Research milestones from the 1960s

Advances in bone marrow transplantation

Dr Jim Till and Dr Ernest McCulloch in Toronto, Ontario discovered that all blood cells come from “blood-forming stem cells” in the bone marrow. This finding led directly to the development of bone marrow transplantation in the treatment of many cancers. When they began their work more than 25 years ago, survival rates for childhood leukemia were 50%. Today, survival rates are more than 80%. Drs Till and McCulloch were inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame in 2004 and in 2005 received both the Lasker Award and the Centenary Medal from the Royal Society of Canada.

Chemotherapy combinations and planning radiation therapy

Dr Robert Bruce at the Ontario Cancer Institute/Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto discovered how various drugs work to kill cancer cells. The design of current chemotherapy treatment for cancer is based on this knowledge.

Dr Jack Cunningham, also at the Ontario Cancer Institute/Princess Margaret Hospital, created the first computer program to accurately predict the dosage of radiation aimed at a tumour. Before this research was carried out, radiation oncologists had to rely on intuition and crude calculations to determine how much radiation cancer patients were given. Dr Cunningham’s methods set the standard for computer-based radiation treatment planning that exists today.

Blood tests for colorectal cancer

In 1968, Dr Phil Gold and Dr Sam Freedman in Montreal, Quebec discovered a substance called CEA or carcinoembryonic antigen. CEA is a tumour marker found in the blood of many people with colorectal cancer, and it can be used to indicate the presence, spread or recurrence of cancer. This early work led to a whole new field of cancer research around the world – blood testing to detect cancers and also to monitor patients’ progress during treatment.

Last modified on: 10 December 2009