Medical Advisory Board

• Dr. Choan E read more

  Dr. E, Staff Radiation Oncologist, Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Centre; Assistant Professor of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa.

  Dr. E is the Staff Radiation Oncologist at the Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Centre and is an Assistant Professor of the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Ottawa. He is a certified member of the American Board of Radiology and a member of the Gynecologic Oncology Society of Canada. He is also the Director of the Radiation Oncology Residency Training Program and Head of the Gynecologic Oncology Site Group at The Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Centre.

  Dr. E’s practice is focused on the treatment malignancies in the Gynecologic and Genito-urinary and has developed and published several studies in this area. He has also worked as an expert reviewer for Health Canada and has been a panelist on various medical review boards on a provincial and national level.

• Dr. Ellen Greenblatt read more

  Dr. Ellen Greenblatt, Programme Director of the Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility fellowship in the Department of Gynecology, University of Toronto; Clinical Director of the Reproductive Biology Unit and IVF Unit; Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Mount Sinai Hospital.

  Dr. Greenblatt is Clinical Director of the Reproductive Biology Unit and IVF Unit in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, as well as Programme Director of the Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility fellowship in the Department of Gynecology, University of Toronto. Dr.Greenblatt is an assistant professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Toronto. She is the National Director of the Canadian Fertility Andrology Society.

  Dr. Greenblatt completed her medical school (McGill University) and Ob/Gyn Residency (University of Western Ontario) in Canada. Dr. Greenblatt was then funded by the Medical Research Council of Canada for further training in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at the University of California, San Francisco. Upon returning to Canada in 1990, Dr. Greenblatt accepted a position with the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, of the University of Toronto. Dr. Greenblatt is a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada (Ob/Gyn) as well as a Fellow of the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ABOG). Dr. Greenblatt holds the ABOG subspecialty certification in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility.

• Dr. Thomas G Hannam read more

  Dr. Thomas G Hannam, Founder of the Hannam Fertility Centre, on the board of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society, Member of the Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology of Canada.

  After obtaining his MD from the University of British Columbia in 1995, Dr. Hannam completed his training (FRCSC) in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at McMaster University, followed by a two-year fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at the University of Toronto. Dr. Hannam was one of the first physicians from U of T with this accreditation.

  Dr. Hannam sits on the board of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society, and is a member of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, the Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of Canada, and the European Society for Human Reproduction and Endocrinology. He has presented his research findings on numerous occasions to international peer-reviewed meetings, and is a frequent guest expert on tv and radio. Dr Hannam founded the Hannam Fertility Centre in 2006.

• Dr. Hananel Holzer read more

  Dr. Hananel Holzer, Attending Physician, the McGill Reproductive Centre; Assistant Professor, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at McGill University; Program Director, Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Fellowship.

  Dr. Hananel Holzer is an attending physician and staff member at the McGill Reproductive Centre. He is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at McGill University and the Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility Fellowship, Program Director. He joined the medical staff of the McGill Reproductive Centre in 2006. His main interests are fertility preservation for cancer and non-cancer patients, in-vitro maturation of oocytes and a comprehensive team approach to infertility related issues. Dr Holzer is responsible for the McGill Reproductive Center Fertility Preservation Program.

  Dr. Holzer graduated from the Hebrew University and Hadassah Medical School in Jerusalem as Class Valedictorian in 1992.He was certified as a specialist in Obstetrics, Gynecology and Infertility by the Scientific Committee of the Israeli Medical Association. He also completed a clinical and research fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at McGill University. As a specialist Dr. Holzer served as a senior physician and a staff member in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Hadassah Medical Centre. He served as the Deputy Director of the IVF unit at Hadassah Mt. Scopus from 1998 to 2004 and was the founder and director of the fertility clinic in the city of Modi’in, where he also served as Medical Director of the Woman’s Health Centre. In addition, he was in charge of the instruction of medical students at the IVF and Obstetrics and Gynecology clinics.

  Dr. Holzer received the Hebrew University and Hadassah School of Medicine Faculty Prize for Outstanding MD Thesis and the prize for outstanding research from the Israeli Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology. In 2003 he was named to the Rector’s list of Hebrew University as Outstanding Lecturer in Obstetrics and Gynecology. In 2007 he was awarded the James Fraser Jewell Memorial Fellowship. In 2008 he was awarded the Daniel Webster Fellowship prize for outstanding research in infertility. He is the author and co-author of many infertility-related papers and book chapters.

• Dr. Edward Hughes read more

  Dr. Edward Hughes, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, McMaster University; Former Clinical Director, McMaster University Fertility Clinic; Former President of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society.

  Dr. Ed Hughes is a Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario. Before joining the faculty at McMaster in 1989, he received training in the UK, Canada and Australia. He also worked as a GP in Bella Bella, BC. Since joining the McMaster team, Dr. Hughes has completed a Masters degree in Health Research Methodology.

  Dr. Edward Hughes is a Reproductive Endocrinologist and Infertility specialist. His research focus is the effectiveness of fertility treatments. He led the first multi-centre RCT of IVF versus no treatment in 2002 and was a founding editor of the Cochrane Collaboration sub-fertility group several years earlier. Ed is also an artist and is currently exploring the value of art therapy as a healing tool for sub-fertile women.

  Dr. Hughes is the former Clinical Director of the McMaster University Fertility clinic and the immediate Past-President of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society. This is the primary professional organization representing Canadian scientists, nurses, counselors and clinicians working in the field of sub-fertility. He continues to be actively involved in the politics of fertility care in Canada, working with the CFAS, SOGC and Agency for Human Reproduction Canada to ensure access to safe, effective care for Canadians facing sub-fertility.

• Dr. Arthur Leader read more

  Dr. Arthur Leader, Professor, Departments of Obstetrics/Gynecology & Medicine (Endocrinology), University of Ottawa; Former Chief, Division of Reproductive Medicine, Ottawa Hospital and the University of Ottawa; Co-Director of Ottawa Fertility Centre; Former President of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society.

  Dr. Arthur Leader is a Professor, Departments of Obstetrics/Gynecology & Medicine (Endocrinology) at the University of Ottawa and former Chief, Division of Reproductive Medicine at the Ottawa Hospital and the University. He was the president of the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society (CFAS). Dr. Leader has a baccalaureate in Political Science and Economics from the University of Toronto and received his undergraduate medical training and internship at McMaster University (Canada). He was one of 19 graduates from its first medical class. Dr. Leader worked at WHO (Geneva) as a consultant with the Special Programme of Research, Development and Research Training in Human Reproduction (1973–4). He was a Medical Research Council of Canada Fellow in Obstetrics Gynecology at the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm (1974–5). He completed his specialty training in Obstetrics & Gynecology in the London (UK) teaching hospitals (1975–7) and returned to Sweden (Gothenborg) as a clinical fellow in reproductive medicine at the Sahlgrenska Hospital (1977–8).

  On returning to Canada, he completed his qualifications for and received his FRCSC in 1980. He worked in Kapuskasing (Ontario) (underserviced area programme) before moving to Calgary as a Research Fellow and then consultant at the University of Calgary (1981–6). Since 1986, he has been at the University of Ottawa where he was Acting Department Chairman (1994–96). Dr. Leader has received scholarships and awards from the Ontario government, the University of Toronto, the MRC of Canada and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He has been listed in Canada’s Who’s Who since 1992. He received the Award of Excellence in 2006 from the CFAS.

  Dr. Leader has been involved for 25 years in undergraduate medical education as a teacher and chairperson of the new curriculum planning/implementation in obstetrics/gynecology at the University of Ottawa. He has been the Secretary for the test committee in Obstetrics & Gynecology, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. He was an external examiner in Obstetrics & Gynecology, the University of Jordan. He sits on the residency training committee for Gynecologic Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility at the University of Ottawa. He was the national coordinator for the annual Residents Review Course in Obstetrics & Gynecology.

  Dr. Leader is the author of over 80 articles in refereed journals, several book chapters and review articles. He is a member of the Stem Cell Oversight Committee of CIHR. He chairs expert working groups for both Health Canada and the CSA on safety standards in assisted human reproduction. He was a consultant from 1990–93 to the Royal Commission on New Reproductive Technologies (Canada). He has spoken extensively within Canada on infertility. He has been called on to advise governments on policy issues related to the New Reproductive and Genetic Technologies. He is the past chairman of the Government Relations Committee for the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society. He was chairman of the provincial (Ontario) task force which developed and reviewed clinical practice guidelines and facility standards in obstetrics and gynecology. He was a member of the clinical quality improvement teams of his hospital and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. He holds or has held grants from the MRC (CIHR), Health Canada and the pharmaceutical industry. His current research is focused on the environmental causes of male and female infertility and the medical treatment of infertility.

• Dr. Kirk Lo read more

  Dr. Kirk Lo, Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery, University of Toronto; Staff Urologist, Mount Sinai Hospital.

  Dr. Lo is a graduate of McGill University Medical School and completed his urology residency at McGill in 2002. He finished a 2-year fellowship in Male Reproductive Medicine and Surgery at the Baylor College of Medicine Houston, Texas. He was awarded the prestigious American Urologic Association Scholarship for his research work on testicular stem cell biology, and gamete preservation in cancer patients.

  Kirk was appointed to Mount Sinai Hospital as a staff Urologist, and Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at University of Toronto. In addition to patient care, he is also involved in basic science research. His work focuses on the preservation of fertility in cancer patients from both clinical and basic science aspects. His laboratory has recently received a Physician Service Incorporated (PSI) foundation research grant to perform semen proteomic study for the diagnosis and treatment of male infertility.

  Dr. Lo is currently a member of the American Society of Reproductive Medicine (ASRM), and on the Awards committee for American Society of Andrology.

• Dr. Karen Mandel read more

  Dr. Karen Mandel, Programme Leader for the Childhood Cancer Survivor Programme, University of Ottawa; Member of the Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario; Member of the Late Effects Committee of the Children’s Oncology Group.

  Dr. Karen Mandel did her undergraduate medical training at the University of Western Ontario. She then completed a Pediatrics residency at the University of Chicago followed by a fellowship in Pediatric Hematology/Oncology at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. She holds Royal College certification in both Pediatrics and Hematology/Oncology. During fellowship, Dr. Mandel had the opportunity to work at a summer camp for children with cancer. It was there that she became aware of the effects that cancer therapy can have on the growing and developing bodies of children. That inspired Dr. Mandel to pursue a special interest in the Aftercare of childhood cancer survivors.

  Dr. Mandel is currently the Programme Leader for the Childhood Cancer Survivor Programme at the University of Ottawa. The program runs follow-up clinics both at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario and The Ottawa Hospital Regional Cancer Centre. She is also a member of the Pediatric Oncology Group of Ontario (POGO) Aftercare cluster as well as the Late Effects committee of the Children’s Oncology Group (COG). The Childhood Cancer Survivor Programme continues to educate and advocate for the health needs of the special population.

• Michael Neal read more

  Michael Neal, Laboratory Director, Hamilton Health Sciences Centre for Reproductive Care; Completing a PhD in the Reproductive Biology Division, McMaster University.

  Michael Neal completed his Masters Degree in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Guelph, focusing on the reproductive consequences of chromosome abnormalities. He began his career in Human IVF by working in a private clinic in Toronto. Mike joined the Hamilton Health Sciences Centre for Reproductive Care in 2000 where he is now the Laboratory Director. He is in the final stages of completing a PhD in the Medical Sciences program in the Reproductive Biology Division at McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.

  Michael Neal’s experience in clinical ART and his keen research interest in the field of assisted conception has gained him an international reputation for excellence. He has numerous peer-reviewed publications and is a frequent reviewer for many major scientific journals related to reproduction. Mike received the prestigious Laboratory Innovation in Fertility and Embryology (LIFE) Award in 2003. Recent honours include: Best Basic Science Paper, Best Clinical Paper, Alpha Exchange, and the R.T. Weaver Award, among other acknowledgements. In addition to his clinical responsibilities, Mike has an interest in research in the following areas:

  1. effect of environmental contaminants on fertility,
  2. non-invasive measurements of embryo quality and
  3. fertility preservation for male and female oncology patients.

• Dr. Marie Plante read more

  Dr. Marie Plante, Chief of the Gynecologic Oncology Division, Laval University; Chief of the Gynecology Service, l’Hotel-Dieu de Québec; President of the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists of Canada.

  Dr. Plante received her medical degree from Laval Unversity in 1985 and completed her residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at McGill University in 1990. She then completed a 3-year fellowship training in Gynecologic Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New-York in 1993. Since then she has been on staff at l’Hotel-Dieu de Québec. Dr. Marie Plante is currently Associate Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Laval University. She is Chief of the Gynecologic Oncology Division at Laval University and Chief of the Gynecology Service at l’Hotel-Dieu de Québec. She is also in charge of the clinical research in gynecologic oncology at l’Hotel-Dieu de Québec.

  Dr. Plante is currently President of Society of Gynecologic Oncologists of Canada (GOC) (2008–2010) and member of the Nominating Committee at the International Gynecologic Cancer Society. She has been involved with the American Fertile Hope Organization as well. Dr Plante has major interest in minimally invasive surgical (MIS) approaches in the treatment of gynecologic cancers and specifically in fertility-preserving surgery for young women with cervical cancer. She has extensively published on the radical trachelectomy procedure, a procedure which allows uterine preservation and fertility preservation in young women with early-stage cervical cancer. She has written numerous book chapters and presented at numerous national and international meetings. She has been involved in several hands-on courses and has taught the procedure to numerous fellows in training and gynecologic oncologists from Canada and abroad.

• Dr. Jeff Roberts read more

  Dr. Jeff Roberts, Co-Director of Pacific Centre for Reproductive Medicine.

  Dr. Roberts has B.Sc. (hon) and M.D. degrees from the University of British Columbia. He completed his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at McGill University, then a three-year fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at the Center for Reproductive Medicine and Infertility at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York. Upon completing his training, Dr. Roberts was appointed Assistant Professor in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, where he served as a Reproductive Endocrinologist and Director of the Donor Egg Program at Women and Infants Hospital of Rhode Island.

  Dr. Roberts is board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. His focus is on uterine surgery, fertility preservation, and in vitro fertilization (IVF).

• Dr. Seang Lin Tan read more

  Dr. Seang Lin Tan, Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, McGill University; Obstetrician and Gynecologist-in-Chief of the McGill University Health Centre.

  Dr. Seang Lin Tan is the James Edmund Dodds Professor and Chairman of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at McGill University. He is also Obstetrician and Gynecologist-in-Chief of the McGill University Health Centre.

  Dr. Tan is an internationally recognized infertility expert and a pioneer in the simplification of in-vitro fertilization. He founded the McGill Reproductive Center and led the team that produced the world’s first air transport in-vitro fertilization and intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection pregnancies. His team is the pioneer in Canada in the use of in-vitro maturation of human oocytes for the treatment of infertility and in the use of in-vitro maturation and vitrification of oocytes to preserve fertility in young women undergoing cancer treatment.

  Dr. Tan has published seven books, over 280 original scientific papers and review articles, and has made over 185 research presentations. He has been on the editorial board of nine medical journals and is regularly invited to speak at national and international scientific meetings. He is a member of the International Federation of Obstetrics and Gynecology Expert Advisory Panels on Reproductive Medicine and Ultrasound as well as a fellow of the International Academy on Human Reproduction. He is the Founding President of the International Society of In-Vitro Maturation (ISIVM) and the Global Chinese Association for Reproductive Medicine (GCARM) and the Founding Treasurer of the International Society of In-Vitro Fertilization (ISIVF).

  In 1998, he received the Canadian Fertility and Andrology Society – European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology Exchange Speaker Award and, in 1999, the Resolve Award from the National Infertility Association of the United States for outstanding contribution in the field of ultrasound. Dr. Tan was the John Collins lecturer at the 2001 CFAS meeting. In 2006, he received the R. Howard Webster Foundation Grant for research in reproductive medicine and menopause. He has also been awarded the Howard Eddey Gold Medal by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons and the MRCOG Gold Medal by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in the United Kingdom. In 2003, he earned an MBA degree with distinction from the New York University/London School of Economics/HEC Grande Ecole Paris TRIUM Executive MBA Program.

• Dr. Beth Taylor read more

  Dr. Beth Taylor, Professor in the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of British Columbia; Co-Director of Genesis Fertility Centre.

  Dr. Beth Taylor is originally from Nova Scotia and completed her medical degree at Dalhousie University in 1998. She then moved to British Columbia and completed her obstetrics and gynecology residency in 2004 at the University of British Columbia (UBC). After practicing obstetrics and gynecology for one year she entered a fellowship in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at UBC. Upon completing this fellowship she began practice at Genesis Fertility Centre.

  Dr. Taylor holds a position with the Faculty of Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, of the University of British Columbia and is a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada (Ob/Gyn). She holds subspecialty certification in Gynecologic Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. Dr. Taylor’s focus is on fertility surgery, fertility preservation and IVF.

• Dr. Ellen Warner read more

  Dr. Ellen Warner, Medical Oncologist, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto; Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Toronto; Founder of PYNK: Breast Cancer Program for Young Women.

  Dr. Warner is a medical oncologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre in Toronto and an Associate Professor of Medicine since 2000 at the University of Toronto.

  Dr. Warner obtained her medical degree at the University of Toronto, graduating in 1980 as the class gold medalist. Following her fellowship in medical and radiation oncology she then completed an MSc. in Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Toronto. From 1988 to 1993 Dr. Warner ran the medical oncology service at Toronto Western Hospital and then at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto.

  Since 1993 Dr. Warner has been on staff as a medical oncologist at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, initially treating patients with gynecologic and breast cancers and later breast cancer only. In 1994 her research focus shifted to hereditary breast-ovarian cancer and she has published and lectured extensively in this area. Her work has included establishment of genetic testing criteria and development of educational materials for women at risk for hereditary cancer and their physicians, which are now distributed by the Canadian Cancer Society. Since 1997 Dr. Warner, working with the world-renowned imaging researchers at Sunnybrook, has been the principal investigator of a study funded by the Canadian Breast Cancer Research Alliance (CBCRA), which has demonstrated the marked superiority of MRI over mammography for screening women at risk for hereditary breast cancer.

  Since 2005 Dr. Warner has been developing a novel clinical and research program (PYNK: Breast Cancer Program for Young Women) for women ages 40 and under newly diagnosed with breast cancer. These women will receive a continuum of care from the time of diagnosis through treatment and long-term follow-up. A designated primary care nurse will act as a ‘system navigator’ and advocate. Patients will have expedited access to a variety of specialists such as fertility experts, gynecologists and geneticists. The twin goals of the research arm of PYNK are to enable these young women to benefit from promising new treatments, and to advance our knowledge about prevention, screening and treatment of breast cancer for the young women of the future. One study already underway spearheaded by Dr. Warner and funded by the CBCRA is a randomized controlled trial testing an intervention to help breast cancer survivors with body image and sexuality difficulties. Several young breast cancer survivors are members of the PYNK steering committee. Through her work as director of PYNK, Dr. Warner is extremely aware of the fertility preservation issues for young women with cancer.