Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) appoints Robert N. Klein to Board of Directors

TORONTO, June 20, 2013 /CNW/ - Dr. Calvin Stiller, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Ontario Institute for Cancer Research (OICR) today announced the appointment of Robert N. Klein to OICR's Board of Directors.

Mr. Klein initiated California's Proposition 71, a $3 billion ballot initiative that established the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM). He served as Chairman of the Governing Board of CIRM for its first seven years and was elected Chairman Emeritus for the organization in 2011. He has been a member of Genome Canada's Board of Directors since 2007 and was Co-chair of the Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Working Group of the Canada-California Strategic Innovation Partnership, the group that initiated the Cancer Stem Cell Consortium.

"We are very pleased to have Mr. Klein join OICR's Board of Directors," said Dr. Stiller. "Mr. Klein's vast experience in the not-for-profit and medical research fields will be an asset to OICR. His commitment and unique expertise will help in accelerating translation of the best cancer research discoveries into new treatments and diagnostic tools for patients."

"I am pleased to welcome Mr. Klein to OICR's Board of Directors," said Reza Moridi, Ontario's Minister of Research and Innovation. "OICR was established to bring the best minds from around the world together to advance cancer research. We are fortunate to have attracted Mr. Klein's expertise to the world-class research community right here in Ontario."

In 2005, Time Magazine selected Mr. Klein as "one of the World's 100 Most Influential People of the Year" for his continued advocacy work in California. That same year, Scientific American named him one of "The Scientific American 50" as a leader shaping the future of science. In 2010, Research!America honored him with the Gordon and Llura Gund Leadership Award for his work in and dedication to patient advocacy. Most recently, in 2012, the Trustees of the California State University awarded Mr. Klein an honorary Doctor of Laws degree for his work in helping advance regenerative medicine and stem cell research. He is currently the President of Klein Financial Corporation, a company that designs and implements innovative solutions for affordable housing mortgage financing.

Mr. Klein, a member of both the California and the American Bar Association, has an Honours B.A. from Stanford University and a Juris Doctorate from Stanford Law School.

About OICR
OICR is an innovative cancer research and development institute dedicated to prevention, early detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The Institute is an independent, not-for-profit corporation, supported by the Government of Ontario. The annual budget for OICR, its research partners and collaborators exceeds $150 million. This supports more than 1,600 investigators, clinician scientists, research staff and trainees located at its headquarters and in research institutes and academia across the Province of Ontario. OICR has key research efforts underway in small molecules, biologics, stem cells, imaging, genomics, informatics and bio-computing. For more information, please visit the website at www.oicr.on.ca.

SOURCE: Ontario Institute for Cancer Research

Christopher Needles
Manager, Strategic Communications
Ontario Institute for Cancer Research
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