Head of CH.I.L.D. Research Lab Receives Canada Research Chair

The CH.I.L.D. Foundation is pleased to announce that Dr. Bruce Vallance was named Canada Research Chair in Pediatric Gastroenterology. Canada Research Chairs are federally funded research positions granted to university based scientists who are recognized as experts in their fields. Dr. Vallance’s appointment is one of only eighteen others received through the University of British Columbia.

Dr. Vallance holds the CH.I.L.D. Foundation’s Research Chair in Pediatric Gastroenterology and was awarded the SYD Belzberg Research fund in gastroenterology established in 2002. The research chair funding was raised by the CH.I.L.D. Foundation and was the first of its kind in Canada. CH.I.L.D. Foundation (Children with Intestinal and Liver Disorders) began in 1995 to find a cure for digestive disorders such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis and liver disorders.

Dr. Bruce Vallance is an expert in inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs). IBDs such as Crohn’s disease which cause children’s intestinal tissue to become inflamed, resulting in chronic abdominal pain, cramping, fatigue and diarrhea. It is believed such diseases are caused by inappropriate immune responses to bacteria, even those that normally inhabit the gastrointestinal tract with no harmful effect. Dr. Vallance’s recent research includes studying how epithelial cells lining intestines respond to bacterial pathogens such as E.coli and how dendritic cells, the body’s sentinel immune cells, may be co-opted by both invasive bacteria to cause intestinal inflammation.

“Dr. Vallance has been a valuable addition to our gastroenterology team at BC’s Children’s Hospital and the BC Research Institute for Children’s and Women’s Health. We are delighted that the head of the GI research laboratory sponsored by the CH.I.L.D. Foundation has received this national recognition. Being the recipient of a Canada Research Chair not only provides Dr. Vallance with significant annual funding support for research in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease but will also enhance his ability to attract more research and expertise to our unit,” said Dr. Richard Schreiber, who is a specialist in liver disorders and is one of CH.I.L.D. Foundation’s medical advisors at Children’s Hospital.

J. Lindsay Gordon, Vice-Chairman of the CH.I.L.D. Foundation added: “Our Foundation’s lab has been well organized by Dr. Vallance. This national award is a tribute to both Dr. Vallance and recognition of the immense potential of our research.”

“This latest award is a tremendous help to our research capabilities,” said Grace McCarthy, President, CH.I.L.D. Foundation. “It demonstrates the value of good research which is rewarded by national research funds and recognition. We are very proud of Dr. Vallance’s achievements.”

For further information:
Dr. Bruce Vallance – phone: 604-875-2345
Dr. Richard Schreiber – phone: 604-875-2332
Grace McCarthy, O.C. – phone: 604-736-0645