CANADIAN CENTRE FOR NUCLEAR INNOVATION TO BE NAMED AFTER DR. SYLVIA FEDORUK

Premier Brad Wall today announced that the Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation (CCNI) located at the University of Saskatchewan (U of S) will be renamed in tribute to Dr. Sylvia Fedoruk who passed away September 26. It will be renamed the Sylvia Fedoruk Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation.

As a medical physicist, Dr. Fedoruk was the sole female member of the team that first successfully treated a cancer patient with Cobalt-60 radiation therapy at the U of S in 1951. The device and techniques Dr. Fedoruk helped develop are used to this day to treat cancers around the world. Daily, more than 45,000 radiation treatments are delivered in more than 80 countries.

"Few individuals can say that they touched the lives of millions of people, but that is the case with Dr. Fedoruk," Wall said. "According to the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame, her groundbreaking research in cobalt radiation has helped more than 70 million people worldwide. It is only fitting that we honour her by renaming the facility after her legacy.

"Dr. Fedoruk had many firsts in her lifetime - the first woman to be chancellor at the U of S, the first woman to be the lieutenant governor of Saskatchewan, the first woman member of the Atomic Energy Control Board of Canada. She excelled at everything she did."

"Sylvia Fedoruk was one of Canada's nuclear medicine and science policy leaders, as well as a trailblazer in public service," U of S President Ilene Busch-Vishniac said. "As part of the U of S team that developed the world's first successful Cobalt-60 radiation treatment, her ground-breaking research has had global impact, helping to save the lives of millions of cancer patients around the world and laying the foundation for U of S leadership in nuclear research, training and innovation."

"We are honoured to be chosen as part of the Province of Saskatchewan's recognition of Dr. Fedoruk," CCNI Interim Executive Director John Root said. "She was an outstanding nuclear scientist and great Canadian. This new name really energizes us to deliver on our purpose, placing Saskatchewan among global leaders of nuclear research, development and innovation, and creating opportunities for a new generation of Saskatchewan pioneers to build on Dr. Fedoruk's legacy."

Located at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, the Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation was established and funded by the Province of Saskatchewan in December 2011 as an independently incorporated, not-for-profit subsidiary of the U of S. The centre supports research, development and training in nuclear medicine, innovation of advanced materials for construction, aerospace and small reactor designs, and will operate facilities such as a cyclotron for the production of radioisotopes for medical imaging.More information is at the centre's website, www.ccni.nu.

A state funeral will be held for Dr. Sylvia Fedoruk in Saskatoon on Friday, October 5.

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For more information, contact:

Kathy Young
Executive Council
Regina
Phone: 306-787-0425
Email: kathy.young@gov.sk.ca
Cell: 306-526-8927

Kathryn Warden
University of Saskatchewan
Saskatoon
Phone: 306-966-2506
Email: Kathryn.warden@usask.ca

Matthew Dalzell
Sylvia Fedoruk Canadian Centre for Nuclear Innovation
Saskatoon
Phone: 306-966-3379