Women and Children's Health Research Institute

10/14/2026

10/14/2026

October is Menopause Awareness Month! 💭

1 in 4 women experience severe physical and mental health symptoms during menopause that can affect their well-being and quality of life? This month, we’re highlighting why investing in women’s health means investing in Alberta’s families, workplaces and economy.

🔗 Learn more about the opportunity to close the gaps in women’s health: https://www.albertawomenshealthfoundation.org/public/download/files/359193

Alberta Health Services Women and Children's Health Research Institute Women's Health Collective Canada Organon McKinsey & Company

10/09/2026

How do we transform bench science into real-world medicine? Our students spent their summer studying DNA-like molecules to create safer, less invasive treatments for kids with spinal muscular atrophy and analyzing cellular pathways to find out why some cervical cancer cells are resistant to treatment.

🔗 Click the link in bio to discover their research!

Innovating to save lives in transplant science 🫀 Alice Cai is evaluating special enzymes called “Azymes” to convert type A donor hearts into universal type O organs, aiming to increase equitable access to safe heart transplants for women and children.

Alice’s research was funded by Stollery Kids & Alberta Women's Health Foundation.

Curiosity driving life-changing discoveries 🧪 Rida Shaikh is studying small DNA-like molecules and peptide delivery methods to create a safer, less invasive, whole-body treatment for children with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

Rida’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

Unlocking new therapeutic avenues 🧠 Averi Chan is exploring how high-fat, low-carb ketogenic diets might leverage neuroprotective effects to reduce brain damage and long-term complications in newborns affected by hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.

Averi’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

Evaluating weight-loss medications in youth health 🏋️‍♀️ Ashley Trudeau is investigating whether popular semaglutide treatments impact skeletal muscle mass in juvenile models, aiming to discover strategies to preserve muscle health during pediatric obesity care.

Ashley’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

“Behind each diagnosis is someone with real lived experience.” ❤️ Christy Chan is bridging data and compassionate care by examining outcomes for rare uterine tumours (STUMP) to create standardized follow-up guidelines for patients.

Christy’s research was funded by Alberta Women's Health Foundation.

Why do some cervical cancer cells manage to resist standard treatments? 🧬 Yavnika Gulia is stepping outside her comfort zone to analyze complex cellular pathways and discover how targeting internal survival signals can help re-sensitize resistant cells to therapy.

Yavnika’s research was funded by Alberta Women's Health Foundation.

10/05/2026

Are you passionate about research and social media? We're offering an exclusive opportunity for WCHRI trainees* to be our official social media correspondents at WCHRI Research Day on November 4, 2026!

Share live updates, cool discoveries and other exciting moments from Research Day directly to WCHRI’s Instagram account. This is your chance to:

-Engage with a broad audience in real time.
-Gain valuable experience in science communications.
-Capture the energy and excitement of Research Day.
-Inspire others with stories of groundbreaking research.

Don't miss out on this unique chance to put your social media skills to work and make a splash at Research Day!

Apply at the link in our bio Women & Children's Health Research Institute by FRIDAY October 9

10/02/2026

Protecting the smallest patients takes big ideas. Check out how our summer student researchers are examining pediatric health outcomes, including analyzing data from the 2025 Alberta measles outbreak to keep children safe.

🔗 Check out the link in bio for the full profile!

Combining caregiver insights and clinician observations 🧩 Inspired by her nephew, Arshjot Kaur is investigating how pregnancy length influences social and communication behaviour outcomes in children with autism following service interventions.

Arshjot’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

Understanding self-regulation in middle childhood 🧠 Haley Fell is conducting a systematic review to explore how emotional, behavioural and cognitive self-regulation relate to ADHD symptoms in youth, aiming to inform improved classroom and clinical supports.

Haley’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

Can humanoid robots lessen fear in emergency waiting rooms? 🤖 Drawing on his experiences as a father visiting the pediatric ED, Raymond Odsen is evaluating how small humanoid robots providing music, dance and mindfulness can reduce stress for children and families.

Raymond’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

Addressing the rise of vaccine-preventable illness 📊 In the wake of the 2025 Alberta measles outbreak, David Yao is examining clinical data from over 1,500 pediatric measles cases to help identify key risk factors and protect vulnerable kids.

David’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

10/01/2026

“When standard treatment is no longer working for a patient, the possibility of entering a clinical trial offers hope.”

For WCHRI member Dr. Lawrence Richer, accelerating clinical trials is deeply personal. His own mother participated in clinical trials before passing away from metastatic cancer. Now, as project co-lead of the Alberta FAST program and a pediatric neurologist at the U of A, he envisions a system where clinicians can recruit patients for trials as soon as they become eligible.

By streamlining approvals and cutting patient sign-up times from 90+ days to 45, Dr. Richer is helping ensure experimental treatments reach those who need them most, faster than ever.

Learn more:

A new collaboration involving the University of Alberta, the University of Calgary, Acute Care Alberta and Alberta Innovates aims to make more clinical trials available to Albertans, so they can gain access to new treatments as soon as possible.

09/28/2026

From assessing how digital media can help prevent online sexual violence against teens to uncovering critical gaps in women’s health, see how our researchers are working to ensure care and studies represent everyone.

🔗 Head to the link in bio to read the full feature!

“It was eye-opening, and honestly frustrating, to realize how many important questions about women’s health remain unanswered.” 🔬 Janine Nel is tackling health equity by auditing ten years of preclinical kidney research to see how often early drug studies include female models.

Janine’s research was funded by Alberta Women's Health Foundation.

Understanding the unique risks facing newcomer youth 🇨🇦 Chitvi Mahajan is investigating emergency department data in Alberta to understand unintentional injury risks among young immigrants and help create tailored prevention strategies for families.

Chitvi’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

Can digital media help prevent online sexual violence? 📱 Areen Khan is conducting a scoping review on digital sexual health education strategies to evaluate how social platforms can effectively reach adolescents and prevent technology-facilitated violence.

Areen’s research was funded by Stollery Kids.

Advocating for better health-care access in Northern communities 🏔️ Driven by a desire to become a rural family doctor, Kate Zucconi is examining health outcomes for pregnant individuals from Northern Canada who had to travel to Edmonton to give birth.

Kate’s research was funded by Stollery Kids & Alberta Women's Health Foundation.

09/18/2026

190. That’s how many Albertans are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year. 💭

Behind every number is a woman, her family and her future.

This Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, we’re highlighting the gaps in women’s health research and the need to invest in diseases like ovarian cancer. Research can help improve prevention, detection and treatment, leading to better health outcomes for women. 🔬

🔗 The numbers tell us we need to act. Explore the publication: https://www.albertawomenshealthfoundation.org/our-impact/ab-womens-health-opportunity

Women and Children's Health Research Institute Women's Health Collective Canada Organon Alberta Health Services McKinsey & Company

09/18/2026

Explore how our summer students are bridging the gap between care and community—from creating health education tools for bladder pain syndrome to addressing health-care experiences for complex pain and training providers on disability care.

🔗 Tap the link to explore their full profiles and projects!

https://www.wchri.org/our-impact/summer-studentship-profiles/

09/17/2026

From studying the effects of weight-loss drugs on young muscles to using AI to detect osteoporosis at routine dental visits, WCHRI summer students are dedicated to making breakthroughs in health research.

Our members supervised 29 students this year, with support from Stollery Kids and Alberta Women's Health Foundation. Read about their wide-ranging projects at the link in our bio