Surrey neurologist earns top honor to advance Parkinson’s research
Dr. Jason Chan, a physician-scientist at Surrey Memorial Hospital, has been recognized with the 2025 Michael Smith Health Research BC Health Professional-Investigator Award. The prestigious honor comes with significant funding intended to accelerate cutting-edge Parkinson’s disease research and improve patient outcomes across British Columbia.
What the award means for Parkinson’s research in BC
The Health Professional-Investigator Award is designed to empower clinicians who combine patient care with rigorous scientific inquiry. Dr. Chan’s selection highlights the province’s commitment to translating bedside observations into laboratory discoveries and, ultimately, into better treatments for people living with Parkinson’s disease. The award’s funding, which totals $90,000 annually for five years, is earmarked to support high-impact investigations that align with patient needs and public health priorities.
A clinician-scientist focused on practical solutions
Dr. Chan’s work sits at the intersection of neurology and translational science. By examining how Parkinson’s disease progresses in real-world clinical settings, he aims to identify early biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets that can be tested in clinical trials. This approach is particularly important for Parkinson’s, a condition that presents with both motor and non-motor symptoms, often varying widely from patient to patient.
Why BC researchers see value in this funding
British Columbia has long invested in research that directly informs patient care. The Health Professional-Investigator Award recognizes the crucial role clinicians play in shaping research agendas, ensuring questions addressed by researchers are grounded in everyday clinical challenges. Dr. Chan’s project is expected to benefit patients across the region by accelerating the pace at which discoveries move from the lab to the clinic.
Potential impact on patients and care pathways
Early identification of Parkinson’s disease progression can influence treatment plans, rehabilitation strategies, and quality of life for patients and caregivers. With continued funding, Dr. Chan plans to expand longitudinal studies that track how non-motor symptoms—such as sleep disturbances, mood changes, and cognitive shifts—interact with motor symptoms. Better understanding these relationships could lead to more personalized management strategies and new avenues for therapeutic development.
What comes next for the award recipient
As Dr. Chan advances his Parkinson’s research program, the award’s multi-year funding will provide stability for ongoing projects, enable the recruitment of research staff, and support state-of-the-art data collection and analysis. This foundation is essential for pursuing larger-scale studies and collaborations with academic partners, industry researchers, and patient advocacy groups.
Surrey Memorial Hospital’s leadership notes that the award reflects the hospital’s broader mission to pair excellent clinical care with innovative research. The recognition places Dr. Chan among a growing cadre of clinician-scientists working to deliver tangible breakthroughs for Parkinson’s patients in Canada and beyond.
