{"entity":{"id":"oicr","kind":"institution","name":"Ontario Institute for Cancer Research","aka":["OICR"],"tldr":"Ontario's provincially funded cancer research institute, which coordinated the International Cancer Genome Consortium and runs pancreatic cancer genomics trials.","summary":"Founded in 2005 and funded by the Government of Ontario, the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research in Toronto's MaRS Discovery District is a translational institute that hosted the secretariat and data coordination centre of the International Cancer Genome Consortium, with Lincoln Stein co-leading the Pan-Cancer Analysis of Whole Genomes. Steven Gallinger's COMPASS study brought real-time whole-genome sequencing to advanced pancreatic cancer, and Faiyaz Notta's work revealed how pancreatic tumours evolve. OICR runs drug discovery programmes (including WDR5 and other epigenetic targets), imaging and computational biology platforms, the Ontario Health Study and, through the FACIT commercialisation arm, spins out companies. It works closely with Princess Margaret and other Ontario centres. Its leadership page lists Aaron Schimmer as President and Scientific Director and Lincoln Stein as Head of Adaptive Oncology; Trevor Pugh directs its genomics programme and Janet Dancey led its precision medicine work before moving to the Canadian Cancer Trials Group.","asOf":"2026-09-09","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ontario_Institute_for_Cancer_Research","links":[{"label":"OICR","url":"https://oicr.on.ca"},{"label":"OICR leadership","url":"https://oicr.on.ca/about-us/leadership/"},{"label":"ICGC ARGO","url":"https://www.icgc-argo.org"}],"tags":[],"related":[],"cancers":["pancreatic","ovarian","colorectal"],"sections":["drug-discovery","ai-computation"],"technologies":["wes-wgs","cgp"],"targets":[],"drugs":[],"companies":[],"institutions":["princess-margaret"],"pathways":[],"terms":[],"trials":[],"people":["aaron-schimmer","trevor-pugh","dancey-janet"],"bottlenecks":["b-data-silos","b-tumor-heterogeneity"],"keyPapers":[],"journals":[],"dependsOn":[],"notes":[],"city":"Toronto, ON","country":"CA","lat":43.659,"lng":-79.389,"institutionType":"research-institute","website":"https://oicr.on.ca","programs":["Cancer genomics (ICGC, PCAWG)","Pancreatic cancer (COMPASS)","Drug discovery","Commercialisation (FACIT)"]},"route":"/institutions/oicr/","neighbours":{"cancer":[{"id":"colorectal","kind":"cancer","name":"Colorectal cancer","route":"/cancers/colorectal/"},{"id":"ovarian","kind":"cancer","name":"Ovarian cancer","route":"/cancers/ovarian/"},{"id":"pancreatic","kind":"cancer","name":"Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma","route":"/cancers/pancreatic/"}],"section":[{"id":"ai-computation","kind":"section","name":"AI & Computation","route":"/fronts/ai-computation/"},{"id":"drug-discovery","kind":"section","name":"Drug Discovery Platforms","route":"/fronts/drug-discovery/"}],"technology":[{"id":"cgp","kind":"technology","name":"Comprehensive genomic profiling","route":"/technologies/cgp/"},{"id":"wes-wgs","kind":"technology","name":"Whole-exome & whole-genome sequencing","route":"/technologies/wes-wgs/"}],"institution":[{"id":"ontario-health-cancer-care-ontario","kind":"institution","name":"Ontario Health (Cancer Care Ontario)","route":"/institutions/ontario-health-cancer-care-ontario/"},{"id":"princess-margaret","kind":"institution","name":"Princess Margaret Cancer Centre","route":"/institutions/princess-margaret/"},{"id":"terry-fox-research-institute","kind":"institution","name":"Terry Fox Research Institute","route":"/institutions/terry-fox-research-institute/"}],"person":[{"id":"aaron-schimmer","kind":"person","name":"Aaron D. Schimmer","route":"/people/aaron-schimmer/"},{"id":"dancey-janet","kind":"person","name":"Janet Dancey","route":"/people/dancey-janet/"},{"id":"trevor-pugh","kind":"person","name":"Trevor J. Pugh","route":"/people/trevor-pugh/"}],"bottleneck":[{"id":"b-data-silos","kind":"bottleneck","name":"Data silos","route":"/bottlenecks/b-data-silos/"},{"id":"b-tumor-heterogeneity","kind":"bottleneck","name":"Tumour heterogeneity and clonal evolution","route":"/bottlenecks/b-tumor-heterogeneity/"}],"paper":[{"id":"paper-notta-punctuated-evolution-pancreatic-nature-2016","kind":"paper","name":"A renewed model of pancreatic cancer evolution based on genomic rearrangement patterns","route":"/key-papers/paper-notta-punctuated-evolution-pancreatic-nature-2016/"},{"id":"paper-connor-mutational-signatures-immune-pancreatic-jama-oncol-2017","kind":"paper","name":"Association of distinct mutational signatures with correlates of increased immune activity in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma","route":"/key-papers/paper-connor-mutational-signatures-immune-pancreatic-jama-oncol-2017/"},{"id":"paper-okane-gata6-basal-like-compass-ccr-2020","kind":"paper","name":"GATA6 expression distinguishes classical and basal-like subtypes in advanced pancreatic cancer","route":"/key-papers/paper-okane-gata6-basal-like-compass-ccr-2020/"},{"id":"paper-aung-compass-early-results-ccr-2018","kind":"paper","name":"Genomics-driven precision medicine for advanced pancreatic cancer: early results from the COMPASS trial","route":"/key-papers/paper-aung-compass-early-results-ccr-2018/"},{"id":"paper-grunwald-subtme-pancreatic-cell-2021","kind":"paper","name":"Spatially confined sub-tumor microenvironments in pancreatic cancer","route":"/key-papers/paper-grunwald-subtme-pancreatic-cell-2021/"},{"id":"paper-chan-seng-yue-pancreatic-transcription-phenotypes-nat-genet-2020","kind":"paper","name":"Transcription phenotypes of pancreatic cancer are driven by genomic events during tumor evolution","route":"/key-papers/paper-chan-seng-yue-pancreatic-transcription-phenotypes-nat-genet-2020/"}]}}