Lesley graduated from the University of British Columbia in 1988 with a Bachelor of Education in Special Education. She also completed a Masters in Education at Mount Saint Vincent University. Her interest in Special Education has been a life long journey and passion as she has a brother with an intellectual disability. In Lesley’s role, she supports educators and special needs students in the Halifax Region with her student services team.

Lesley's father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in May of 2008. He was diagnosed after a few months of internal discomfort and survived only one week past diagnosis. During that week Lesley and her family became aware of Craig’s Cause Pancreatic Cancer Society when searching for information about pancreatic cancer and possible treatments. Lesley has assisted Craig’s Cause Pancreatic Cancer Society with the organization of special events such as “The Last Lecture Luncheon” and participated in the Maritime Bike Tour for two years as well as the Annual Bike Tour each year since her father’s passing. She is passionate about making changes to the current circumstances faced by pancreatic cancer patients and their families.

‍

Jeff graduated from Dalhousie Dental School in 1987 and after practicing in Ottawa for 2 years, returned to Cole Harbour with his wife Dr.Laurie Campbell-Bonang where they have been practicing ever since. Jeff’s areas of interest in dentistry include Orthodontics, Endodontics and Implantology. Jeff is a past president of the Halifax County Dental Association and the Nova Scotia Dental Association. They have three kids who have all recently graduated university – including two Dentists and one Optometrist, all who practice in HRM.

Jeff has been involved with Craig’s Cause Pancreatic Cancer Society since the first bike tour in 2008. Jeff organized live music for this event. Jeff’s love of biking and music just seemed to fit with Craig’s Cause. Since those early days, Jeff has been one of the organizers of our many bike tours throughout
the Maritimes.

‍

Jayne moved to Nova Scotia in 2019, after moving from Melbourne, Australia where the main focus of her work was a three year post doc position at Prince Henry's Institute of Medical Research. Having originally completed a PhD in Edinburgh, Scotland and her undergrad BSc (Hons) at University College London. Since leaving the lab Jayne has been an advocate for health and research. She has worked for a health non-profit here in Nova Scotia for several years, before working at the Nova Scotia Health Research and Innovation office where she assisted clinical researchers obtaining funding and oversight of their research projects. Jayne now works at The Rounds, a gated network for physicians to access information and to network, across Canada.  

Jayne’s father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in June 2013 after being unwell for 5 months. He lived until the following October, 2014. And sadly, Jayne’s paternal grandmother passed from pancreatic cancer just 10 months later. During the time of her father’s illness, Jayne discovered Craig's Cause Pancreatic Cancer Society and the helpful information they shared on the disease. She also became involved in some of the fundraising activities and gained support from  knowing she was not alone. With a desire to advocate for health and improve patient outcomes since a young age, Jayne is passionate about making changes to the current awareness of pancreatic cancer, diagnosis and treatment options for patients suffering from pancreatic cancer.  

Dr. Ramjeesingh, moved to Halifax in 2015, having originally completed his MD/Ph.D in Toronto before completing residency and medical oncology training in Kingston, ON. Dr. Ramjeesingh has focused his clinical practice on the treatment of breast cancer and hepatopancreobiliary (HPB) tumors which includes pancreatic cancer. His research activities and interests are in the fields of Health service delivery, and translational research in Oncology. He has a passion for oncology education of residents and medical students, having become a faulty member for oncologyeducation.com. He has been awarded the Department of Medicine Research Excellent award in 2017 and the DOM Excellence in Medical Education award in 2018.

Nova Scotia has historically had some of the poorest outcomes for survival of pancreatic cancer. When he moved to Nova Scotia, no one could answer his questions about why survival was so poor when compared to other provinces. He began to notice gaps in the process of diagnosing and treating pancreatic cancer and felt the need to take up this cause; to improve where he can for pancreatic cancer patients in the province.

‍

Colleen Dafoe is a wife, mother, runner, ‘Corrie’ lover and teacher who lives in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

She first became involved with Craig’s Cause Pancreatic Cancer Society in 2008, at the 2nd annual Bike Tour as a way to mark the passing of her father-in-law who died of Pancreatic Cancer in 2003, less than thirty days after his diagnosis. Her father-in-law, Duke, was an extremely healthy and active person and in an instant he received a terminal diagnosis with little to no options for treatment. What surprised Colleen most about this experience is how quickly life circumstances can change after a Pancreatic Cancer diagnosis. After the 2nd annual bike tour, Colleen became more involved with Craig’s Cause Pancreatic Cancer Society not only to mark Duke’s legacy, but to help change the statistics of this terrible disease.

It is her hope that through research and awareness that people with Pancreatic Cancer will be diagnosed earlier and be offered better treatment options. Colleen is the secretary for the board.

Lorraine Duclos is a highly accomplished Direct Mail and Logistics professional with a proven track record of sales development of new business and maintaining her strong customer base and partnerships with suppliers.  As a new member of our board, she brings valuable expertise and knowledge in marketing, sales, data, print, e-commerce fulfillment, logistics and the western market and a commitment to Craigs Cause mission and awareness nationally.  Although born and educated in Montreal, she has lived and worked for the past 40 years on the west coast of both Canada and the USA.

Lorraine has 30 years of experience in marketing & logistics and has both owned her own companies and worked for notable companies in both Canada and the USA, where she has demonstrated exceptional leadership and strategic thinking skills.  She has also focused specifically for the past 6 years working with non profits in both British Columbia and Alberta to assist in direct mail programs which bring awareness of their data, print and mail in their campaign development and retention plus acquisition of new donors and bring ongoing awareness of the non profits achievements and new goals within their communities.

She is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP) and the Canadian Gift Planners Association (CAGP) and attends events and western not for profit conferences on behalf of her employer, Hemlock Harling.    In addition to her professional accomplishments, she is also actively involved with a seniors centre, park & shore cleanups and ongoing clothes drives in Vancouver BC.  She has had hands on experience having been involved in the care of both her parents who were affected by the debilitating disease that we know as Alzheimer’s.   Her family has also been affected deeply by Pancreatic cancer losing two of her brothers and cousin to this hideous disease.

We are thrilled to have Lorraine Duclos join our board, and look forward to her contributions as we work towards achieving our goals and advancing our mission.

‍

‍

Clara MacKay has nearly 20 years of experience in cancer advocacy, including senior level positions in UK organizations covering ovarian, pancreatic, bowel, prostate and breast cancer. She is currently CEO of the World Ovarian Cancer Coalition, a not-for-profit that works with over 160 member organizations worldwide to ensure that every woman diagnosed with ovarian cancer has the best chance of survival and best quality of life possible - wherever she may live.  

Clara was a founding member of the World Pancreatic Cancer Coalition and past Chair of Cancer 52 - a network of cancer groups representing the interests of rare and less common cancers. In 2015 she was appointed to an Independent Cancer Taskforce established by NHS England to develop a five-year strategy for cancer services. After 25 years in the UK, Clara returned to her native Nova Scotia, Canada in 2016. Clara has a BA in Politics and History from Mount Saint Vincent University and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Carleton University.

We are thrilled that Clara has joined our Board of Directors as Chair and we are thankful for her expertise as we have moved through a rebranding process during 2020.

‍

Dr. Ramjeesingh, moved to Halifax in 2015, having originally completed his MD/Ph.D in Toronto before completing residency and medical oncology training in Kingston, ON. Dr. Ramjeesingh has focused his clinical practice on the treatment of breast cancer and hepatopancreobiliary (HPB) tumors which includes pancreatic cancer. His research activities and interests are in the fields of Health service delivery, and translational research in Oncology. He has a passion for oncology
education of residents and medical students, having become a faulty member foroncologyeducation.com.

He has been awarded the Department of Medicine Research Excellent award in 2017 and the DOM Excellence in Medical Education award in 2018. Why for Pancreatic Cancer Involvement: Nova Scotia has historically had some of the poorest outcomes for survival of pancreatic cancer. When he moved to Nova Scotia, no one could answer his questions about why survival was so poor when compared to other provinces. He began to notice gaps in the process of diagnosing and treating pancreatic cancer and felt the need to take up this cause; to improve where he can for pancreatic cancer patients in the province.

‍

Dr. Colwell is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Dalhousie University. He has been involved in clinical research that has led to several publications including the New England Journal of Medicine.  He is a member of the GI, Breast and sarcoma tumor site groups. He is Chair of the Gastrointestinal Tumor Site Group. He is President of the Canadian Association of Medical Oncology Committee, (CAMO).  He is a member of NSHA Drugs and Therapeutics Committee and chair the Oncology Therapeutics Subcommittee for that same group.  He has an interest in Biosimilars, GI, and breast cancers, and resident education.

Melanie was a graduate of the Dalhousie Pharmacy Program in 2015 and she recently completed her Hospital Pharmacy Residency through Dalhousie College of Pharmacy at The Moncton Hospital.

Melanie is a dedicated individual with a passion for excellent patient care. She enjoys educating patients on their medication, promoting patient education.

‍

Dr. Urquhart’s primary research interests relate to understanding and optimizing the movement of evidence-based innovations into clinical practice as well as the interface between evidence-based medicine and policy.

Robin uses multiple methods in her research, including linked administrative health data, systematic reviews, and case study and qualitative methods.

The ultimate aim of her work is to improve our ability to implement and sustain innovations that improve the organization, delivery, and outcomes of cancer care.

‍

Dr. Boudreau investigates how human natural killer cell immunogenetics program immune responsiveness to cancer and infectious diseases. She uses bioinformatics, humanized in vivo models, cell-signal analysis, and highly-parametric flow cytometry to understand how genetic variation creates diversity in human immune potentials.

Her interdisciplinary and collaborative work aims to translate research findings into precision therapies.

‍

Dr. Mark Walsh is a surgeon in the General Surgery department at the QEII Health Sciences Centre. He is a Hepatobiliary / Pancreatic / Transplant Surgeon with a passion to treat and support patients diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Adam Nelson is a PhD. candidate in Dr. Brent Johnston’s lab at Dalhousie University. His research focuses on new combination therapies for pancreatic cancer using immunotherapy and oncolytic viruses, viruses that only target cancer cells. He hopes that his combination therapy will provide a safe and effective alternative therapy for patients suffering from pancreatic cancer.

Jessica is a PhD candidate in the Chemistry Department at Dalhousie University where her research focuses on optimizing front-end sample preparation strategies for proteome analysis by mass spectrometry. She was inspired to get involved with Craig’s Cause after participating in the 2019 Walk/Bike/Run awareness event. Jessica now helps facilitate monthly online Support4Caregivers meetings and is gaining involvement with the Clinical Trial Finder program. 

Jessica saw the untimely passing of her two uncles, Doug and Jim from pancreatic cancer, but never imagined it would hit any closer to home. In the Fall of 2018, her Dad was diagnosed with stage IV. She and her family were incredibly fortunate to share the following year together, but Greg lost his hard-fought battle in the Fall of 2019. All three of these patients were victims of the late diagnosis that is often associated with pancreatic cancer, which motivates Jessica to contribute to the awareness and supportive efforts of Craig’s Cause in hopes of improving the outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients in the future.

Popi Kasvis is a Clinical Nutritionist/Dietitian at the McGill University Health Centre in Montreal,  working within the multidisciplinary Cancer Rehabilitation Program (CAREPRO).

Briefly, her clinical duties include:
1) assessing patients for the presence of malnutrition and muscle loss,
2) creating a nutritional treatment plan to optimize nutritional status, and
3) managing nutrition impact symptoms.

Popi is also a PhD candidate in the Department of Health, Kinesiology and Applied Physiology at Concordia University in Montreal. Her research is focused on the effect of early diet and exercise interventions on the health-related quality of life of patients with pancreatic cancer, undergoing both curative and palliative treatments. Popi has a keen interest in the use of pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy as a way to improve the nutritional status and overall wellbeing of patients living with pancreatic cancer. 

‍

Mike Moser is a hepatobiliary surgeon originally from Edmonton, who trained in London, Ontario, and now practices in Saskatoon.  

He has a keen clinical and research interest in the destruction of pancreas and liver cancers, a process known as ablation.  Although Dr. Moser enjoys the challenge of long and complex operations, he is very open to new, non-surgical ablation technologies such as MicroWave Ablation and NanoKnife that are less disruptive to patients than a major operation.