On November 13, 2025, Pancreas Centre BC hosted its annual Research Symposium at the Gordon and Leslie Diamond Family Theatre at the BC Cancer Research Centre, bringing together researchers, clinicians, and trainees from across BC for a day dedicated to collaboration, discovery, and improving care for pancreatic disease patients.
This year's keynote was delivered by Dr. Eileen M. O'Reilly of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, who spoke on "Pancreas Cancer: Now and the Era of Biomarker Directed Therapy," outlining how precision medicine, targeted therapies, and emerging immune-based approaches are reshaping the outlook for pancreatic cancer patients over the next several years.
The day's two research sessions showcased work happening right here in BC:
Basic & Translational Research featured new insights into pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor subtypes (Dr. Sharon Gorski), the immune-suppressing tumor environment that makes pancreatic cancer hard to treat (Dr. Shoukat Dedhar), nutrient dependencies that could open new therapeutic targets (Dr. Seth Parker), and compelling evidence that elevated insulin levels can directly drive pancreatic tumor growth (Dr. James Johnson and Dr. Janel Kopp) — work that connects closely to why new-onset diabetes is increasingly recognized as an early warning sign for pancreatic cancer.
Clinical & Translational Research included real-world treatment outcomes data for metastatic pancreatic cancer (Dr. Renata Peixoto), advances in germline genetic testing that are helping identify family members at risk of hereditary pancreatic cancer (Dr. Phoebe Cheng and Carol Cremin), and several trainee-led studies from PCBC's own research team, including work on non-invasive blood-based cancer profiling (Haley Beckmann) and the role of insulin receptors in tumor growth (Lan Valerie Tao).
The symposium drew more than 75 registrants, and attendee feedback was strongly positive — most rated the program and speakers highly, and the majority said they'd like to attend again next year.
Thank you to our keynote speaker, presenters, co-directors, and everyone who joined us for a day dedicated to advancing pancreatic cancer research and care across BC.