Posted:Â May 23, 2025
µţ˛â:ĚýAllison Barss
Driven by curiosity and the pursuit of innovation, Dr. Allen Eaves (MSc'67, MD'69) has made it his life’s mission to turn cutting-edge research into real-world cures.Â
Dr. Eaves is the founder and CEO of Vancouver’s , Canada’s largest biotech company specializing in stem cell, immunology and cancer research. He is also the co-founding director of the , a facility dedicated to cancer research.
“We’re providing opportunities for people who love science,” says the notable alum. “We provide the picks and shovels for the stem cell and regenerative medicine gold rush, allowing [scientists] to make discoveries to help make the world a better place.”
Scientific beginnings
Dr. Eaves grew up in Nova Scotia, the son of a proclaimed scientist. While in high school, the death of a family friend to cancer opened his eyes to the impact of the disease, marking a pivotal point in his curiosity.
He later went to Acadia University before coming to ŐýĆ·Ŕ¶µĽş˝ for a  in 1967, followed by a  in 1969. He added on a PhD for the University of Toronto in 1974, during which he worked alongside cancer research pioneers, solidifying his drive to combat the disease through science.Â
Breaking ground, in Canada
During the late 1970s — deemed the early days of bone marrow transplantation in Canada — Dr. Eaves helped establish one of Canada’s first transplant programs as the Head of Clinical Hematology at UBC, the Vancouver Hospital and the BC Cancer Agency. By his peak involvement in the early 1990s, the program had treated 1,500 patients.
Dr. Eaves, alongside his (late) beloved wife — fellow distinguished scientist, —quickly realized that real progress in treating diseases like leukemia required more than clinical work. “Bringing together the clinical scientists as well as the basic scientists in a productive relationship was really important,” he says.
Together, and thanks to a $1 million grant from the government of British Columbia, the pair established the Terry Fox Foundation in Vancouver in 1981 — one that would carry Fox’s legacy.
“It made perfect sense to name the lab after him,” says Dr. Eaves. “[Terry Fox] believed deeply in science and its potential to find a cure [for cancer]. His courage and determination continue to inspire the work we do every day.”
A global biotech empire
When federal funding cuts later threatened the Terry Fox Laboratory’s fast-growing, core research, Dr. Eaves was determined to find a way to keep it open.
“We wanted to build something sustainable that would support scientists and keep good jobs in Canada,” he says.
In 1993, with support from his wife, Dr. Eaves mortgaged their home and launched STEMCELL Technologies, initially based out of the Terry Fox Laboratory. The company — still owned outright by Dr. Eaves and located in Vancouver — has since grown to a global biotech empire with over 2,000 employees and products sold in over 80 countries.
“We’ve been growing for over 30 years now at an average rate of about 20 per cent per year,” says Dr. Eaves.
While most of STEMCELL’s work is Canadian based, only three per cent of the company’s sales are in Canada. “You have to go international to be successful, and that means you have to have world-class products,” he says.
Early in 2020, Dr. Eaves and his team played a pivotal role in global COVID-19 research, reaffirming their commitment to addressing international health challenges. By April, just a month after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic, their products were being used in 30 countries to better understand everything from diagnostics and treatment to vaccine development and prevention.Â
Dr. Allen Eaves and beloved late wife, Dr. Connie Eaves.
Slow and steady
When asked what advice Dr. Eaves lives by, he shares the importance of taking time to do things — and being patient in the process. It’s a philosophy he not only applies to scientific discovery, but also to gardening — a hobby once shared with his late wife, who passed away from cancer in 2024. (Together, the two scientists shared four children and 11 grandchildren.)
“It’s been a rough time, to be honest,” he says. “She was a big gardener, and I used to garden with her, too. I still do a little gardening.”
And what’s next for the esteemed scientist? Not retirement, he shares.
“I could have retired when I was 65 — almost 20 years ago,” says Dr. Eaves. “But I don’t feel like retiring. I started this little company and my goal now is to continue growing it and to hire all these smart young Canadians.”
This includes Dr. Eaves’ youngest, his daughter Sara. “She’s worked here for almost 20 years. She’s my successor, so it’s a family-owned business. And we want to keep it that way, so we stay in Canada, and stay serving the needs of Canada and scientists, globally.”
He adds, “Letting them explore their creativity for the betterment of mankind. That’s what we’re all about.”
