The first annual Ride to Conquer Cancer held June 21^st and 22^nd of this year, had 2,850 riders depart the CNE in Toronto and ride over 2 days to Niagara Falls.  Over 100 km a day was covered by the riders for a total of 120 kilometers!  Nearly 125 doctors and researchers from across Princess Margaret participated in the ride.

Orison Swett Marden once said, "there is no medicine like hope, no incentive so great, and no tonic so powerful as expectation of something better tomorrow", and hope is exactly what the Robert and Maggie Bras and Family New Drug Development Program offers to patients who are suffering from cancer.

Princess Margaret Hospital’s ambition is to be a world leader and to be recognized as one of the top 5 comprehensive cancer centres in the world. When I observe the work being done in the Robert & Maggie Bras New Drug Development Program and witness the treatment and care given to our patients, this ambition is evident. This same ambition provides clarity to our work and sets the bar for excellence.

Dr. Joseph Pater, Director, National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group, Vancouver, March 3, 2007.

Each year an international leader in cancer research gives The Robert Bras Memorial Lecture.  This year the lecture was included as part of the 3^rd Princess Margaret Strategic Directions in Drug Development meeting that was held in Vancouver, British Columbia.  The lecture was given by Dr. Joseph Pater, Director of the National Cancer Institute of Canada Clinical Trials Group who is retiring after 25 years as head of NCIC.CTG and has been instrumental in making Canada a world leader in cancer research.