ICORD

05/28/2026

Living with a spinal cord injury? You may be able to take part in this focus group.

📣 We want to hear from you! 📣 Are you interested in new experimental treatments for spinal cord injury? Join us for a focus group on an exciting new approach!

We are looking for people living with SCI to take part in a 90-minute focus group to share their opinions on a biomaterial intervention under development.

For those interested, please contact Dr. Tanya Barretto, Project Lead ([email protected]).

Spinal Cord Injury BC Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia

05/28/2026

What if a simple blood test could help detect brain disorders like dementia, concussion and stroke?

A new research facility at UBC is helping make that future possible.

Led by Dr. Cheryl Wellington, the Core Facility for Neurology Biomarker Innovation (CFNBI) is advancing the development of blood biomarker tests for neurological diseases. These faster, less invasive and more accessible tools could help detect disease earlier and guide treatment decisions more precisely to improve patient outcomes.

Dr. Wellington and her team are already supporting collaborative research spanning Alzheimer’s disease, spinal cord injury, critical care medicine, pediatric brain health, wildfire smoke exposure and more.

By bringing together researchers, clinicians and partners, the CFNBI is accelerating the translation of biomarker discoveries from the lab to clinical care.

Read more: https://bit.ly/4tZ6Dne

05/28/2026

Researchers would like to hear about your expectations and risk tolerances for a novel intervention involving a combination of drugs and an injectable biomaterial that is intended to help nerves regrow in the spinal cord and improve functional outcome, so that development continues and dissemination steps are undertaken in ways that are best aligned with the priorities of the spinal cord injury community.

Learn more and participate:
https://icord.org/studies/2026/05/biomaterials/


https://icord.org/studies/2026/05/biomaterials/

Mend the Gap is a group of 30 international scientists, including members of ICORD, working closely with people with lived experience of SCI toward a new experimental treatment for SCI. The treatme…

05/19/2026

Swinging in the atrium!

One of the best turnouts we've ever had! This was our west coast swing workshop.

05/06/2026

ICORD PI Dr. Andrei Krassioukov shares valuable insights in this CBC news story, stating that he often hears from patients with high-cervical SCI about high turnover among their home-support workers, workers missing appointments, or care hours being cut.

Read the full story here:

A 72-year-old man in Saanich, B.C., says his usual community health workers seem to have been replaced with workers who aren't trained to help facilitate his daily bowel routine.

05/04/2026

Read about Dr. Andrei Krassioukov's research on breastfeeding after spinal cord injury on the VCHRI website!

In this review, Dr. Krassioukov and team examine how SCI can impact breastfeeding, highlighting the lack of research into this topic at present.

Read the full article here:

In Canada, exclusive breastfeeding is recommended for the first six months of a baby’s life, with continued breastfeeding encouraged into the toddler years. Yet, for women with spinal cord injury (SCI), this can present unique physiological and clinical challenges.

05/01/2026

ICORD PI Dr. Ben Mortenson is running the half marathon this Sunday to raise money for Spinal Cord Injury BC, which is a charity that supports people with spinal cord injury!

Help him reach his goal by donating through the link below!

Donate here: https://raceroster.com/events/2026/110324/2026-beneva-vancouver-half-marathon/pledge/participant/44158514

04/30/2026

Congratulations to Drs. Erika Escamilla and Raza Malik of Dr. Krassioukov's Lab for their poster presentation wins at the 2026 American Spinal Injury Association - ASIA annual conference in Texas! Both posters are related to the lab's work with spinal cord stimulation using SpineX devices and autonomic functions after SCI.

04/29/2026

Dr. Cheryl Wellington's Lab was featured in "Behind the Lab Doors," a Research Insider series that shares glimpses into the labs of health researchers across VCHRI. Read the full article here:

The brain is the most complex organ to understand, both in health and disease. Today, doctors rely on observable symptoms or use costly and sometimes inaccessible neuroimaging or invasive cerebrospinal fluid analysis to assess patients with brain disorders. Brain-derived biomarkers measured in the b...

04/28/2026

Check out our new ICORD-themed merch! We have hoodies, t-shirts, quarter-zips and crewnecks available for pre-order. Click the link below to see sizing and colour options, and place your order before May 7th! ✨

Link to purchase: https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5sxP9tixDtecJAa