Background
The increased life expectancy for the general population is coming at the cost of an increase in the incidence of diseases traditionally associated with aging and grouped under the banner of chronic inflammatory diseases (e.g. osteoarthritis, atherosclerosis, diabetes, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, cancer, etc.). It is estimated that chronic diseases affect 5 to 10% of Canadians, although the incidence varies widely depending of each specific disease. According to the WHO, chronic diseases are the major cause of death and disability worldwide. In Canada, 89% of deaths are due to this group of diseases (about 207,000 for 2005), and in the next 10 years, death from chronic diseases will likely increase by 15%. As expected, the economic impact of this group of diseases is astronomical, with estimates ranging in billions of dollars per year for each specific condition. It is not surprising, therefore, that research to prevent and treat chronic diseases has become a major priority of health care research agendas, capturing increasing amounts of human and financial resources as well as the efforts for national and global public policy to maximize the impact of this research.
The understanding of early triggers for prevention of chronic diseases has been relatively slow compared to the development of management strategies. In recent years, there has been a paradigm shift in the way we look at most of these diseases. This paradigm shift is based on an emerging body of data suggesting that most chronic diseases result from a common mechanism that involves infection/inflammation/immune response leading to terminal irreversible organ failure most often requiring its replacement through transplantation or, possibly, its regeneration through stem cell technologies.
The establishment of CHI at Western is based on the long history of scientific and clinical excellence in Basic and Clinical Immunology and Microbiology in London, spanning a period of 25 years of sustained success. Some indicators of this claim include the introduction of cyclosporine in Clinical Transplantation in the mid 80s, the first human small bowel transplant (late 80s), the establishment of the MRC-JDFR Program in Diabetes (mid 90s), CFI/ORDCFs programs in Diabetes and in Transplantation (late 90s), and the first FOCIS Centre of Excellence in Clinical Immunology in Canada (2003). Together, these successes contributed to the recognition of UWO as the most influential centre in Immunology in Canada during the period of 2000 to 2004 by the only independent peer-reviewed assessment of research in Canadian Universities published to date (Thomson Scientific – 2005), and one of only 3 disciplines for which London was ranked the most influential (the other two being Clinical Pharmacology and Business and Economics).
With this success has come the pressure to recruit and retain the next leaders in the field of Immunology, and the need to revitalize the scientific community directly involved with this discipline. A major issue to date has been the fragmentation of research in Immunology occurring at different sites at UWO, LHSC/Lawson, and Robarts Research Institute. However, recent developments such as the consolidation of Robarts as an institute within UWO and the need for strategic positioning of each institution have culminated in the current proposal.
In addition, the CHI builds on initiatives that have operated in London in recent years. The most directly linked to the CHI is the FOCIS Centre for Clinical Immunology and Immunotherapeutics. This international peer-reviewed recognition received in 2003 (and the first of its kind in Canada) provided a “virtual” network of interaction among scientists with immunology-based research, and has led to the participation of faculty and trainees in activities of the International Federation of Clinical Immunology Societies (FOCIS), including the participation of Dr. J. Madrenas as a member of the FOCIS International Executive Committee.
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