When most people think about cancer care, they picture hospital rooms, treatment plans, or face-to-face moments with doctors. But hope often begins somewhere quieter—behind the microscope, in a lab filled with slides, samples, and an extraordinary team determined to find answers.

My name is Andrea Beharry, and I manage the Advanced Diagnostics Department at William Osler Health System (Osler). I’ve been part of Osler for 16 years and every day I see how innovation, teamwork, and compassion are transforming lives.

When Dr. Brandon Sheffield and I first formed this department, it was just the two of us. Today, we’re a team of 11, leading one of the most advanced diagnostic programs in the country. Osler is the first hospital in Canada to bring together molecular pathology and immunohistochemistry under one roof—a model that doesn’t exist anywhere else. This integration means our team can preserve precious biopsy tissue, test it faster, and get results back in just three business days—a national record.

That speed matters. Because behind every slide we stain and every test we run is a patient waiting for answers. Each one is someone’s parent, child, partner, or friend. And we never forget that.

We’ve also become the first hospital in Canada to implement in-house liquid biopsy testing, a groundbreaking approach that can detect tumour mutations through a simple blood draw. It’s changing how we diagnose, treat, and monitor cancer—making care more precise and less invasive.

Hospitals across Ontario now send us their samples, trusting our team to deliver timely, accurate results. Patients from as far away as Nova Scotia and British Columbia have even reached out, asking if we can test their samples too. That tells me something powerful: what we’re doing here at Osler isn’t just innovative—it’s exceptional.

This is what my hospital looks like. A place where new ideas take root, where collaboration drives discovery, and where every patient is treated like family.

And with donor support, the sky truly is the limit. Every dollar helps us invest in new sequencing platforms, expand our capabilities, and ensure that no patient ever has to wait months for answers again.

Together, we can build a future where every diagnosis leads to the best possible treatment—and where hope isn’t something patients have to wait for.

With gratitude,
Andrea Beharry
Manager, Advanced Diagnostics Department
William Osler Health System