News Archives 2008

December

Calgary contractors lending more than a hand
Dec. 22, 2008: First they gave their time and expertise to help install the world's first ceiling-mounted, movable three tesla (3.0T) magnet to be used at the Seaman's Family MR Research Centre at the Foothills Medical Centre Complex. Now, a group of contractors who worked on the project have given something else: their money. More...

UCalgary medical students helping kids in more ways than one
Dec. 5, 2008: Helping people comes naturally to Jennifer Truong and Danya Fox. It's why they decided to study medicine, and why they chose a local charity to benefit from their fundraising efforts that began as a class project, but have grown into a passion. More...

New study says Alzheimer's drug may be key to stop spread of aggressive brain cancers
Dec. 4, 2008: Researchers working jointly for the University of Calgary and Alberta Health Services have discovered a way to help stop aggressive brain tumours from spreading by using an existing drug that is being tested for Alzheimer's patients. More...

New discovery shows DNA both protects and harms bacteria
Dec. 2, 2008: Faculty of Medicine researchers have shown for the first time that DNA acts as a double-edged sword that both protects and harms bacteria. More...

UCalgary launches new undergraduate neuroscience program
Dec. 2, 2008: The University of Calgary will welcome its first class of students into a unique undergraduate neuroscience program this January. More...

November

University creates new mental health centre
Nov. 28, 2008: Mental illness is the most costly illness to society, contributing more to disability than any other disease. It is also devastating to families and our communities, with one in five Canadians personally experiencing a mental illness in their lifetime, yet it lags behind other health areas in terms of research, resources and knowledge. More...

New discovery in aging process
Nov. 13, 2008: New research from UCalgary Faculty of Medicine is providing a better understanding of the aging process of cells, which could one-day slow down aging and delay many health problems associated with old-age. More...

UCalgary Faculty of Medicine researchers honoured
Nov. 5, 2008: The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research honoured six of its researchers with awards on Tuesday as part of its annual fall reception. More...

October

Alberta researchers find possible treatment for deadly strain of E. coli
Oct. 29, 2008: The Faculty of Medicine's Glen Armstrong, PhD, and his colleagues have discovered a very promising treatment to prevent the serious side effects of the deadly E. coli strain. More...

Major step toward more targeted cold prevention and treament
Oct. 28, 2008: A University of Calgary scientist confirms that it is how our immune system responds, not the rhinovirus itself, that causes cold symptoms. More...

UCalgary Faculty of Medicine more than a footnote in Alberta's medical history
Oct. 23, 2008: Building a brighter future by training the world's next great physicians and scientists has always been a hallmark of UCalgary's Faculty of Medicine. More...

Let's talk about health research
Oct. 20, 2008: Join CBC radio host Jeff Collins in a discussion with leading health researchers in a casual atmosphere. Learn how their research is relevant and how it may impact you in the future. More...

Students exposed to science careers to address health professional shortages
Oct. 16, 2008: On Friday October 17, more than 260 high school students from the Calgary area will spend their day sampling career options at the Discovery Day in Health Sciences in the hopes they will consider entering the profession. More...

Centre accelerates technology development in health care, increases capacity for students
Oct. 15, 2008: The University of Calgary will expand its internationally recognized work in the rapidly growing field of biomedical engineering with the creation of the National Biomedical Engineering Innovation Centre. More...

Innovative conference will discuss depression
Oct. 10, 2008: Researchers and physicians across Canada are beginning to recognize depression as a serious mental health issue. More...

Unique respiratory program funded for advanced training position
Oct. 9, 2008: Olympus Canada is donating $55,000 this academic year to fund a one-year advanced fellowship training position at the University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine in the emerging field of interventional pulmonary medicine (IPM). More...

High levels of air pollution may increase the risk of appendicitis
Oct. 6, 2008: New research from the University of Calgary suggests high levels of air pollution may increase the risk of appendicitis. More...

September

UCalgary researchers outline new approach to treating cystic fibrosis
Sept. 25, 2008: Researchers at the University of Calgary have found a new method of fighting severe lung infections in people with cystic fibrosis (CF), reducing the severity of their infections and improving their quality of life. More...

Prestigious medical journal publishes article on Sudanese doctors
Sept. 4, 2008: The story of Sudanese refugee physicians who trained in Canada and returned to their home in Southern Sudan where they are needed most, is being told in this week's edition of The Lancet, one of the most well-known peer-reviewed medical journals in the world. More...

August

Premature babies of mothers who smoke particularly vulnerable to SIDS
August 29, 2008: New research at the University of Calgary shows premature infants whose mothers smoked during pregnancy may be at higher risk for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) than preemies whose mothers did not smoke. More...

Study investigates food insecurity and debunks myths around comfort foods
August 28, 2008: A study published today in the international journal Agriculture and Human Values, finds that Kraft Dinner® means different things to Canadians depending on whether they are food‐secure, or food‐insecure. More...

Looking at how neighbourhoods promote health: Faculty of Medicine researcher is lead investigator
August 26, 2008: Before you succumb to the next infomercial on health pills or exercise machines to solve what ails you, a team of researchers from the University of Calgary says you should begin by taking a walk through your neighbourhood. More...

UCalgary researcher only Canadian to receive Prostate Cancer Foundation funding
August 21, 2008: A University of Calgary researcher has been awarded one of 19 Young Investigator Awards from the Prostate Cancer Foundation. The awards recognize innovative thinkers whose research has the potential to battle prostate cancer. More...

Local high school student investigates MSG's impact on the brain
August 14, 2008: This summer Michelle Ah-Seng has become a seasoned expert on MSG and what it does to brain cells … so much so that, these days, she quietly worries when she sees her brother eating potato chips. More...

Faculty of Medicine prof makes World Vision's top five Canadians to watch
August 14, 2008: Each year World Vision spotlights five individuals who are using their skills and resources to make a difference in the world. Brenner was acknowledged for her work as project director for Healthy Child Uganda. More...

Study suggests couples be informed of increased risks of assisted reproduction
August 11, 2008: Infertile men are now able to father children with the advent of an in vitro fertilization method called intracytoplasmic sperm injection (IVF-ICSI), in which sperm is extracted and injected directly into the egg. More...

UCalgary researchers find new way to study aggressive cancer
August 7, 2008: Dr. Aru Narendran, assistant professor in the departments of Oncology and Pediatrics, and his colleagues at the University of Calgary's Faculty of Medicine have developed a unique method for growing atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumour (AT/RT) in a laboratory setting. More...

July

UCalgary researchers team with industry to bring 3D medical images to your doctor's iPhone
July 30, 2008:  Researchers at the University of Calgary have written a software application for the new iPhone 3G, allowing doctors to remotely receive medical images on their iPhones and to manipulate the images in three dimensions. More...

$1.7 million grant awarded to Faculty of Medicine researcher to fight bioterrorism
July 10, 2008: The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded Donald Woods, PhD, of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Calgary, $1.7 million for research into vaccines against agents of bioterrorism. More...

New family doctors working in Calgary
July 8, 2008: Thirty-six doctors have graduated from the University of Calgary family medicine residency program. Twenty-five of the graduates are now in Calgary communities...More...

June

Boone Pickens makes $25 million bequest
June 20, 2008: Texas businessman Boone Pickens, the guest of honour at a luncheon today hosted by the Hotchkiss Brain Institute at the University of Calgary, surprised guests when he unexpectedly announced he was making a bequest of $25 million. More...

Boone Pickens at the University of Calgary to open new Centre
June 20, 2008: American philanthropist and billionaire businessman Boone Pickens is in Calgary to officially open the Boone Pickens Centre for Neurological Science and Advanced Technologies. More...

Faculty of Medicine researchers demonstrate a first in the study of Lyme disease
June 20, 2008:  For the first time researchers can see the bacteria that causes Lyme disease at high resolution in a living host. More...

Kubes' discovery published in Nature Immunology
June 10, 2008: The new discovery of an anti-distraction protein will help find ways to kill bacteria and treat everything from turberculosis to anti-biotic resistant illnesses like MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.). More...

C-sections not linked to risk of stillbirth
June 9, 2008:  Previous caesarean sections do not increase the risk of stillbirth, according to a University of Calgary study. More...

New research shows overheating newborns can increase the risk of SIDS
June 2, 2008: Increased ambient temperature at night time or increasing the room temperature can affect the baby’s pattern of breathing. More...

 

Faculty of Medicine's Dr. Charles MacAdams is published in New England Journal of Medicine
June 2, 2008: MacAdams was part of a team of Canadian researchers who discovered that aprotinin, a drug routinely used to prevent blood loss during heart surgery, is associated with a 50 per cent increase in the relative risk of death. More...

May

University of Calgary program hopes to place more graduating doctors in rural communities
May 27, 2008: In an effort to expose medical students to life as rural doctors and increase the exposure to generalist training, the University of Calgary, Faculty of Medicine has launched the Rural Integrated Community Clerkship (RICC) program. More...

Faculty of Medicine student one of five winners of new President's Award
May 22, 2008: The highest honour a graduating student can receive is the newest award presented by the U of C and a biomedical science student from the Faculty of Medicine is one of the five recipients. More...

Calgary surgeon makes history with successful robotic operation on a Calgary mom
May 16, 2008: A surgical team at the Foothills Medical Centre has successfully performed groundbreaking brain surgery with a robot developed by a team at the University of Calgary’s Faculty of Medicine. More...

First year med students' jazz ensemble takes the Faculty of Medicine by storm
May 15, 2008: Sex, Drugs and Saxophones-the interactive presentation on mental illness and the development of jazz music-impressed many faculty, staff and students at the Libin Theatre last week. More...

Annual PDAC research symposium draws UCalgary postdocs
May 15, 2008: The Postdoctoral Association of the University of Calgary (PDAC)'s Second Annual Postdoctoral Research Symposium was held at the Health Sciences Centre last month. More...

Patch Adams kick starts new health facility campaign
May 13, 2008: Ken King, Reach! co-chair today announced the launch of the funding campaign for Calgary's newest health care facility, the Southern Alberta Institute of Urology. More...

Former Dean receives the Order of the University of Calgary
May 8, 2008: Today is a great day for the Faculty of Medicine. In addition to 106 graduating MDs, former Dean Dr. Grant Gall is receiving the Order of the University of Calgary at this year's spring convocation. More...

Turning pain and confusion into action
May 6, 2008: First hand experience with digestive motility disorders has prompted local philanthropists Jeanne Keith-Ferris and Don Ferris to make a $250,000 gift towards the creation of the Centre for Digestive Motility. More...

Faculty of Medicine celebrates Order of Canada recipients
May 1, 2008: It's the highest civilian honour in Canada, and throughout the short history of the University of Calgary's Faculty of Medicine, nine of its faculty have received the prestigious membership. More...

April

Graduate program in mountain medicine recruits students
April 17, 2008: The Mountain Medicine and High Altitude Physiology graduate program at the Faculty of Medicine is recruiting students from Nepal, Peru, USA and Canada. More...

Faculty of Medicine scientist wins prestigious Gairdner award
April 15, 2008: Samuel Weiss, PhD, director of the Hotchkiss Brain Institute at the UCalgary Faculty of Medicine, has earned one of the world's most prestigious medical science awards, a Gairdner International Award. More...

Researchers use cardiac MRI to detect healthy heart tissue after heart attack
April 14, 2008: New research at the University of Calgary allows doctors to visualize the amount and location of heart muscle recovered after treatment of a heart attack. More...

Prevalence of lung disease being measured across Canada
April 9, 2008: A University of Calgary professor is joining forces with researchers across the country to investigate how many Canadians have Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). More... 

More on our main news page.  

Collaborative research database to benefit complementary and alternative medicine
April 1, 2008: The University of Calgary and the McGill University Health Centre Research Institute, in collaboration with Centennial College, are launching the first-ever searchable database of outcome measures intended for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) researchers - the IN-CAM Outcomes Database. More...

March

Researchers receive funds from Heart and Stroke Foundation
March 11, 2008: Nine investigators from the Faculty of Medicine have received grants from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Alberta, NWT & Nunavut. More...

Quiet Calgarian makes a big statement with $9 million gift
March 10, 2008: Long-time Calgary philanthropist Joan Snyder announced today a $9 million gift to the Institute of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation at UCalgary. More...

Research team enables nerve cells on a computer chip to heal and regrow damaged nerves
March 6, 2008: Neuroscientists, brain surgeons, graduate students, rehabilitation specialists and neurologists are joining forces to develop new technology aimed at repairing and regenerating peripheral nerves that connect the brain, spinal cord and the body. More...

February

Largest research chair in history of Faculty of Medicine announced today
Feb. 27, 2008: The Kidney Foundation of Canada (KFOC) announced today the creation of the largest research chair in the history of the University of Calgary's Faculty of Medicine and the first chair of its kind in kidney research in Canada. More...

Host DNA can trigger inflammation, UCalgary study finds
Feb. 26, 2008: A new study at the University of Calgary reveals how the immune system triggers inflammation. More...

Physicians invited to join Master Teacher program
Feb. 14, 2008: The Faculty of Medicine at the University of Calgary is looking for physicians to join an innovative program with the mandate to recruit, retain and enrich educators who strive to inspire students to excel. More...

Students raise $4,000 for testicular cancer
Feb. 12, 2008: On February 1, UCalgary medical students competed for the  honour of being chosen "Man of Manuary." More...

Founders of the UCalgary medical school honoured
Feb. 5, 2008: The UCalgary Faculty of Medicine recently paid tribute to its founders, faculty members who worked behind the scenes in the late 60's to establish a new medical school on a bald prairie. More...

January

Alberta government announces $42.5 million for Health Sciences Centre
Jan. 23, 2008: Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach and Advanced Education and Technology Minister, Doug Horner were at the University of Calgary yesterday to announce a funding package worth about $97 million for a number of projects, including upgrades for a Faculty of Medicine facility. More...

New colon cancer screening centre opens its doors in Calgary
Jan. 22, 2008: The Forzani & MacPhail Colon Cancer Screening Centre officially opened its doors today. The centre is operated by the Faculty of Medicine in partnership with the Calgary Health Region and will see approximately 10,000 people this year, doubling that number within two years. More...

Four teams receive AHFMR funding: UCalgary researchers involved
Jan. 15, 2008: Four research teams were successful in the first Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research(AHFMR) Interdisciplinary Team Grants competition and UCalgary researchers are involved at all levels. More...

New vaccine program gets $5 million boost from AHFMR
Jan. 15, 2008: The Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (AHFMR) has announced the Faculty of Medicine's new vaccine research program as one of the recipients of AHFMR's first interdisciplinary team grant competition. More...