Please join us IN PERSON for our November 9th Support Group Meeting! (See Meeting Notes below)

This month we are pleased to welcome our guest speakers, Dr. Lisa Porter, Executive Director of WE-Spark Health Institute, and University of Windsor Professor of Biomedical Sciences, and Dr. John Trant, Biochemistry Professor from the University of Windsor, who will update us on their Prostate Cancer Research being carried out right here in Windsor/Essex. Please RSVP to winexpcsg@gmail.com to confirm your attendance as seating is limited.

Articles and photos courtesy of University of Windsor Daily News

A pair of UWindsor scientists are researching ways to better diagnose prostate cancer.

Lisa Porter and John Trant are developing imaging agents to help oncologists distinguish between different types of prostate cancer. The new agents would fluoresce under near-infrared light that could be used in conjunction with colonoscopies. Diagnoses would be more precise and wait times shorter than with current imaging using positron emission tomography, commonly referred to as PET scans.

“What’s cool about this is you could just use a lamp,” said Dr. Trant. “This would be much more readily available, and we could cut costs a couple orders of magnitude.”

The research is being funded with a $30,000 grant from the Windsor Cancer Centre Foundation’s Seeds4Hope program. Since its inception in 2009, Seeds4Hope has awarded $2.3 million to cancer research projects.

According to the Canadian Cancer Society, about one in nine Canadian men will develop prostate cancer during their lifetimes. Last year, more than 23,300 Canadians were diagnosed with prostate cancer. About 4,200 will die from it each year.

“The mortality numbers are lower than they used to be, as survival has significantly improved thanks to the development of both targeted therapies and prostate-cancer-specific imaging agents,” Dr. Porter said.

But the imaging could be vastly improved.

Prostate cancer generally begins as hormone-sensitive adenocarcinoma, a disease treated by reducing the body’s production of testosterone and other hormones. But the cancer can evolve and become resistant to the treatment. A second line of therapy can be used, but the cancer can evolve further into an even more aggressive form.

“Our project aims to develop a pair of probes that can distinguish between prostate cancer that is hormone sensitive and prostate cancer that has become treatment resistant,” Trant said. “It can also help determine if a cancer is progressing from one stage to another.”

Trant and Porter are experienced cancer researchers who have collaborated on projects tackling the most aggressive forms of the disease. Their research has been funded by provincial and federal agencies, as well as local ones.

“We’re thankful for the Windsor Cancer Centre Foundation and all its generous donors who give to the Seeds4Hope program,” said Porter. “The program continues to support cutting-edge research right here in Windsor-Essex.”

—Sarah Sacheli

Oncologists may soon have a new tool to outsmart prostate cancer thanks to research by UWindsor biochemistry professor John Trant.

Dr. Trant is developing imaging agents to help oncologists distinguish between different types of prostate cancer. The agents would offer better, quicker, and cheaper diagnoses than current imaging techniques.

“We are developing the next generation of imaging probes so clinicians can quickly determine the location of the tumour and help determine if the cancer is progressing from one stage to another,” Trant said.

“Early detection of cancer is one of the driving forces behind increased survival, however, with prostate cancer, just as it is important to learn if cancer is present, it is important to know if the cancer is changing.”

Trant’s research got a $120,000 funding boost last week from the Cancer Research Society, a registered charity that raises money for Canadian cancer research. The society announced $9.6 million in funding for 80 projects around the county. Trant’s was one of two UWindsor projects that received funding. The other is breast cancer research led by biology professor Munir Rahim.

Prostate cancer generally begins as hormone-sensitive adenocarcinoma, a disease that can be treated by reducing the body’s production of testosterone and other hormones, Trant explained. But the cancer can evolve and become resistant to the treatment. A second line of therapy can be used, but the cancer can evolve further into an even more aggressive form.

Zeroing in on a specific protein associated with the disease, Trant is developing a pair of probes that attach themselves to the protein, allowing doctors to distinguish between prostate cancer that is hormone sensitive and prostate cancer that has become resistant to treatment.

The agents Trant is developing would fluoresce under near-infrared light. Doctors could use a lamp that emits such light during colonoscopies to detect the agents. Diagnoses would be more precise and wait times shorter than with current imaging, which uses positron emission tomography, commonly referred to as PET scans.

“This would be much more readily available, and we could cut costs dramatically,” Trant said.

His research, started with UWindsor biomedical researcher Lisa Porter, received initial funding from the Windsor Cancer Centre Foundation’s Seeds4Hope program. The latest funding through the Cancer Research Society will allow the team to expand its research over the next two years and collaborate with clinicians at cancer centres.

Last year, more than 23,300 Canadian men were diagnosed with prostate cancer. According to the Canadian Cancer Society, about one in nine Canadian men will develop prostate cancer during their lifetimes, and 4,200 will die from it each year.

Since its inception, the Cancer Research Society has invested $326 million in cancer research.

“As a leader in the field of cancer research in Canada, the Cancer Research Society is determined, now more than ever, to contribute to preventing, detecting, and treating all types of cancer as demonstrated by the success of our annual grant competition,” said president and CEO Manon Pepin. “Each donor and partner can be sure that the donations collected will have a major impact for patients diagnosed with cancer, as well as for their loved ones.”

— Sarah Sacheli

Meeting Notes

Bring a coffee, tea or water and join us. New patients and their supporters are always welcome.

A big thanks to Hospice of Windsor & Essex County for opening their doors to us again. Meeting details are as follows:

Tuesday, November 9th, 2021 @ 7:00 p.m.

Hospice of Windsor & Essex County

6038 Empress St., Windsor, ON N8T 1B5

Please respect the following requirements related to the COVID-19 pandemic:

All participants must wear masks and complete required screening forms upon entry. Prostate Cancer patients are not required to provide proof of vaccination, however, all other guests must do so (confirmation of double vaccination at least 14 days before)

Masks must be worn by everyone at all times while on the premises.

Individuals are welcome to arrive with their own beverages or snacks. Alcohol is prohibited on Hospice premises. No coffee, tea, etc., will be provided by Hospice.

Please RSVP your attendance to winexpcsg@gmail.com as seating is limited to 30 people.

We do hope you’ll join us.

We hope you took some time this Summer to relax and recharge, and possibly even reaquaint with neighbours and friends. As we move into Fall, we still are not able to resume in person meetings at Hospice of Windsor & Essex County, due to COVID-19 related restrictions. Our Steering Committee has decided to suspend our Monthly Support Group Meetings until such time as we can resume meeting in person. We will continue to stay in touch and update you via these postings. Please feel free to contact us anytime at winexpcsg@gmail.com

September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. Please consider joining this presentation by Dr. Laurence Klotz.

Active Surveillance: Bench to Bedside with Dr. Laurence Klotz Thursday, September 9th, 7:30 pm Eastern Don’t miss this special presentation from the incredible doctor who coined the term ‘Active Surveillance’ and has been working tirelessly for decades to reduce the overtreatment, morbidity, and mortality of prostate cancer.  This is your chance to ask questions and chat with North America’s leading Active Surveillance expert. Register now About Dr. Laurence KlotzLaurence Klotz, CM, MD, FRCSC Dr. Laurence Klotz was educated at the University of Toronto,  Canada, where in 1977 he obtained his MD. Dr. Klotz completed his residency at the University of Toronto in 1983.  Subsequently, he was a Fellow in Uro-Oncology and Tumor Biology at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, completing it in 1985.   Dr. Klotz then  returned to Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto. He is an  Associate Scientist at the Sunnybrook Research Institute, past Chief of Urology, Professor of Surgery at the University of Toronto, and the Sunnybrook Chair of Prostate Cancer Research.    Dr. Klotz is a widely published uro-oncologist (504 peer review publications, 6 books).  His basic  research interests have included research in the role of micronutrients and diet in prostate cancer prevention, and translational research in biomarkers and imaging. His research lab has been active for 30 years, producing several patents and a biotech company.  His clinical research interests have been in the areas of active surveillance, image guided therapy, molecular biomarkers, and androgen receptor targeted therapy.   He has led numerous randomized trials in prostate cancer.   Active surveillance was a concept pioneered under Dr. Klotz’s leadership.  He led the team at Sunnybrook who was the first to implement an approach to patients with low risk prostate cancer based on conservative management, with selective intervention for those patients who were diagnosed as higher risk over time. He coined the term ‘active surveillance’, and was responsible for promoting its acceptance by urological and radiation oncology communities worldwide. His drive to reduce the overtreatment, morbidity, and mortality of prostate cancer has led to over a hundred papers on this subject alone and numerous national and international invitations as a guest lecturer and visiting professor. In addition to his basic and clinical research endeavors, Dr. Klotz has initiated and participated in many professional organizations and societies.  In 1994, he founded the Canadian Journal of Urology, which was the officially endorsed journal of the Canadian Urological Association from 1996 to 2004. In 2005 he founded the Canadian Urology Association Journal in conjunction with the CUA, was Editor in Chief until 2010, and currently  is the CUAJ  Editor Emeritus. He has been Associate Editor of the Journal of Urology (Prostate Cancer) since 2014.  Since 2018 he has been the Managing Editor of the International Consultations on Urologic Diseases, and in 2020 this re-invigorated initiative produced the book ‘Molecular Biomarkers in Urologic Oncology’ under his leadership.    Dr. Klotz established and chaired the Canadian Urology Consortium (CURC), a clinical research network,  in 2000 and the World Urologic Oncology Federation (WUOF), which brought the world’s regional and national Uro Oncology Societies together under one umbrella in 2002.  Originally 6, there are now 20 member societies.         Dr. Klotz was awarded the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in 2013 for meritorious public service, and the University of Toronto Department of Surgery Lister Prize for outstanding research contributions and the Society of Urologic Oncology Medal in 2014.   In 2015 he received Canada’s highest civilian award, the Order of Canada, and the Harold Warwick Prize from the Canadian Cancer Society for international contributions to cancer control.  The AUA presented him the Richard Williams Award for outstanding contributions in urologic oncology in 2016.  He has received Lifetime Achievement Awards from the University of Toronto in 2017 and the Canadian Urological Association in 2019.  He also received the Huggins medal from the SUO in 2019. Dr. Klotz is married to Ursula, and has 2 children, Alex, a professor of physics at California State in Los Angeles, and Betsy, a recreational therapist.  He founded ‘The Void’, an all-Urology Band in which he plays piano.  He has never received any awards for his tennis or ice hockey performance, both of which he plays frequently. Register now If you can’t make it on September 9th, don’t worry.  A recording of the presentation will be available on Prostate Cancer BC’s YouTube channel.

Hope to see you there!