Dr. Laszlo Radvanyi
President and Scientific Director, Ontario Institute for Cancer Research
The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) is a leader in driving innovative, collaborative cancer research across the province and around the world.
The Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) is a leader in driving innovative, collaborative cancer research across the province and around the world. The organization is building on that foundation with a strategy that focuses on developing new research tools, diagnostics, and therapies to detect cancer earlier and treat it sooner and more effectively before it spreads throughout the body.
“One in two people are going to be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. And with an aging population, the cancer problem will only continue to get worse. By dealing with cancer as early as possible and proactively managing it, we can increase survival rates and decrease cancer’s burden on the economy and the health care system,” says Dr. Laszlo Radvanyi, President and Scientific Director of OICR since 2018.
Born and raised in Toronto, Dr. Radvanyi was previously a researcher and professor at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. He was also the Senior Vice President at EMD Serono and founding Chief Scientific Officer of Iovance Therapeutics. This extensive experience in both academic and industry settings makes him the ideal person to lead OICR’s strategy.
Pandemic raises new cancer challenges
OICR is focusing on using imaging, clinical trials, genomics, and proteomics to treat cancer before it spreads to other parts of the body. The organization is also building its footprint in drug discovery and using big data, artificial intelligence, and analytics to develop personalized cancer treatments.
Dr. Radvanyi says that OICR’s strategy is even more important due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as delays and reductions in screening and therapy will lead to a large influx of cancer cases after the pandemic.
“We’re preparing Ontario and Canada for the future of cancer,” he says. “By focusing on detecting cancer as early as possible, treating it better at earlier stages, and developing translational research programs to better target the disease, cancer patients will have a better quality of life, more people will survive cancer, and overall we can build a healthier society with all the benefits that go along with it.”
