member of several professional organizations. For the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC), Dr. Trudel has previously served as a member of the Steering Committee. She is a member of the Myeloma Canada advisory board and the Subcommittee on Corrlative Sciences for National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group. For the American Society of Hematology, Dr Trudel has formerly served as a member of the Ad Hoc Scientific Committee on Plasma Cell Biology and has previously been the receiptant of an ASH Scolar Award.

An active researcher, Dr. Trudel has been a principal investigator on several industry sponsored and investigator initiated clinical trials for relapsed multiple myeloma. Her research focus has been in the areas of drug development and precision medicine for multiple myeloma.

Abi Vijenthira, MD, SM, FRCPC

Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Dr. Abi Vijenthira is a hematology/oncology senior resident (PGY-6) at the University Health Network. She received her MD from the University of Ottawa and completed her hematology/oncology fellowship at the University of Toronto.

Her research focuses on improving outcomes for older patients with lymphoma, particularly those with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), the most common and aggressive type of blood cancer in Canada. Through her LRF research project, Dr. Vijenthira is studying how frailty — a syndrome of decreased physiologic reserves and increased vulnerability — affects survival in older adults with DLBCL, and whether it remains a predictor of outcomes even after adjusting for other prognostic factors.

Dr. Vijenthira is passionate about clinical research aimed at enhancing patient experience, advancing care delivery, and improving treatment effectiveness for people with lymphoma.