The Ontario Medical Association has recognized biomedical sciences professor Lisa Porter with the 2023 Centennial Award, which honours non-physicians for outstanding achievements in advancing the health and welfare of the people of Ontario.

“I’m so grateful and humbled that my physician colleagues at Windsor Regional Hospital and Essex County Medical Association would take their valuable time to nominate me for this award,” says Dr. Porter. “It speaks to their passion for health research and the incredible potential for growth in our region.”

Windsor physician Padmaja Naidu says she nominated Porter for her notable research as well as her involvement with WE-Spark Health Institute. She calls Porter an international leader in understanding unique aspects of cell growth that lie at the interface of healthy development, aging, and the initiation and progression of diseases like cancer.

“As the founding director of WE-Spark Health Institute, Porter has passionately established a thriving multi-disciplinary research community that incorporates equity, diversity, and inclusion to support the health, well-being, and care of people in our local region and beyond,” says Dr. Naidu.

“Porter's innovative approaches have supported translation of her discoveries from the lab into the clinic and early-stage drug discovery. In addition to her world-class research program, Porter has been a visionary leader in advocating and transforming health research capacity in southwestern Ontario to benefit the Canadian research ecosystem.”

Other nominators included all Essex County Medical Society past presidents: Jen Bondy, Vikesh Maraj, Amit Bagga, and Maher Zayouna.

WE-Spark Health Institute brings together health research strengths across the University of Windsor, Windsor Regional Hospital, St. Clair College, Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare and Erie Shores HealthCare with a mission to enhance the health, well-being and care of people through transformative research and knowledge translation.