When Dr. Rob Olson launched an international clinical trial in Prince George in 2025, he knew it wouldn’t just help northern patients access cutting-edge cancer treatment — it would build research capacity that could transform healthcare in the region for generations to come.

“These trials can be lifechanging for patients, but the knock-on effect goes even further,” says Dr. Olson, a radiation oncologist and professor in UBC’s Faculty of Medicine. “It’s about training local students, talent and building the capacity so we can do more in the future.”

Since moving to northern B.C. in 2012, Dr. Olson has steadily built an internationally recognized clinical trials program at BC Cancer’s Prince George site. With each successive trial, he has expanded opportunities for students, trainees and staff to gain hands-on experience leading clinical research in a uniquely northern context.

“As someone who comes from a northern community, hopes to practice in a northern community and has a passion for research, this experience has shown me that it’s possible to do it all.”

– Curtis Leclerc, MD/PhD student

The latest trial, SIMPLIFY, is examining whether a single, highly precise dose of radiation can effectively treat certain metastatic cancers. The approach could be game-changing for patients in northern, rural, remote and Indigenous communities who often need to travel hundreds of kilometres to receive care — reducing frequency of travel, saving time and money, and helping patients return to daily life sooner.

Among those working on the trial is Curtis Leclerc, the first MD/PhD student within UBC’s Northern Medical Program at the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC).

“One of the best parts of my MD/PhD has been learning how to run an international clinical trial, all the way from initial design through to patient recruitment and implementation,” says Leclerc. “As someone who comes from a northern community, hopes to practice in a northern community and has a passion for research, this experience has shown me that it’s possible to do it all.”

For Dr. Olson, the opportunity to mentor Leclerc speaks to the success of the NMP and how it opens up new opportunities for medical research in the North.

“We’ve had incredible success training doctors in the North, for the North,” says Dr. Olson. “Now, we’re taking it further and training academic physician-scientists who can lead research in the North as soon as they graduate.”

Training researchers across British Columbia

Across the province, the UBC Faculty of Medicine is empowering graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and future clinician-scientists to tackle the biggest health challenges facing their communities — in urban centres and in rural, remote and Indigenous communities alike.

Through the MD/PhD program and more than 25 other graduate programs, the Faculty is building a province-wide network of discovery and innovation that is strengthening local health systems.

For Simran Gill, a PhD student based in Kelowna, this kind of community-connected research is the key to delivering better health care.   

“Studying in the Interior means I get to work directly with families who are often underrepresented in research,” says Gill, who is part of the Women+ and Children’s Health Sciences Program at UBC. “It’s shown me how research can meet people where they are, and how we can design health solutions that do the same.”

Through her studies, Gill has developed and is evaluating a virtual physical activity program for children living with Type 1 diabetes in rural and remote settings. The program, delivered in partnership with local physicians, is designed to help children and their families build confidence around physical activity, manage blood sugar safely, and access specialized support without needing to travel.

Gill, originally from Vancouver, was drawn to the Okanagan by the opportunity to train with supervisor Dr. Christine Voss, a leading expert in youth physical activity and assistant professor at the Centre for Chronic Disease Prevention and Management (CCDPM), the primary research arm of UBC’s Southern Medical Program established in 2019.

For CCDPM director Dr. Kathleen Martin Ginis, training the next generation of researchers is central to the Centre’s mission.

“Our trainees are the engine behind everything we do,” said Dr. Martin Ginis. “By training students in the communities their research is meant to serve, we’re equipping them with the skills, perspective and partnerships they’ll carry throughout their careers.”

This approach is driving health innovation across the province. From Prince George to Kelowna, and dozens of communities in between, the UBC Faculty of Medicine is accelerating research that stays rooted in communities and benefits local patients and their families.