Seminar Series: Dr. Victoria Kirsh, PhD
The Ontario Health Study: A resource for cancer, disease and health research in Ontario and Canada
Victoria Kirsh
Interim Director
Ontario Health Study
Scientific Coordinator
Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow's Health
(CanPath)
Short Biography:
Dr. Victoria (Vicki) Kirsh was appointed Interim Director of the Ontario Health Study in 2025. Prior to this, she was the Scientific Associate for the OHS, and since September 2023 has served as the Scientific Coordinator for the Canadian Partnership for Tomorrow’s Health (CanPath). Vicki completed a Ph.D. in Epidemiology from Yale University, an M.Sc. in Epidemiology from the University of Toronto and a B.Sc. in Microbiology and Immunology from McGill University. She completed a fellowship at the U.S. National Cancer Institute, Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics and worked as a Scientist at Cancer Care Ontario prior to joining the Ontario Health Study. She is also an Assistant Professor at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto.
Abstract:
Population cohort studies such as the Ontario Health Study (OHS) serve an important role in health research. Drawing on 16 years’ worth of OHS data collection, Dr. Victoria Kirsh will illustrate how population cohorts can be used to investigate a range of health and chronic disease-related questions. She will highlight additional features of the OHS such as data linkages to enhance its utility in addition to ongoing data and biosamples collection. This presentation will also offer a peek into the Study’s lessons learned for running a large-scale cohort from operational considerations to their downstream impacts on data availability and analysis.
Area of Research:
Population cohorts, cancer, chronic disease
Date: Friday, March 13
Time: 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Location: PHFM 3015 (Western Centre for Public Health and Family Medicine) or Zoom (request link by email epibio@uwo.ca)
