Terry Fox Research Institute Invests $25 Million in AI Health Projects
AI-generated image · Bay Street Wire
The funding supports 14 Canadian initiatives focused on cancer detection and precision medicine via a new data-sharing platform.
The Terry Fox Research Institute (TFRI) has committed $25 million to support 14 Canadian projects utilizing AI for health innovations and cancer detection, BetaKit reports. Announced in Montréal during the ALL IN conference, the funding is distributed through the Digital Health Innovation Fund (DHIF), which is backed by federal funding from the Strategic Response Fund.
The initiative involves 55 partners, including healthcare organizations, academic institutions, and businesses, with a total combined project value of nearly $41 million. According to BetaKit, the projects target conditions such as diabetes, neurodegenerative disease, ophthalmology, and cancer. Specific projects include:
* **Qalam Health Solutions** (Montréal): An AI-powered imaging platform for bone cancer detection. * **Onco-Innovations** (Calgary): Using AI and Canadian healthcare data to enhance cancer treatments. * **MetaOptima Technology** (Vancouver): Creating a secure skin-health dataset to assist doctors in early high-risk case identification.
The Digital Health and Discovery Platform (DHDP) serves as the foundation for these projects. TFRI states that the DHDP allows researchers to analyze large volumes of complex health data across various institutions without moving the data, which the organization claims protects privacy while enabling AI and machine learning insights.
TFRI President Dr. Jim Woodgett stated that these collaborations aim to accelerate clinical care and enable personalized treatments. AI Minister Evan Solomon added that data-sharing collaboration is necessary for precision medicine advancements to benefit Canadian patients. TFRI noted it received more than 200 expressions of interest after opening applications in March 2025, with a second call for applications scheduled for this fall.