$1M from Cole Foundation for leukemia researchers

Montreal, QC – For the second year in a row, the Cole Foundation is awarding $1-million in fellowships to the most promising researchers studying pediatric leukemia and related diseases. The fellowships will enable these young scientists from the Universit de Montral, McGill University and the Institut Armand-Frappier to pursue their research.

“With two major faculties of medicine and some of the best biomedical research centres in the country, Montreal is home to an amazing concentration of research talent,” says Barry Cole, president of the Cole Foundation. ” By backing the most promising talents, we hope to encourage their development.”

The Cole Foundation research fellowship program offers $1-million over two years to be divided among 21 clinical researchers, post-doctoral researchers and students in doctoral and master’s programs. Of the 21 recipients, 15 are associated with various research laboratories at the Universit de Montral, including the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC), the Sainte-Justine Research Centre, and the Hpital Maisonneuve-Rosemont. Five fellowships will be distributed to students and researchers working at McGill University and its associated hospitals and research units, including the Royal Victoria Hospital and the Lady Davis Research Centre at the Jewish General Hospital. One fellowship is awarded to a student at the INRS-Institut Armand-Frappier.

The foundation was created in 1980 by Montreal businessman John N (Jack) Cole to support Montreal hospitals and research in pediatric oncology and hematology. After his only child, Penny, died of leukemia, he established the Penny Cole Laboratory at the Montreal Children’s Hospital. The purpose of the lab was to foster research into the causes and potential cures for leukemia and other related diseases affecting children. In 1997, the Cole Foundation also endowed the Jack Cole Chair of Pediatric Oncology and Hematology at McGill University.