Our board of directors
Governance, leadership and public accountability. Establishing priorities and acting as a trustee on behalf of Canadians.
A message from the chair of our board of directors@(Model.HeadingTag)>
Last year the Canadian Cancer Society again improved its financial efficiency. We will announce our third consecutive surplus, while maintaining our level of research investment (~$40 million a year) and other mission support – education, lodges, rides to treatment, wig and prosthesis loans, support and government advocacy. Nearly 1 in 2 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. We now know 40% of cancers are preventable, so we are launching a new initiative investing in research to discover and inform Canadians about living healthier lifestyles and we are advocating for government participation. And for those who are diagnosed, the Society will continue to provide support to make their journey less hard.
We also achieved two new strategic initiatives:
- Amalgamation with Prostate Cancer Canada, continuing our commitment to consolidate the sector to reduce expense and to dedicate more donor dollars to mission, all to help bring us closer to realizing our vision of a world where no Canadian fears cancer; and
- CDL Cancer from our soon-to-be-opened new Centre for Cancer Prevention and Support in Vancouver. It will be the first venture incubator- accelerator discovering and supporting early-stage science and technology startup ventures focusing on cancer prevention and support and accelerating early-stage ventures’ commercialization in Canada and beyond.
On behalf of the Board of Directors, thank you to our new CEO, Andrea Seale, and our staff; to our donors and volunteers, our work simply would not happen without your support; and to researchers and clinical professionals, you are on the front line giving us strength as you make discoveries and bring comfort as you offer compassionate care. None of this progress would be possible without all of you. Together, we are all a force-for-life in the face of cancer.
Robert Lawrie

Rob Lawrie (Chair)


Rob Assimakopoulos


Dr Robert Bell
Dr Bell received his Doctor of Medicine from McGill University and a Masters of Science from the University of Toronto, and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the American College of Surgeons.


John Boynton


Philippe Couillard
Philippe Couillard is currently a consultant. He practiced neurosurgery for 20 years before serving as Minister of Health and Social Services in Quebec from 2003 to 2008. In 2014, Philippe became the 31st Premier of Quebec, a position he held until his retirement from politics in 2018. During his political tenure, Philippe led important structural reforms, banned smoking in public places and significantly improved Quebec’s public finances and its economic outlook.
Philippe holds a Doctor of Medicine and Diploma in Neurosurgery from the University of Montreal. He also holds Specialist’s Certificates from the Quebec College of Physicians and from the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada.


Dr Chen Fong
A radiologist by training, Dr Chen Fong is currently the Professor Emeritus of Faculty of Medicine, University of Calgary. He is also the Co-Chair of the Global Strategy Board of the Creative Destruction Lab; a platform of mentoring of young entrepreneurs. Dr Fong has 18 years of experience in the building of start-up entrepreneurial companies as well as participation in a number of philanthropic boards in healthcare.
Dr Fong holds an MD from University of Manitoba and an Honorary Doctor of Laws from University of Calgary. He was invested into Order of Canada, inducted into Junior Achievement’s Alberta Business Hall of Fame and elected as Fellow of America College of Radiology.


Chan Hon Goh
Chan Hon Goh is the Director of the Goh Ballet Academy and has spent over 20 years on stage as a principal dancer for the National Ballet of Canada. She is also a founding member of Vancouver’s Arts and Culture Policy Council, which advocates for the creative arts community.
Chan has been awarded several prestigious awards, including the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the YWCA Women of Distinction Award. In 2019, she was appointed as a member to the Order of Canada for her excellence in ballet as a principal dancer, artistic director and cultural ambassador.


Diane Gosselin
During her tenure at CQDM, Diane has engaged a national network of over 2000 researchers across Canada and raised over $80M in funding from 14 of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.
Prior to CQDM, Diane worked for the Fonds de solidarité and PROCREA BioSciences, where she led the research team that developed the first non-invasive diagnostic test for endometriosis and developed the world’s largest tissue bank for endometriosis research.
Diane currently sits on the boards of various research and science organizations.
Diane holds a Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from University of Montreal, as well as an Executive MBA from Université du Québec à Montréal and Université Paris-Dauphine. More recently, she completed a university certification program in Corporate Governance from Université Laval.


Dr David Huntsman


Yolande James
Yolande was elected to the Quebec National Assembly in 2004. She was the first Black female Member of the National Assembly, as well as Quebec’s first Black Cabinet Minister.
In 2007, Yolande was appointed QC’s Minister of Immigration and Cultural Communities. In 2010, she was appointed Minister of Families. During her tenure, she overhauled the governance for subsidized daycare, a service that is critically important to working families. She was also Deputy House Leader for the Official Opposition from 2012 to 2013.
Yolande founded the Valorisation Jeunesse Program which offers young people access to professional job opportunities and ensures companies have a more diverse workforce.
Yolande has a degree in Civil Law from the University of Montreal and a degree in Common Law from Queen’s University.


Shachi Kurl


Rex Lee
Rex Lee is the Chief Information Officer of Canadian Tire Corporation (CTC), accountable for all aspects of technology strategy, architecture, development, operations, and cyber security. Before joining CTC in 2012, Rex held senior technology leadership roles at BlackBerry, Bell Canada and Bell Mobility leading efforts in Innovation, Digital Transformation, eCommerce, Advanced Analytics, Social Computing, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Automation and Architecture.
Rex has a passion for continuously advancing technology systems, agile processes, and operating models and has been featured in various publications including the Wall Street Journal. He holds an MBA in Marketing and Technology Management from McMaster University and an undergraduate degree from the University of Western Ontario.


Bretta Maloff


Christine McCourt-Reid
Christine McCourt-Reid is a communications consultant specializing in not-for-profit organizations with a focus on strategic communications, media relations and fund development. She also works in community advocacy, stewardship and engagement, and believes in the importance of maintaining an active connection with her communities of interest.
Christine has been the recipient of the Top 40 Under 40 Award, the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and the Sovereign’s Medal for Volunteers.


Nancy McKay


Susan McPeak
Susan is a breast cancer survivor who participated in a life-saving clinical trial. Capitalizing on her 10+ years of experience in key management positions in marketing and business development, she decided to get involved in making clinical research more accessible in Quebec.
In 2019, Susan was recognized for her contributions to breast cancer research by the Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer (IRIC) at the University of Montreal. The same year, she was named Personality of the Week by La Presse +. In 2018, she received the Prix Innovation dans la communauté from the Quebec Breast Cancer Foundation.
Susan has an MA in German Literature from the University of Montreal.


James Moore


Hilary Pearson
From 2001 to 2019, she was the founding President of Philanthropic Foundations Canada. She also served on the Governor-General’s Advisory Committee on Volunteerism and Philanthropy and co-chaired the Advisory Committee on the Charitable Sector, advising the Federal Minister of Revenue on charitable policy and regulatory issues.
In 2018, she was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada for her contributions to building the field of philanthropy in Canada. In October 2020, she became Chancellor of Brock University.She holds a BA and an MA in Political Economy from the University of Toronto and was awarded honourary doctorates from Carleton University and the University of New Brunswick.


Valerie Steele


Christopher Wein
In addition to his role, Christopher also acts as Chair of the Design Exchange and has been Chair of Prostate Cancer Canada. Christopher was previously a Governor of the North York General Hospital Foundation, as well as many other health, philanthropic, arts and community Boards. He was also the recipient of Calgary Inc.’s Top 40 Under 40 award in 2004.


David Woollcombe
