Meet Our Team
Senior Leadership
Dr. Parveen Bhatti, PhD
Scientific Director
Dr. Parveen Bhatti is a Distinguished Scientist at the BC Cancer Research Institute and Scientific Director of the BC Generations Project. Dr. Bhatti’s internationally recognized research program focuses on the use of molecular markers to identify and improve understanding of cancer risk factors, with the goal of identifying potential targets for intervention to reduce the societal burden of cancer.
Operations
Laura Game
Research Program Manager
Laura Game completed her Bachelor of Business Administration at Simon Fraser University and brings over a decade of experience in research administration to her role at BCGP. She has ensured the successful operation of a variety of epidemiologic studies by providing project coordination, financial management and administrative support. Her past work in an oral cancer study in the department of Cancer Control Research at BC Cancer supported its establishment as a province wide prevention program that continues to screen for early detection.
Treena Macdonald
Project Manager, Biosamples
Treena McDonald specializes in biobanking, is CanPath’s National Biosample Coordinator, and is a member of the International Society for Biorepository and Environmental Repositories. Ms. McDonald earned a Master of Science from the University of British Columbia in 2000 studying cardiomyocyte dysfunction in sepsis. Prior to joining BCGP in 2009, she managed multiple studies in the area of pulmonary and cardiovascular research. Ms. McDonald was also the national coordinator for the Genes and Environment program within Canada’s AllerGen National Centre for Excellence from 2006-2009.
Jessica Chu
Data Coordinator
Jessica completed her BA in Health Sciences, along with a minor in Communications from Simon Fraser University in 2013. She joined BCGP during her co-op term back in 2012 and continued to support this project in a variety of roles. She is glad to be part of the BCGP team by helping to build technical solutions for the data and bio-specimen repositories, which will aid researchers to answer their questions for cancer and other chronic diseases.
Jaclyn Parks
Access Manager
Jaclyn holds a Master of Science degree specializing in Environmental and Occupational Health from Simon Fraser University. Her past research works have primarily involved the relationship between childhood asthma and allergy with multiple inflammatory environmental exposures in early life. She has interests in environmental epidemiology, health geography, and is keen to leverage the comprehensive data collected by BCGP to identify modifiable risk factors for chronic disease and cancer.
Graduate Students
Atul Aravindakshan
PhD Candidate
UBC School of Population and Public Health
(2020 – Present)
Ly Trinh
MSc Candidate
UBC School of Population and Public Health
(2021 – Present)
Umaimah Zanif
MSc Candidate
UBC Interdiscplinary Oncology
(2021 – Present)
Elizabeth Samuels
MSc Candidate
UBC School of Population and Public Health
(2021 – 2022)
Emma Quinn
MSc
UBC School of Population and Public Health
(2021 – 2023)
