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Ranked among the world’s top medical schools with the fifth-largest MD enrollment in North America, the UBC Faculty of Medicine is a leader in both the science and the practice of medicine. Across British Columbia, more than 12,000 faculty and staff are training the next generation of doctors, health care professionals, and medical researchers, making remarkable discoveries to help create the pathways to better health for our communities at home and around the world.
The UBC Faculty of Medicine offers a diverse array of training opportunities including cutting-edge research experiences in the biosciences, globally recognized population health education, quality health professional training, as well as several certificate and online training options. The Faculty of Medicine is home to more than 1,700 graduate students housed in 20 graduate programs (14 of which offer doctoral research options). Year after year, research excellence in the Faculty of Medicine is supported by investment from funding sources here at home and around the globe, receiving approximately more than $1.8B in total research funding since 2016.
We value our trainees and the creative input they have to scholarly activities at UBC. Our priority is to enable their maximum potential through flexible opportunities that provide a breadth of experiences tailored to their own individual career objectives. We maintain high standards of excellence, and work to create a community of intellectually and socially engaged scholars that work collaboratively with each other, the university, and the world, with the overarching goal of promoting the health of individuals and communities.
Most Faculty research is conducted under the auspices of 23 centres and institutes that are part of UBC or affiliated with it, in collaboration with our health partners.
UBC Faculty of Medicine provides innovative educational and research programs in the areas of health and life sciences through an integrated and province-wide delivery model in facilities at locations throughout British Columbia.
The Life Sciences Centre is the largest building on the UBC Vancouver campus. Completed in 2004, the $125 million, 52,165 sq metres building was built to accommodate the distributed medical educational program and the Life Sciences Institute.
The Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health (DMCBH), a partnership between the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health, unites under one roof research and clinical expertise in neuroscience, psychiatry and neurology in order to accelerate discovery and translate new knowledge into better treatment and prevention strategies. DMCBH has both laboratory and clinical research areas within the Centre proper and in the UBC Hospital Koerner Pavilion. Our core facilities are essential to ongoing collaboration, teaching, and research.
The BC Children's Hospital Research Institute is it the largest research institute of its kind in Western Canada in terms of people, productivity, funding and size. With more than 350,000 square feet of space, the Institute has both 'wet bench' laboratory and 'dry lab' clinical research areas, and other areas to facilitate particular areas of research and training.
New knowledge and innovation are crucial to successfully identifying, addressing and overcoming the increasingly complex health-related challenges that influence the lives of all of us – in British Columbia, in Canada, and in countries and communities around the globe.
The UBC Faculty of Medicine is recognized nationally and internationally for research innovation that advances knowledge and translates new discoveries to improve the health and well-being of individuals and communities. Research opportunities feature extensive collaborations across other faculties, health institutions and health partners across British Columbia, Canada and internationally.
The Faculty provides and fosters research excellence across the full continuum, from basic science to applied science and then to knowledge implementation, with a focus on precision health; cancer; brain and mental health; heart and lung health; population health; and chronic diseases.
This is an incomplete sample of recent publications in chronological order by UBC faculty members with a primary appointment in the Faculty of Medicine.
| Year | Citation | Program |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Dr. Cheng investigated how serous borderline ovarian tumors progress to invasive low-grade serous ovarian carcinomas which have significantly worse prognosis and survival. He found that loss of a cell to cell adhesion molecule, E-cadherin, plays an important role during this progression. This research helps us to better understand this rare disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Reproductive and Developmental Sciences (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Potter investigated the reasons that transplants of insulin-producing cells fail. She revealed that those transplants undergo changes similar to those in type 2 diabetes, including the formation of toxic protein plaques. Her findings may contribute to new therapies to improve the function of insulin-producing cells in transplants and in type 2 diabetes. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Ho used baker's yeast to study the function of separase, a cell cycle regulatory protein. These studies are important, as the overproduction of separase has been associated with several forms of cancer. Her work helped shed light on new roles for this protein, opening new avenues of study for an already exciting field. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Wang developed a new medical device for skin evaluation and diagnosis. Without removing any tissue from the skin, it tells physicians both the microscopic appearance and the biochemical changes of the skin lesion. Her device and method offer great potential to help medical diagnosis, especially for skin cancers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Interdisciplinary Oncology (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Guest studied the causes of nerve cell death. He developed a new method which contributes to understanding the molecular events involved in Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease and ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. His findings will contribute to the development of new treatments for these diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Coleman studied photo-receptors, which are cells in the eye that detect light. He discovered a protein that transports lipids and is necessary for normal vision and photo-receptor structure. His research illuminates the function of an essential process common to all cell types and contributes to our knowledge of human neuro-degenerative diseases. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Chruscicki identified a new biological mechanism that regulates access to genetic information inside cells. Using next-generation DNA sequencing he showed how a molecular tether, termed FACT, promotes gene expression. This work enhances our understanding of basic biology and may lead to new approaches to treat cancer. | Doctor of Philosophy in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Thi studied human white blood cells that are critical to fighting infection. She identified host factors that enhance white cell function and discovered a novel bacterial effector that suppresses these cells. The results of her studies significantly enhance our knowledge of host resistance to infection. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Sun conducted research in the field of cancer biology. While investigating the molecular mechanism of cancer progression, he discovered a novel signaling protein complex that is critical in controlling the invasion of human cancer cells. Dr. Sun's work sheds light on tumor metastasis and reveals new approaches for effective cancer treatment | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2013 | Dr. Haj Ghanbari examined muscle atrophy, pain and physical activity in people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Her research provides evidence that some muscles are more affected by this disease, and secondly, pain is very common and often limits physical activities in people affected by this chronic respiratory condition. | Doctor of Philosophy in Rehabilitation Sciences (PhD) |