(Toronto, Jan. 5, 2023) – University Health Network is pleased to announce that internationally renowned radiation oncologist and clinician-scientist Dr. David Kirsch will be joining our team as Head of the Radiation Medicine Program (RMP) at the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre.

The RMP is the largest in Canada and one of the largest in North America, with a team of more than 400 radiation specialists dedicated to advancing best practices in radiation medicine through research, cutting-edge practices and innovative technologies. Every year, UHN radiation teams treat between 7,000 and 8,000 new patients from Toronto, as well as from across Ontario and Canada, who need our unique specialized skills.

Dr. Kirsch is currently the Barbara Levine University Distinguished Professor at Duke University in North Carolina, where he is also a Professor and Vice Chair of Basic and Translational Research in the Department of Radiation Oncology and a Professor in Pharmacology & Cancer Biology. He is co-leader of the Radiation Oncology and Imaging Program at the Duke Cancer Institute.

"Our international search attracted many exceptional candidates and we are so pleased to attract someone of the calibre of Dr. Kirsch who will continue the stellar work of our RMP," said Dr. Brian Hodges, Executive Vice-President Education and Chief Medical Officer at UHN.

Dr. Kirsch has many years of expertise caring for patients with bone and soft tissue sarcomas and his research spans the continuum of discovery science to translational research and clinical trials.

Dr. Kirsch said the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre has been the most influential and impactful cancer centre shaping his clinical practice and research career. "I am excited to work with, and lead, such a talented team of faculty and staff to give state-of-the-art care to cancer patients in Toronto, and through our research and education to positively impact cancer patients around the world," he said.

Dr. Kirsch graduated from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine with a MD/PhD. During residency training and then as a faculty member at Massachusetts General Hospital, he also completed additional research training at MIT. before being recruited to Duke University in Durham, NC. Dr. Kirsch has received a number of awards for his research including the 2010 Michael Fry Award and the 2017 J.W. Osborne Award from the Radiation Research Society as well as the 2014 Dean's Award for Excellence in Mentoring from Duke.


About University Health Network

University Health Network consists of Toronto General and Toronto Western Hospitals, the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, and The Michener Institute of Education at UHN. The scope of research and complexity of cases at University Health Network has made it a national and international source for discovery, education and patient care. It has the largest hospital-based research program in Canada, with major research in cardiology, transplantation, neurosciences, oncology, surgical innovation, arthritis, vision, infectious diseases, genomic medicine and rehabilitation medicine. University Health Network is a research hospital affiliated with the University of Toronto. For more information: www.uhn.ca

Media Contact

Shauna Mazenes, Public Affairs Associate, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre

Email: shauna.mazenes@uhn.ca


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