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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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Dr. Blohmkes research focused on the inflammation in the lungs of patients suffering from the fatal genetic disease Cystic Fibrosis. He identified the receptor mediating the immune response to bacterial pathogens as a modifying gene and novel anti-inflammatory target in Cystic Fibrosis lung disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Chavez identified a novel keratinocyte-derived complex that functions as a collagen inhibitory factor for fibroblasts. The identification of this complex provides a novel therapeutic strategy to prevent the formation of hypetrophic scars, frequently observed in patients following burn injury, deep trauma and some surgical incisions. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Zahir has studied the genetic basis for disease in children born with intellectual disability. She has identified previously unknown causative genes, recognized new syndromes, and has highlighted the contribution to neurodevelopment of an important class of proteins. This work has bridged the scientific and clinical understanding of cognitive disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Genetics (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Hong investigated the properties of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) and its influence on the male sex hormone, androgen, in cells. His study has provided new information about how the SHBG function in cells may enhance and prolong the biological activities of androgen, and this may be particularly important in androgen dependent cancer. | Doctor of Philosophy in Reproductive and Developmental Sciences (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Fan's research in the field of Neuroscience focussed on the possible causes of Huntington disease, an inherited disease with few effective treatments and no cure. Her findings contribute significantly to the understanding of Huntington disease and provide potential drug candidates for future treatment. | Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Garmaroudi studied the host network responses to viruses. He developed a novel theory that viruses modify multiple pathways as part of a network, rather than singly. He found these networks may counteract the therapeutic benefit of even highly selective drugs. His work may contribute to development of treatments for virus-induced heart disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Burston studied the ways different parts of the cell communicate with each other, and how molecules in the cell are transported to the right location. Her work generated new knowledge of how defects in these transport pathways cause human disease, which is essential in developing treatments for diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer's disease. | Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Genetics (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. McLellan studied cancer genetics. Her work focused on developing smart cancer treatments by using what we know about a cancer's genetic background to target malignant cells more effectively. Her most significant contribution was the finding that a new treatment for breast cancer may be effective in treating a much wider variety of cancers. | Doctor of Philosophy in Medical Genetics (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Gershom investigated interactions between blood proteins and herpes viruses to understand correlations between virus infection and heart attack, clotting and hardening of the arteries. His thesis reveals that viruses activate proteins of both clot forming and clot dissolving process that enhance infection and contribute to vascular disease risk. | Doctor of Philosophy in Pathology and Laboratory Medicine (PhD) |
| 2011 | Dr. Ajami's study of the central nervous system showed that blood-derived cells do not contribute to maintenance of microglia, innate immune cells in the brain and spinal cord. She found infiltration of blood-derived macrophages is responsible for the progress of Multiple Sclerosis. This ground-breaking discovery has implications for MS treatments. | Doctor of Philosophy in Experimental Medicine (PhD) |