Clinical trials in Quebec
The Smart Choice for You
What do you get when you combine brilliant physician-scientists, cutting-edge infrastructure, clever incentives and today’s foremost AI hub? Quite possibly the smartest ecosystem for clinical trials in the world.
public and university research centres1
contract research organizations2
graduates a year in health-related programs1
active clinical trials in 20193
companies in the life sciences industry1
Sources:
- Investissement Québec (investquebec.com)
- (MEIE) Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Energy of Quebec
- Clinicaltrials.gov, September 2019
The Province of Quebec is a world leader in clinical trials
Smart
Environment
World-class clusters in the cities of Montreal, Quebec City and Sherbrooke.
State-of-the-art hospitals and research centres that rank among the best in the world.
A universal system that combines high-quality health care with research and teaching and also simplifies patient recruitment.
An ethnically diverse population that facilitates the conduct of clinical trials in all therapeutic areas.
Smart
Investment
The lowest overall clinical trial costs in Canada and among all G7 countries4
Tax incentives that can reduce the net cost of R&D projects by almost 35%5
Foreign researchers and experts may benefit from a 5-year tax exemption.
Favourable Canadian exchange rate.
Smart
Research
Experts that are internationally recognized for their discoveries and innovations in all therapeutic areas.
A 30-day regulatory review process and a unified ethics review framework for studies conducted in more than one public institution.
A world-leading AI hub, with top global players, more than 20 centres of excellence and more than 30 incubators and accelerators.
Sources:
- KPMG Competitive Alternatives 2016
Financial Times fDiBenchmark, 2019 - Investissement Québec (investquebec.com)
Campaign: “Early Clinical Research in Quebec: a smart choice”
In 2019, CATALIS – Clinical Trials Quebec orchestrated a large promotional campaign that aimed at promoting expertise in early clinical research in Quebec.
Looking for smart partners for your next early-stage clinical trials?
Meet some of Quebec’s top physician-scientists
Dr. John Mitchell | Pediatric Endocrinologist | Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC)
Originally from Kamloops, British Columbia, Dr. Mitchell chose Quebec to further his expertise in genetics. He is particularly interested in orphan diseases, especially phenylketonuria and the group of diseases associated with lysosomal dysfunction.
Dr. Rahima Jamal | Hemato-oncologist and Director of the Unit for Innovative Therapies | University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre (CRCHUM)
Dr. Jamal, who considered becoming a journalist before turning to medicine, found her true calling in the battle against melanoma. In recent years, the clinical investigator initiated two studies that combined chemotherapy with immunotherapy. And thanks in part to her work, we are now better equipped to fight this type of cancer.
Dr. Michael Sebag | Hematologist, Research Institute | McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC)
Dr. Sebag wants to extend the lives of his patients by pushing the therapeutic boundaries of multiple myeloma. In 2006, during his postdoctoral fellowship at the Mayo Clinic’s Comprehensive Cancer Center, the young doctor developed a transgenic mouse model that reproduces the biology of multiple myeloma. Since then, he has been tasked with testing dozens of drugs in humans.
Dr. Maxime Chénard-Poirier | Hematologist and Oncologis | CHU de Québec-Université Laval Research Center
Dr. Maxime Chénard-Poirier did a postdoctoral fellowship at the Royal Marsden Hospital in London to familiarize himself with phase I clinical trials in oncology, followed by additional training in digestive cancers. Now, he is motivated by one thing: offering solutions to patients who have exhausted available therapeutic options.
Dr. Jean-Claude Tardif | Director | Montreal Heart Institute Research Center
Scientific Director, Montreal Health Innovations Coordinating Centre (MHICC)
Dr. Tardif is a leading authority on atherosclerosis. He has contributed to the development of intravascular ultrasonography, established one of the largest clinical trial coordination centres in Canada (the MHICC), authored more than 600 scientific articles, and received the Order of Canada.
Dr. Jean-Philippe Lafrance | Nephrologist | Maisonneuve-Rosemont Hospital Research Centre
Associate Professor, Department of Pharmacology and Physiology Université de Montréal
When he’s not hiking through Quebec’s wilderness or bicycle touring with his family, Dr.
Lafrance is either doing research, teaching or monitoring kidney disease patients.
Dr. Michel Duval | Head of the Hematology-Oncology Department and clinical researcher | CHU Sainte-Justine Research Center
A cure for everyone! These words define Dr. Michel Duval’s profound motivation to conduct experimental protocols with his young patients. Because even today, “too many of them do not respond to the treatments we have for them.”
Dr. Wilson H. Miller | Director, Clinical Research Unit | Jewish General Hospital, Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research
Dr. Miller is a visionary and a rare expert in the use of molecular therapy to kill cancer cells. A native of Kansas City, he chose to settle in Quebec more than 25 years ago because he found the ideal conditions for his research work at the Jewish General Hospital and at McGill University.
Dr. André Carpentier | Director of the Diabetes, Obesity and Cardiovascular Complications Research Axis | Centre for Research at the CHUS (CRCHUS) – Université de Sherbrooke
Thanks to his lipid imaging techniques, Dr. André Carpentier can track the breakdown of dietary fats in the body. And now he wants to apply his methods to the development of drugs for metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.
Dr. Angela Genge | Neurologist and Lead Researcher, Clinical Research Unit | Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital
Dr. Angela Genge is a fighter who is always on the lookout for clinical trials for patients suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or any other rare neurodegenerative disease for which there is no satisfactory therapeutic option.
She became Director of the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Clinic at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (The Neuro) in 1998, and was appointed as head of the Clinical Research Unit from 2004 to 2023
Clinical Trials Quebec – CATALIS is a non-profit partnership financed by the Ministry of the Economy, Innovation and Energy of Quebec.
