Division of Hematology

New immunotherapy shows promise for long-term HIV control without daily medication

ada.prunescu@mcgill.ca — Tue, 13 Jan 2026 17:30:07 +0000

Encouraging results from a Nature Medicine study led by Dr. Jean-Pierre Routy mark an important milestone in HIV research. The first-in-human clinical trial tested budigalimab, an anti-PD-1 antibody commonly used in cancer therapy, to see if it could safely help people with HIV control the virus without daily antiretroviral medication (ART).

Dr. Sarit Assouline appointed JGH Chief of Hematology

JGH News — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 21:10:49 +0000

Dr. Sarit Assouline has been named Chief of the Division of Hematology at the JGH, in addition to her current roles as a Senior Investigator in the Lady Davis Institute at the JGH, Associate Professor in the Department of Medicine and Oncology at ��ɫֱ��, and a Full Member of the ��ɫֱ�� Centre for Translational Research in Cancer.

JGH nurse receives award from Canadian Association of Apheresis Nurses

JGH News — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 20:57:21 +0000

Andrea Olney, a nurse in the JGH Apheresis Clinic, has received the prestigious Nursing Excellence Award from the Canadian Association of Apheresis Nurses (CAAN).

At a reception in her honour in the hospital on October 17, Ms. Olney accepted the award from her supervisor, Jessica Pinto, Head Nurse of the JGH Apheresis Clinic and Unit Chief of the Medical Day Hospital.

Dr. Marc Bienz appointed Medical Director of Transfusion Medicine

JGH News — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 20:48:57 +0000

Dr. Marc Bienz, a clinician-teacher in the JGH Division of Hematology, has been named the hospital’s Medical Director of Transfusion Medicine, in addition to his appointment as an Assistant Professor at ��ɫֱ��, effective February 1.

Dr. Bienz completed his undergraduate medical training at the Université de Montréal, followed at ��ɫֱ�� by residency in internal medicine and a fellowship in hematology. He also completed a two-year fellowship in transfusion medicine at the University of Toronto.

Appointment of Dr. Nathalie Johnson as the Louis Lowenstein Chair in Hematology & Oncology

JGH News — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 20:45:36 +0000

Dr. Nathalie Johnson, a staff physician in the Division of Hematology at the JGH and a researcher in the Lady Davis Institute for Medical Research, has been appointed as the Louis Lowenstein Chair in Hematology & Oncology at ��ɫֱ��. She is the first member of hospital staff to receive this honour.

The Chair was established in 1990 to honour Dr. Louis Lowenstein, Chief Hematologist at the Royal Victoria Hospital. He was a pioneer in what was a relatively new field at the time of his practice, from the mid-1950s until his death in 1968.