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Welcome to Pathology's Bi-Weekly Bulletin | November 14, 2025

PALM Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies Committee (GPSC) Postdoctoral Fellow Representative

We are currently seeking a Postdoctoral Fellow Representative to serve on the Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies Committee (GPSC).

The role and responsibilities:
The role of the Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies Committee (GPSC) Postdoctoral Fellow Representative (Rep) is to act as liaison between the Department of Pathology’s Postdoctoral Fellows and the governing body of the Graduate Program (the GPSC). To aid in this task, the GPSC Postdoctoral Fellow Rep will:

  • Attend regular bi-monthly GPSC meetings (~9x per year; total hours required ~13.5).
  • Offer input and participate in discussions on behalf of the Department’s Postdoctoral Fellows.
  • Perform occasional tasks as assigned by the GPSC.
  • Communicate via email and/or virtual or in-person meetings to facilitate information exchange between the GPSC and Department Postdoctoral Fellows.
Fostering the connection between the Department's Postdoctoral Fellows and the GPSC is imperative to the continued success of the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and this position plays an integral role in this process.

If you are interested in this role, please submit your CV and expression of interest to the Graduate Program Coordinator by December 5, 2025.

 
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New Faculty Appointment: Dr. James C. Zimring, Professor (Partner)

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. James C. Zimring to the academic rank of Professor, Partner in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Dr. Zimring joins us from the Canadian Blood Services, where he serves as Chief Scientific Officer, and brings extensive expertise in transfusion medicine and red blood cell biology. We look forward to welcoming him to our department community.

About Dr. Zimring
Dr. James C. Zimring is a physician-scientist who obtained both his M.D. and his Ph.D. at Emory University. He is boarded in Clinical Pathology with a focus on transfusion medicine including general biology and the pathology of blood. Dr. Zimring focusses on basic and translational research with a strong emphasis on training graduate and undergraduate research students. In addition to his research at the University of British Columbia, Dr. Zimring is the Chief Scientific Officer of Canadian Blood Services and an internationally recognized expert in transfusion medicine. Dr. Zimring has two main areas of research. First, he has multiple ongoing projects elucidating mechanisms of afferent and efferent alloimmunity in the context of transfusion and transplantation. These include induction of alloantibodies by transfusion and pregnancy, hemolytic transfusion reactions and platelet refractoriness, and fetal/maternal alloimmunity. Second, he studies oxidative stress biology in red blood cells with a focus on G6PD deficiency, including phamacotoxicology of drugs that are hemolytic in G6PD deficient patients. His work is predominantly in animal models but also extends to human studies and has recently included mapping the murine and human RBC proteomes and metabolomes and performing GWAS studies identifying novel pathways. Dr. Zimring also pursues scholarly work in the field of scientific logic, epistemology, and cognitive psychology with ongoing efforts to understand and implement scientific thinking in a changing landscape of technologies for observation and data processing.

 
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Welcome Dr. Jerrold H. Levy – Adjunct Professor

We are pleased to welcome Dr. Jerrold H. Levy as an Adjunct Professor with the Centre for Blood Research in the Life Sciences Centre. Dr. Levy joins UBC with extensive expertise in anesthesiology, critical care, and coagulation medicine.

View Dr. Levy’s profile

 
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Congratulations to Dr. Andrew Minchinton on his promotion to Professor (Partner)

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Andrew Minchinton has been promoted to the academic rank of Professor (Partner) in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Dr. Minchinton is based at the BC Cancer Research Centre and is recognized for his contributions to radiation biology and cancer therapeutics research.

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Minchinton on this well-deserved achievement.

 
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Welcome to Our New Residency Manager – Susanna O’Neil

We are delighted to welcome Susanna O’Neil as the new Residency Manager for the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. Susanna brings a wealth of experience in academic program coordination and a deep commitment to supporting residents and faculty alike. Her collaborative spirit, and dedication to education will continue to provide the strong administrative leadership and support for the residency programs, AFCs and clinical fellowships that Shelley Berkow established and nurtured.

Susanna will start her position on December 8th and can be reached at susanna.oneil@ubc.ca or T: 604.875.4111 ext. 23125. Her office will be in DHCC room 10125. Please join us in extending a warm welcome to Susanna as she begins this exciting new chapter with our department.

Thank you again to Shelley Berkow for her dedicated service, professionalism and leadership. We will be organizing a tea for Shelley and will send you an invitation under separate cover.

 

UBC MD Undergraduate Program Granted Full Accreditation Through 2033

The UBC MD Undergraduate Program (MDUP) has received continued full accreditation through Spring 2033 from the Committee on Accreditation of Canadian Medical Schools (CACMS). This peer-reviewed process confirms that UBC’s medical program meets nationally accepted standards of educational quality and effectiveness, preparing graduates to become competent, ethical, and compassionate physicians.

Of the 96 CACMS Elements assessed, 92 were rated “Satisfactory” (including 11 with a need for monitoring), and 4 were rated “Unsatisfactory” requiring further action and monitoring. The program’s next major submission—a Status Report—is due December 1, 2027, with the next site visit scheduled for Spring 2033.

Visit the MDUP Accreditation website

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📅 Date: Thursday, January 15, 2026
⏰ Time: 4:30 – 8:30 p.m.
📍 Location: MSAC - 2750 Heather Street
✉️ Please RSVP by January 10th so we can make proper arrangements 🔗 Registration
❓ Questions? Contact Donald Kinloch at pathassist@pathology.ubc.ca

Please join us for our annual Seasonal Celebration and Departmental Awards evening — a chance to come together to recognize achievements and celebrate our faculty, staff, students, and guests.

All members of the Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine are warmly invited to attend.
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Research Feature – Dr. Christian Steidl in Science in Vancouver

A recent article in Science in Vancouver highlights work led by Dr. Christian Steidl (Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UBC) together with Drs. Marco Marra and David Scott at BC Cancer. Their research on genomic profiling of relapsed lymphoid cancers has identified new biomarkers that improve lymphoma classification and treatment planning. These discoveries have led to new diagnostic assays, including the LExA test, now used as standard of care in Vancouver and Toronto, and have influenced the World Health Organization’s classification of lymphomas.

Read the full article on Science in Vancouver

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UBC’s seed2STEM Program Receives City of Vancouver Leadership in Reconciliation Award

The seed2STEM summer research program for Indigenous high school students—co-chaired by Dr. Corree Laule (Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and Radiology; Associate Director of Education and Training at ICORD)—has been awarded the City of Vancouver’s 2025 Leadership in Reconciliation Award.

Founded in 2018 at ICORD, seed2STEM provides six-week paid research internships in university and hospital labs, along with cultural and logistical supports that make participation accessible for Indigenous students. Since its launch, the program has placed over 140 students in 112 labs across UBC and B.C. research institutions, fostering pathways into STEM education and careers.

The award recognizes seed2STEM’s collaborative, culturally grounded approach to advancing reconciliation through education and research.

Read the full story on the UBC Faculty of Medicine website

New Publication – Dr. Stephen Yip and colleagues in JNCI (Accepted Manuscript)

A new study co-authored by Dr. Stephen Yip (Associate Professor, Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UBC) has been published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. The research examined the patient and population impacts of multi-gene panel testing and pembrolizumab coverage for metastatic melanoma in British Columbia. The study found that the policy led to improved patient survival but significantly increased healthcare costs, without reducing population-level mortality.

Read the article in JNCI

New Resource: Navigating Generative AI (GenAI) for Administrative Use

A new GenAI guidance page has been launched on MedNet to help administrative staff at the Faculty of Medicine understand and apply Generative AI responsibly in their daily work. The page provides practical examples of administrative use, including drafting communications, summarizing reports, and brainstorming ideas. It also introduces structured prompt design using the RTF framework (Role, Task, Format) to improve AI results.

The resource outlines privacy, security, and accuracy guidelines — including the need for Privacy Impact Assessments (PIAs) when handling sensitive data and emphasizes transparency and accountability when using AI-generated content. Additional resources from UBC IT, CTLT, and the Faculty of Medicine are included for deeper learning and compliance support.

Visit the GenAI for Administrative Use page on MedNet

 

IT & Cybersecurity Update – UBC IT & UBC Faculty of Medicine

UBC IT has reported the first known phishing attempt through Microsoft Teams, where an attacker impersonated IT support and requested remote screen access. Read more

UBC community advised to be aware of sophisticated phishing campaign
UBC faculty, staff and students are being warned about a targeted phishing campaign impersonating Human Resources, payroll, and university administration. These fraudulent emails include fake login pages and deceptive multi-factor authentication prompts. Members of the community are reminded never to approve MFA prompts you did not initiate and to report any suspicious messages to security@ubc.ca. Read the full notice

 

Weekly Province-wide Pathology Rounds

Friday, November 14 — Province-Wide Pathology Rounds (12:00 noon – 1:00 pm)

Speaker: Dr. Shannon Russell
Presentation: “Genomic surveillance of carbapenemase-producing organisms (CPOs) in British Columbia: Creating actionable intelligence for healthcare partners”

Reminder: When you receive a meeting invitation in Outlook that you plan to attend (or tentatively attend), please click “Accept” so it appears in your calendar. This ensures you’ll receive any updates or changes to the meeting such as time adjustments, Zoom details, location changes, or added agenda items. If the invite isn’t accepted, Outlook will not automatically reflect these updates.

Thank you for helping keep things running smoothly!

Zoom Access

  • Go to ubc.zoom.us and click "Join a Meeting"
  • Meeting ID: 96254 992493
  • Passcode: 992493
  • Dial-in option: +1 778 907 2071 (long distance charges may apply)

🔁 Missed a session? View recordings of previous rounds here: Past Rounds Archive

💡 Have ideas for future rounds or speakers? We’d love to hear from you! Email us at pathassist@pathology.ubc.ca

BioConnect BC / D.R.I.N.K.S. – November Event

Reminder: this month’s BioConnect BC/D.R.I.N.K.S. is on Thursday, November 27. The sponsor is MAPS – Medical Affairs Professional Society.

Learn more about MAPS
Only two more events this year—mark your calendars.

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Notable Cases by Dr. Majid Moteabbed, Clinical Associate Professor:

A 77-year-old man with a remote history of prostate cancer was referred for bone marrow staging after a new diagnosis of mantle cell lymphoma. Peripheral blood smear (Image A) showed a few teardrop cells and a leukoerythroblastic reaction, but no circulating atypical lymphoma cells. Bone marrow aspirate was diluted, yet touch imprints of the trephine biopsy (Image B) revealed clusters of metastatic non-hematopoietic cells. H&E-stained trephine biopsy (Images C & D) demonstrated a nesting pattern of metastatic cells with diffuse marrow involvement.

Flow cytometry supported minimal marrow involvement by mantle cell lymphoma (Image J). B-cell markers CD20 and CD79a (Image E) highlighted rare scattered B cells and were negative in the infiltrating cells. In contrast, the infiltrating cells were positive for AE1/AE3 (Image F) and NKX3.1 (Image G), confirming diffuse marrow infiltration by metastatic prostate cancer. Interestingly, Cyclin D1—initially ordered to assess mantle cell lymphoma—was incidentally positive in the metastatic cells (Image H). Cyclin D1 overexpression is significantly more frequent in metastatic prostate cancer, especially in androgen-independent bone metastases, compared to primary tumors. This highlights its strong association with metastatic progression and underscores the importance of contextual interpretation when evaluating Cyclin D1 positivity.

A striking reminder that context is everything in immunohistochemistry.

Pathology Picks:

Here are some additional reads you might be interested in:

  • Privacy Matters @ UBC Symposium 2025 – Event Recap
    The 8th annual Privacy Matters symposium was held on October 29, bringing together over 400 faculty and staff to discuss privacy and cybersecurity best practices across UBC. Read more
  • Search launched for new Vice-President, Research and Innovation
    UBC has begun the search for a new Vice-President, Research and Innovation, following the announcement that Dr. Gail C. Murphy will step down on May 31, 2026. Read more
  • 2025 Venture Showcase – November 25 at Robson Square
    UBC’s annual Venture Showcase will highlight new start-ups and research-based ventures creating real-world impact across health, climate, and social sectors. Read more
  • Healthy UBC – November 2025 Edition
    Explore how UBC promotes wellbeing and psychological health across teaching, learning, and workplace environments. This issue highlights Thrive Month events and resources, including the keynote session “Building Resilience in Times of Change” with Dr. Marie-Hélène Pelletier, workplace wellbeing initiatives, mental health training opportunities, and the new Student Grief Guide developed at UBC Okanagan. Read the November issue of Healthy UBC

📣 Have News to Share?

Do you have a story, publication, award, event, or other exciting update to share with the UBC Pathology community?

We’d love to hear from you! Please reach out to Debbie Bertanjoli at dbertanjoli@pathology.ubc.ca.

Let’s celebrate our collective achievements and keep our community connected!