Uploaded by: Univ of New Brunswick,Oct 18, 2016

Is Dr. Gilks Really Retiring?

Written by: David Huntsman, MD, FRCPC, FCCMG
Professor, Dept of Pathology and Lab Medicine and Obstetrics and Gynaecology, UBC

Dr. Blake Gilks: Spem Reduxit

Dr. Blake Gilks, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine graduated to emeritus status this August.

Dr. Blake Gilks, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine graduated to emeritus status this August. He has accrued a stunning array of academic and clinical accomplishments, national and international recognition for his leadership in both gynecologic pathology and quality assurance, and a profoundly impactful record of mentorship. In regards to the latter, many successful careers such as my own being impossibilities without the decades of wise counsel, encouragement and gentle ridicule he provided. Although concrete examples of what Dr. Gilks has achieved since he joined our department as a resident in 1985 are both easy to find and impressive, the civility, kindness and humour in which he has conducted his professional life may leave an even greater legacy. Apart from his life at UBC, Dr. Gilks has been a pillar of the Fairview Baptist Church community. After his son, Trevor, passed away in 2013, Dr. Gilks and his family became strong advocates for improved mental health care and shared their family’s tragedy to help raise funds and awareness for the Segal Centre at Vancouver General Hospital.

Dr. Gilks joined our department as an anatomic pathology resident in 1985 where he excelled and is known as the one who didn’t go to jail. After residency, he climbed the holy mountain to study gynecologic pathology with Dr. Robert Scully; the uncontested father of modern gynecologic pathology. This was followed by a two year research fellowship at Fox Chase Cancer Centre. Through this experience, personal acclamation and a dubious looking certificate, he may be BC’s first molecular pathologist. Dr. Gilks returned to UBC in 1991 to being his career as a clinician, scientist and mentor. Over the next ten years, with Dr. Philip Clement he established UBC as the place to go for gynecologic pathology in Canada. Although the basic research laboratory he established and shared with his spouse, Dr. Susan Porter, was well funded and successful; he left basic research to become more clinically engaged in 1999.

Since then Dr. Gilks has:

  1. acted as our head of department,
  2. led Pathology at Vancouver Coastal Health,
  3. been President of the International and Most Secret Society of Gynecologic Pathologists,
  4. aptly received all of our departmental awards ie: for clinical work, research and good behavior,
  5. co-founded and provided stable leadership for OvCaRe and GPEC both of which are indisputably national and likely international leaders in ovarian and oncologic pathology research respectively, created and led CIQC, Canada’s highly regarded QA collaborative for anatomic pathology,
  6. led anatomic pathology for the provincial laboratory agency,
  7. published over 400 papers with > 30,000 citations and lastly,
  8. provided expert gynecologic pathology opinions for women from BC and beyond.

Through all of these endeavors Dr. Gilks taught and mentored a myriad of students, residents and fellows, all of whom learned gynecologic pathology, and more importantly were exposed to a model for successful and compassionate professionalism; one which we aspire to follow. The key lesson of avoiding pomposity through self-ridicule was facilitated by his sporting full Scottish Regalia to show off his skunk sporran, using his kangaroo claw back scratcher to end meetings, dressing up for Halloween, placing people he did not want to listen to next to his deaf ear, and carrying around an ovary shaped stuffed toy. On behalf of your host of protégés, we can’t thank you enough for the influence you have had on our careers and although we hope you have fun swatting flies and eating fiddleheads on your estate in New Brunswick – we selfishly hope to keep working with you.