John Dick (scientist)
Encyclopedia
Dr. John E. Dick PhD
FRSC
(born 1957) is an award-winning Canadian scientist, credited with first identifying cancer stem cell
s in certain types of human leukemia
. His revolutionary findings highlighted the importance of understanding that not all cancer cells
are the same and thus spawned a new direction in cancer research.
Dick is also known for his demonstration of a blood stem cell's ability to replenish the blood system of a mouse, his development of a technique to enable an immune-deficient
mouse to carry and produce human blood, and his creation of the world's first mouse with human leukemia.
farm in southern Manitoba
. His early education was gained in a one-room schoolhouse. Later he moved to Winnipeg
to study to become an X-ray technician
. There he noticed one of his roommates was attending university and studying biology
. Dick realized he was more interested in biology and decided to switch pursuits.
specializing in microbiology
.
In 1984, he moved to Toronto. In order to support his wife and two children, Dick worked part time at an X-ray
lab while he finished his post-doctorate work in Dr. Alan Bernstein’s
lab. Dr. Bernstein, a noted cancer researcher whose Ph.D. advisor was James Till
at the Ontario Cancer Institute
, guided Dick to research cancers of the blood.
Over the next five years, Dick developed an in vivo
repopulation assay
using the NOD/SCID mouse. This technique of using an immune-deficient mouse to generate human hematopoietic cells won Dick international recognition.
In 1994, Nature
published his paper which described how cancer stem cells grow slowly. Dr. Dick explained, "Most kinds of chemotherapy
are designed to kill fast-growing cancer cells. This is why leukemia can come back after treatment. To get rid of the cancer, you have to find ways of eliminating the stem cells." Many researchers dismissed Dick's discovery as interesting, but something not likely to apply to solid tumours.
In 1997, Dick reported the detection of cancer stem cells at the root of three other forms of leukemia. This time he presented it as the "cancer stem-cell hypothesis
". His model stated that there are different cancer cells and amongst them there is a pecking order
in which the abnormal stem cell, is both the key to forming and feeding a cancer. Therefore without an abnormal stem cell, cancers will not grow. This time his report was considered a breakthrough.
As of 2006, Dick is a Senior Scientist in the Division of Cellular & Molecular Biology
of the Toronto General
Research Institute, and founding member of Canada's Stem Cell Network
.
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
FRSC
Royal Society of Canada
The Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
(born 1957) is an award-winning Canadian scientist, credited with first identifying cancer stem cell
Cancer stem cell
Cancer stem cells are cancer cells that possess characteristics associated with normal stem cells, specifically the ability to give rise to all cell types found in a particular cancer sample. CSCs are therefore tumorigenic , perhaps in contrast to other non-tumorigenic cancer cells...
s in certain types of human leukemia
Leukemia
Leukemia or leukaemia is a type of cancer of the blood or bone marrow characterized by an abnormal increase of immature white blood cells called "blasts". Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases...
. His revolutionary findings highlighted the importance of understanding that not all cancer cells
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
are the same and thus spawned a new direction in cancer research.
Dick is also known for his demonstration of a blood stem cell's ability to replenish the blood system of a mouse, his development of a technique to enable an immune-deficient
Immunodeficiency
Immunodeficiency is a state in which the immune system's ability to fight infectious disease is compromised or entirely absent. Immunodeficiency may also decrease cancer immunosurveillance. Most cases of immunodeficiency are acquired but some people are born with defects in their immune system,...
mouse to carry and produce human blood, and his creation of the world's first mouse with human leukemia.
Early life
Dick was raised on a MennoniteMennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
farm in southern Manitoba
Southern Manitoba
Southern Manitoba is a physically large metropolitan area in the southernmost area of the Canadian province of Manitoba. It holds just slightly over one million people. Although this surpasses that of Edmonton or Calgary, both of them are located in the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor.Recently, this area...
. His early education was gained in a one-room schoolhouse. Later he moved to Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
to study to become an X-ray technician
Radiologic technologist
A radiologic technologist, also known as medical radiation technologist and as radiographer, performs imaging of the human body for diagnosis or treating medical problems...
. There he noticed one of his roommates was attending university and studying biology
Biology
Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy. Biology is a vast subject containing many subdivisions, topics, and disciplines...
. Dick realized he was more interested in biology and decided to switch pursuits.
Career
Dick started off at the University of ManitobaUniversity of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...
specializing in microbiology
Microbiology
Microbiology is the study of microorganisms, which are defined as any microscopic organism that comprises either a single cell , cell clusters or no cell at all . This includes eukaryotes, such as fungi and protists, and prokaryotes...
.
In 1984, he moved to Toronto. In order to support his wife and two children, Dick worked part time at an X-ray
X-ray
X-radiation is a form of electromagnetic radiation. X-rays have a wavelength in the range of 0.01 to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30 petahertz to 30 exahertz and energies in the range 120 eV to 120 keV. They are shorter in wavelength than UV rays and longer than gamma...
lab while he finished his post-doctorate work in Dr. Alan Bernstein’s
Alan Bernstein
Alan Bernstein, is the inaugural executive director of the , an alliance of independent organizations around the world dedicated to accelerating the development of a preventive HIV vaccine.As Executive Director, Dr...
lab. Dr. Bernstein, a noted cancer researcher whose Ph.D. advisor was James Till
James Till
James Edgar Till, OC, O.Ont, FRSC is a University of Toronto biophysicist, best known for demonstrating – with Ernest McCulloch – the existence of stem cells.-Early work:...
at the Ontario Cancer Institute
Ontario Cancer Institute
The Ontario Cancer Institute is the research division of Princess Margaret Hospital, part of the University Health Network of the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine. As Canada's first dedicated cancer hospital, it opened officially and began to receive patients in 1958, although its...
, guided Dick to research cancers of the blood.
Over the next five years, Dick developed an in vivo
In vivo
In vivo is experimentation using a whole, living organism as opposed to a partial or dead organism, or an in vitro controlled environment. Animal testing and clinical trials are two forms of in vivo research...
repopulation assay
Assay
An assay is a procedure in molecular biology for testing or measuring the activity of a drug or biochemical in an organism or organic sample. A quantitative assay may also measure the amount of a substance in a sample. Bioassays and immunoassays are among the many varieties of specialized...
using the NOD/SCID mouse. This technique of using an immune-deficient mouse to generate human hematopoietic cells won Dick international recognition.
In 1994, Nature
Nature (journal)
Nature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
published his paper which described how cancer stem cells grow slowly. Dr. Dick explained, "Most kinds of chemotherapy
Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is the treatment of cancer with an antineoplastic drug or with a combination of such drugs into a standardized treatment regimen....
are designed to kill fast-growing cancer cells. This is why leukemia can come back after treatment. To get rid of the cancer, you have to find ways of eliminating the stem cells." Many researchers dismissed Dick's discovery as interesting, but something not likely to apply to solid tumours.
In 1997, Dick reported the detection of cancer stem cells at the root of three other forms of leukemia. This time he presented it as the "cancer stem-cell hypothesis
Hypothesis
A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. The term derives from the Greek, ὑποτιθέναι – hypotithenai meaning "to put under" or "to suppose". For a hypothesis to be put forward as a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it...
". His model stated that there are different cancer cells and amongst them there is a pecking order
Pecking order
Pecking order or just peck order is the colloquial term for a hierarchical system of social organization in chickens. It was first described from the behaviour of poultry by Thorleif Schjelderup-Ebbe in 1921 under the German terms Hackordnung or Hackliste' ...
in which the abnormal stem cell, is both the key to forming and feeding a cancer. Therefore without an abnormal stem cell, cancers will not grow. This time his report was considered a breakthrough.
As of 2006, Dick is a Senior Scientist in the Division of Cellular & Molecular Biology
Molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that deals with the molecular basis of biological activity. This field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry...
of the Toronto General
Toronto General Hospital
The Toronto General Hospital , is a part of the University Health Network, and a major teaching hospital in downtown Toronto, Ontario. It is located in the Discovery District, directly north of the Hospital for Sick Children, across Gerrard Street West, and east of Princess Margaret Hospital and...
Research Institute, and founding member of Canada's Stem Cell Network
Stem Cell Network
The Stem Cell Network is a not-for-profit corporation founded in 2001. SCN funds applied stem cell research in Canada and facilitates collaboration between universities, industry, government and non-governmental organizations....
.
Honours
- 1997, awarded the Michael Smith Prize by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research
- 2000, awarded the Robert L. Noble PrizeRobert L. Noble PrizeThe Robert L. Noble Prize is awarded each year by the National Cancer Institute of Canada to researchers whose contributions have led to a significant advance in cancer research...
for Excellence in Cancer Research by the National Cancer Institute of Canada - 2002, awarded the Herman Boerhaave Medal by the Leiden UniversityLeiden UniversityLeiden University , located in the city of Leiden, is the oldest university in the Netherlands. The university was founded in 1575 by William, Prince of Orange, leader of the Dutch Revolt in the Eighty Years' War. The royal Dutch House of Orange-Nassau and Leiden University still have a close...
, NetherlandsNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... - 2004, made a Fellow of the Royal Society of CanadaRoyal Society of CanadaThe Royal Society of Canada , may also operate under the more descriptive name RSC: The Academies of Arts, Humanities and Sciences of Canada , is the oldest association of scientists and scholars in Canada...
, Academy of Sciences - 2005, awarded the William Dameshek Prize by the American Society of HematologyAmerican Society of HematologyThe American Society of Hematology is a professional organization representing hematologists. It was founded in 1958. Its annual meeting is held in December of every year and has attracted nearly 20,000 attendees. The society publishes the medical journal Blood, one of the most cited peer-review...
- 2007, awarded a Premier's Summit Award in Medical Research, Province of OntarioOntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....