Companion of the Order of Canada

• Awarded on: May 7, 2015
• Invested on: May 13, 2016

For advancing the global understanding of embryo development and stem cell biology, and for her national and international leadership in health science.

Janet Rossant has challenged existing paradigms and established entirely new concepts in developmental biology. As a professor at the University of Toronto, she has characterized genes that are critical to the earliest stages of embryonic development and discovered control systems that enable cell differentiation. Her globally renowned research is foundational to the development of new treatments for a range of conditions including cancer and degenerative diseases. Also a gifted administrator, she served for a decade as the chief of research at the Hospital for Sick Children and has presided over leading international societies in her field.