Annual General Meeting and Conference

Currently Dr Maggie Larché holds the position of Professor, Division of Rheumatology, Department of Medicine at University of Calgary. She is Director of the Canadian Scleroderma Research Group, Chair of the Hamilton Scleroderma Group and Past-President of the Canadian Rheumatology Ultrasound Society.

She received her BSc and Medical degree from the University of Bristol, UK, followed by a PhD and Rheumatology training at Imperial College, London, UK, before immigrating to Canada in 2006. With 18 years of clinical and research work at McMaster University, she developed major clinical interests in scleroderma and early inflammatory arthritis. Her research interests include personalized biomarkers in a variety of autoimmune diseases and ultrasonographic and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in inflammatory arthritis.

Vanessa Cook is a Naturopathic Medical Intern based in Toronto. Her personal journey with scleroderma is the driving force behind her passion for holistic healthcare. Alongside her role as the Chair of Patient Support on the board of directors for Scleroderma Canada, Vanessa also works in research with SPIN (Scleroderma, patient-centered, Intervention Network), focusing on projects aimed at enhancing the lives of scleroderma patients.

She is dedicated to continuing patient-centered work, particularly in autoimmunity and women’s health. Vanessa’s holistic approach to healthcare,  reflects her commitment to making a lasting impact on individuals dealing with scleroderma by integrating personal experience, academic knowledge, sports-medicine, and research expertise.