World-leading research & programs
The Princess Margaret is proud to be a world leader in the areas of: cancer stem cell research, image-guided therapeutics and patient survivorship program development.Princess Margaret offers the full spectrum of research: discovery, translational and clinical. Each one contributes to our unique advances and deeper scientific understanding of the disease, allowing for the delivery of more effective therapies and practices to our patients and patients worldwide.
Each year, there are 1000+ new peer-reviewed publications from our faculty contributing to the global effort to understand the disease and offer better treatments for patients. The Princess Margaret is ranked 2nd for research papers cited in high-impact oncology journals and 5th for highly cited research papers.
Top 5 in scale
It is the only multidisciplined treatment centre in Canada devoted solely to cancer care. More than 3,000 employees support the treatment of over 18,000 new patients a year and 1,400 patients daily.
It is home to:
- One of the largest dedicated hospital-based cancer clinical research units in the world
- Over 850 research staff, including: 44 senior scientists, 251 clinical researchers and scientists, and 259 research trainees
- The world's largest single-site radiation medicine program and the largest stem-cell transplant unit in Canada
- Many award-winning programs, including patient education, survivorship, and research
Top 5 in breadth
We continue to deliver on evidence-based research by exhausting the potential of every discovery, no matter how small, and then extending that knowledge far beyond the borders of our own country.
The Princess Margaret:
- Treats 200+ types of cancer. Many of which are complex and challenging cancers while providing consultations to many leading cancer clinicians around the globe
- Has the most comprehensive Immunotherapy Program in Canada. In 2013, we opened Canada’s first clinical trial using a promising kind of Immune Therapy called “Adoptive T-cell Therapy”
- Global leadership. Collaborating with researchers, clinicians and educators in 107 countries, representing over 500 institutions
- Comprehensive research-clinical continuum. Integrates the full spectrum from predictive, prevention, diagnostic, therapeutics to support care
- Has 13 disease site groups with more than 254,000 clinic visits per year
- Strong clinical Research program. 22% of our patients on clinical trials, almost double the national averages of Canada, USA and the UK
What does it mean to be a “Major Cancer Centre”?
As a major cancer centre we actively adhere to the following:
- State-of-the-art care and services to patients and families.
- An active investment in all facets of research: discovery, translational, and clinical
- Ongoing collaboration with national and international partners to advance positive patient outcomes.
- Providing leadership in provincial, national and global health organizations and major professional associations.
- Attracting, retaining and educating many top cancer healthcare professionals.
- Developing more effective approaches to cancer diagnosis and therapy.
- Communicating and translating cancer knowledge to the Canadian public