We are now at full capacity for the Scientific portion of the symposium. Those interested in attending the Special Lay Lecture titled: Why We Eat What We Eat, can register HERE 

The 2024 Gairdner Symposium "Diet, Bodyweight and Cancer Risk", will be hosted by a world-leader in oncometabolism research, the Rosalind and Morris Goodman Cancer Institute. This event will bring together approximately 150 biomedical and clinical researchers, clinicians, health professionals, and the public to broaden understanding, foster collaboration, and empower stake holders to address the challenges posed by obesity-related chronic diseases and cancer.

The symposium will be held in the Martin Amphitheater of the McIntyre Medical building, located at 3655 Promenade Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC. 

Trainee Opportunities

Are you interested in volunteering at the symposium? After registering as an attendee or poster presentor, sign up to volunteer with us!

We are not taking any additional volunteers at this time. 

Philanthropic Sponsors

The Norman Zavalkoff Family Foundation

This event is supported through generous contributions from the Gairdner Foundation, the Fonds de recherche du Québec – Santé, Novo Nordisk and the Norman Zavalkoff Family Foundation.

Program and Invited Speakers

This two-day symposium will feature lectures by 15 invited speakers. Trainees and early-career investigators will be invited to submit abstracts and to present their work at poster sessions that will provide opportunities for discussion and interaction with invited speakers and other attendees. Additionally, there will be networking sessions where trainees and early-career investigators will discuss their work and receive mentorship from experts in the field.

The Symposium will include a special lay lecture titled: Why We Eat What We Eat, featuring renowned experts Dana Small, PhD., Mark Schatzker, Joe Schwarcz, PhD., who will together delve into topics such as why we make the food choices we do, the role of the modern food environment, and growing concerns surrounding processed foods. This lecture will provide practical insights and a deeper understanding of how food influences behaviour and long-term health. 

Schedule and Invited Speakers

Confirmed Speakers

Getting to the event

The symposium will be held in the Martin Amphitheater of the McIntyre Medical building, located at 3655 Promenade Sir William Osler, Montreal, QC. The Martin Amphitheater is located in room 504, and can be accessed via entrances on the 5th and 6th floors: turn right upon exiting the elevators, and left at the next corridor to find the entrances on either floor. 

Parking will be available, and the location is also accessible by bus or metro. 

About the Gairdner Foundation

The Canada Gairdner Awards celebrate the world’s best biomedical and global health researchers through annual prestigious awards. Since 1957, 418 awards have been bestowed on laureates from over 40 countries, and of those awardees, 98 have gone on to receive Nobel Prizes. The Gairdner prize has been identified as a ‘predictor’ prize for the Nobel. Each year the Gairdner Foundation puts out a call to centers of Research Excellence to apply to host a “Gairdner Symposium” which provides a grant to host an international event brining previous Gairdner award winners together with the best of the best in an upcoming area of research. This year they have identified obesity, cancer, metabolism and newly emerging therapies as key topics.