Age: 37
Job Title: Associate Professor, Department of Oncology, University of Alberta
Why She’s Top 40: She leads a team of investigators who are building a leading ovarian cancer research initiative in Edmonton.
Guilty Pleasure: “Watching bad TV with a glass of wine. I like True Blood and … Game of Thrones. I really like wine and I travel a lot so I’ve started to appreciate wines from all over the world.”
Lynne-Marie Postovit moved four generations of her family, including her three-year-old son and dog when she relocated to Edmonton from London, Ont. last year. On top of that, she convinced various coworkers to move so they could be part of her leading cancer-research team in the Department of Oncology at the University of Alberta.
Postovit, who sits on three different chairs related to cancer development, has a goal to improve the survival statistics surrounding ovarian and breast cancers.
“Over half of the women diagnosed with ovarian cancer will die within five years,” explains Postovit. “That’s just pathetic; we need to do a lot better than that.”
Her mission is to do just that. Having brought together key players in biochemistry, pathology and surgery, Postovit knows she has a strong team. “The first trials based on our breakthroughs will be conducted right here,” says Postovit.
She communicates every stride she makes with patients, calling them “hope-producing sessions.” With some of her own work in final clinical trials, she lives for those “wow moments that sometimes fall from the sky,” and says the goal is to tackle progress one patient at a time.
Comparing research to her passion for cooking, she says, “We have all the utensils we need to make a meal but don’t know what the ingredients are. In fact, we most often have to go out and grow them ourselves.”
Postovit’s passion extends beyond her work as well – as is evidenced by a personalized Eskimos jersey bestowed upon her for her contributions in the field. The jersey was given to her at an ovarian cancer fundraiser last year (one of many that she attends), and hangs prominently in her lab.
Between her unshakeable dedication to research and the love she has for her team, (which she calls her extended family), it’s no wonder so many travelled across the country to work with her.
