Undergraduate Course 4461

COURSE INFORMATION

 

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course introduces main cancer types in terms of histology, prognosis, biomarkers, imaging and sites of metastasis.  Students will learn what translational cancer research is, and will get a historical perspective of how findings in the basic sciences have lead to better treatments for cancer.  Four different types of cancers will be covered and these cancer types may vary from year to year.  For each section, students will learn about the histology of the cancer and will study anatomy in order to understand common routes of metastasis.  For each cancer, students will learn about key clinical problems that are associated with that cancer, as well as the basic research models that are used to address such problems.  An emphasis will be placed on findings that were made in basic science laboratories and that have, or soon will be, translated to the clinic. Critical thinking and presentation skills will be emphasized in the evaluations.

GOAL:  To appreciate how specific cancers are prevented, detected, treated and eventually cured.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:
1. To identify and understand the histological and anatomical underpinnings of cancer progression
2.  To understand and appreciate methods of cancer detection and treatment with a historical perspective
3.  To identify scientific models which are being used to discover new treatments for cancer
4.  To appreciate how clinical advancements and scientific discovery are interrelated.

TIME AND LOCATION:  Mondays 9:30 am - 10:30 am (MSB 190) and Fridays 9:30 am - 12:30 am (DSB 2016) unless indicated otherwise.  Note that second lecture (Jan. 11) is at the LRCP (Victoria Hospital)

SENATE REGULATION REGARDING THE STUDENT’S RESPONSIBILITY REGARDING REQUISITES:
Unless you have either the requisites for this course or written special permission from your Dean to enroll in it, you may be removed from this course and it will be deleted from your record. This decision may not be appealed. You will receive no adjustment to your fees in the event that you are dropped from a course for failing to have the necessary prerequisites.

 

INSTRUCTOR INFORMATION

Instructors	Email	Office	Phone	Office Hours
Dr. Lynne-Marie Postovit (Course Coordinator)	lynne.postovit@schulich.uwo.ca	MSB 438	80524	Questions can be asked and meetings can be arranged via email
Dr. Trevor Shepherd	tshephe6@uwo.ca	London Regional Cancer Program, A4-836	56347	Questions can be asked and meetings can be arranged via email

 

WEBCT
Students with WebCT issues should contact the Computer Support Centre at 519 661-3800 or fill out the WebCT webform:
https://servlet.uwo.ca:8081/vistahelpdesk/controller.jsp.

 

COURSE MATERIALS
Course materials and textbook suggestions will be discussed during the first lecture. All notes and assigned readings will be made available through WebCT.

EVALUATION

TOPIC	DETAILS	WEIGHTING	DATE
Melanoma	Debate	15%	January 25/February 1
Gynecological Cancers	Written Literature Review	35%	March 15
Breast Cancer	Oral Presentations of a Scientific Paper	25%	April 5
Entire Course	Final Exam: Essay & Short Answers	25%	TBD

 

FINAL EXAM:  The final exam will be cumulative, and will emphasize the integration of key concepts.
ROUNDING OF GRADES: Some students request a rounding up of a mark from 68% to 70%, for example.  This practice will not occur in this course.  The final mark assigned to you is the mark you achieve and will not be rounded up to the next grade level.

ABSENCE FROM COURSE COMMITMENTS
A.  Absence for medical illness:
Students must familiarize themselves with the Policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness:  https://studentservices.uwo.ca/secure/index.cfm

Statement from the Dean’s Office
If you are unable to meet a course requirement due to illness or other serious circumstances, you must provide valid medical or other supporting documentation to the Dean's office as soon as possible and contact your instructor immediately.  It is the student's responsibility to make alternative arrangements with their instructor once the accommodation has been approved and the instructor has been informed. In the event of a missed final exam, a "Recommendation of Special Examination" form must be obtained from the Dean's Office immediately. For further information please see:
http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/handbook/appeals/medical.pdf

A student requiring academic accommodation due to illness, should use the Student Medical Certificate when visiting an off-campus medical facility or request a Record's Release Form (located in the Dean's Office) for visits to Student Health Services.
The form can be found at:
https://studentservices.uwo.ca/secure/medical_document.pdf

The Policy on Accommodation for Medical Illness is also available on the BMSUE secure site:  www.uwo.ca/bmsc

Medical documentation will also be required for work worth less than 10% of the total course grade.  Such documentation must be submitted by the student directly to the appropriate Faculty Dean`s Office and not to the instructor. It will subsequently be the Dean`s Office that will determine if accommodation is warranted.

B.  Absence for non-medical reasons:
Non-medical absences from midterms, tutorials, laboratory experiments, or late essays or assignments, will be dealt with on an individual basis at the discretion of the course supervisor.  If the absence is warranted a make-up examination will be scheduled and/or late penalties will not be applied. 

C. Special Examinations
A Special Examination is any examination other than the regular examination, and it may be offered only with the permission of the Dean of the Faculty in which the student is registered, in consultation with the instructor and Department Chair. Permission to write a Special Examination may be given on the basis of compassionate or medical grounds with appropriate supporting documents.
A Special Examination must be written at the University or an Affiliated University College no later than 30 days after the end of the examination period involved. To accommodate unusual circumstances, a date later than this may be arranged at the time permission is first given by the Dean of the Faculty. The Dean will consult with the instructor and Department Chair and, if a later date is arranged, will communicate this to Registrarial Services. If a student fails to write a scheduled Special Examination, permission to write another Special Examination will be granted only with the permission of the Dean in exceptional circumstances and with appropriate supporting documents. In such a case, the date of this Special Examination normally will be the scheduled date for the final exam the next time the course is offered.

COURSE SYLLABUS

 

STATEMENT ON USE OF ELECTRONIC DEVICES
Electronic devices, including laptop computers, will not be allowed during tests and examinations.

STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC OFFENCES
Scholastic offences are taken seriously and students are directed to read the appropriate policy, specifically, the definition of what constitutes a Scholastic Offence, at the following Web site:
http://www.uwo.ca/univsec/handbook/appeals/scholoff.pdf .

All required papers may be subject to submission for textual similarity review to the commercial plagiarism detection software under license to the University for the detection of plagiarism. All papers submitted for such checking will be included as source documents in the reference database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of papers subsequently submitted to the system. Use of the service is subject to the licensing agreement, currently between The University of Western Ontario and Turnitin.com (http://www.turnitin.com ).

Computer-marked multiple-choice tests and/or exams may be subject to submission for similarity review by software that will check for unusual coincidences in answer patterns that may indicate cheating.

SUPPORT SERVICES:
Registrarial Services:  http://www3.registrar.uwo.ca/index.cfm

Academic Counselling (Science and Basic Medical Sciences):  http://www.uwo.ca/sci/counselling/index.html

Student Development Services:  http://www.sds.uwo.ca

Student Health Services:  http://www.shs.uwo.ca/