Anne Griffiths

Senior Associate Scientist
Child Health Evaluative Sciences

Dr. Griffiths received her medical training, paediatrics residency and gastroenterology fellowship training, and postgraduate clinical epidemiology training all at the University of Toronto. Her clinical and clinical research focus has been paediatric inflammatory bowel disease. She is currently Principal Investigator of the Canadian Children IBD network: a joint partnership of CIHR and the CH.I.L.D. Foundation, involving 12 paediatric IBD centers across Canada. Within the Toronto SickKids IBD program, and as paediatric GI fellowship training program director (1998-2003) and GI Division Head (2008-2015), Dr. Griffiths has mentored and trained many paediatric gastroenterologists, now clinician investigators engaged in IBD clinical care and research nationally and internationally. Together with many of them, she has co-authored over 300 peer-reviewed manuscripts. Her contributions have been recognized with the 2019 Shwachman award of the North American Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition and a 2019 American Association of Gastroenterology Research Mentor Award.

Research

Dr. Griffiths has conducts patient-based and translational research in paediatric inflammatory bowel disease. 
 
She has been Deputy Chair of the Gene-environment-microbe (GEM) study since its inception. The study is sponsored by Crohn’s and Colitis Canada and by Helmsley Foundation, exploring the environmental triggers and predictive biomarkers of Crohn’s disease development in healthy, but genetically at-risk first-degree relatives, who are being prospectively followed. 
 
As Principal investigator in the Canadian Children IBD Network (CIDsCANN), she leads a national inception cohort study, assessing longitudinal outcomes among subgroups of patients, including those treated with emerging therapies. 
 
As a co-investigator in a CIHR microbiome group grant, she will lead the exploration of the role of the microbiome in very early onset colitis.

Education and experience

• 1994–1997: M.Sc. in Clinical Epidemiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON
• 1981: FRCP(C), Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada, Canada. Subject: Paediatrics
• 1973–1977: MD (Honours), University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, Toronto, ON 

Fellowships

• 1980–1981: Clinical Fellowship in Paediatric Gastroenterology, The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON 

Specialty Training

• 1977–1980: Paediatric Residency, The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON 

University Appointments

• 2002–Present: Professor, Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, Toronto, ON
• 1994–2002: Associate Professor, Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, Toronto, ON
• 1986–1994: Assistant Professor, Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, Faculty of Medicine, Toronto, ON 

Hospital Appointments

• 2015–Present: Senior Associate Scientist, Program in Child Health and Evaluative Sciences, Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 2012–Present: Co-Lead, IBD Centre, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 2011–Present: Northbridge Financial Corporation Chair in Pediatric IBD, Toronto, ON
• 2009–2012: Department of Paediatrics representative to Decanal Promotions committee, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto
• 2008–2015: Division Head, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 2003–2008: Associate Chief (Clinical), Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 1998–2003: Director, Fellowship Training Program, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON

Other experience

• 2020–Present: Associate Editor, Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis (Journal of European Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation)
• 2019–Present: Member, Scientific Advisory Board, Crohn’s and Colitis Canada
• 2015–Present: Member, International Organization for Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IOIBD) (one of 5 pediatric members in an organization with active membership kept at 65 total)
• 2014–Present: Secretary, Executive Committee of International Pediatric IBD Network (PIBD-net)
• 2013–Present: Member, Porto IBD Working group of European Society for Paediatric Gastroenterology Hepatology and Nutrition (ESPGHAN)

Achievements

• 2019: Shwachman Award (awarded to recognize a major, lifelong scientific or educational contribution to the field of pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology and Nutrition), North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (NASPGHAN).
• 2019: 2018 Highly Cited Researchers. Web of Science Group, Philadelphia, PA, United States. The list of highly cited researchers recognizes world-class researchers selected for their exceptional research performance, demonstrated by production of multiple highly cited papers that rank in the top 1% by citations for field and year in Web of Science.
• 2019: Research Mentor Award (recognized for outstanding contributions to mentoring and training of new investigators). American Association of Gastroenterology Institute Council (Pediatric Gastroenterology and Developmental Biology Section).
• 2019: R.D. McKenna 2019 Lecturer Award, Canadian Association of Gastroenterology, (Selected annually on basis of significant contributions to gastrointestinal medicine and/or science)
• 2018: Department of Paediatrics Career Excellence Award for Research, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON
• 2017: Fellow of the Canadian Association of Gastroenterology (CGAF), Canada 
• 2017: Dr. von Hauner Medal, Munich, Germany (intended to honor the contributions of clinician-scientists for advancing pediatrics and serving as role model for future generations of pediatricians)
• 2016: IDRU (Intestinal Disease Research Unit) Lectureship, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB
• 2016: Department of Paediatrics Subspecialty Teaching Award, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON
• 2016: Fellow’s Teaching Award, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON
• 2016: Hinda Kopelman Lectureship, Canadian Association of Gastroenterology
• 2016: Milton Grand Lectureship, Montefiore Hospital, Albert Einstein University, Bronx, New York
• 2015: Arnold Silverman Lecture and Visiting Professorship, Colorado Children’s Hospital, University of Colorado, Aurora, CO
• 2015: Canadian Association of Gastroenterology Visiting Clinical Professor Award 

1. Crowley E, Warner N, Pan J, Khalouei S, Elkadri A, Fiedler K, Foong J, Turnisky AL, Bronte-Tinkew D, Zahang S, Hu J, Tian D, Li D, regeneron Genetics Center, Horowitz J, Siddiqui I, Upton J, Roifman CM, Church PC, Wall DA, Ramani AK, Kotlarz D, Klein C, Hulig H, Snapper SB, Gonzaga-Jauregui C, Paterson A, McGovern DPB, Brudno M, Walters TD, Griffiths AM, Muise AM. Prevalence and clinical features of inflammatory bowel diseases associated with monogenic variants, identified by whole-exome sequencing in 1000 children at a single centre.  Gastroenterology. 2020 Jun; 158(8): 2208-2220.
   
2. Dhaliwal J, Walters TD, Mack DR, Huynh HQ, Jacobson K, Otley AR, Debruyn J, El-Matary W, Deslandres C, Sherlock ME, Critch JN, Bax K, Seidman E, Rashid M, Muise AM, Wine E , Carroll M, Lawrence S, Van Limbergen J, Benchimol E, Church P, Griffiths AM. Phenotypic variation in pediatric inflammatory bowel disease by age: a multicentre prospective inception cohort study of the Canadian Children IBD Network. Journal of Crohn’s and Colitis. 2020 May;14(4): 445-454.
   
3. Hyams, JS, Davis S, Gotman N, Haberman Y, MD, Karns R, Schirmer M, Mo A, Mack DR, Boyle B, Griffiths AM, Leleiko NS, Sauer CG, Keljo DJ, Markowitz J, Baker SS, Rosh J, Baldassano R, Patel A, Pfefferkorn M, Otley AR, Heyman M, Noe J, Oliva-Hemker M, Rufo PA, Strople J,  Ziring D, Guthery SL, Sudel B, Benkov K, Wali P, Moulton D, Evans J, Kappelman MD, Marquis MA, Sylvester FA, Collins MH, Venkateswaran S, Dubinsky M, Tangpricha V, Spada KL, Saul B, Wang J, Serrano J, Hommel K, Marigorta UM, Gibson G, Xavier RJ, Kugathasan S, Walters TD, Denson LA.  Clinical and biological predictors of response to standardised paediatric colitis therapy (PROTECT): A multicenter inception cohort study. Lancet. 2019 Apr; 393(10182): 1708-1720.
   
4. Mack, DR., Benchimol, EI., Critch, J., deBruyn, J., Tse, F., Moayyedi, P., Church, P., Deslandres, C., El-Matary, W., Huynh, H., Jantchou, P., Lawrence, S., Otley, A., Sherlock, M., Walters, TD., Kappelman, MD., Sadowski, D., Marshall, JK., Griffiths, AM. Canadian Association of Gastroenterology clinical practice guideline for medical management of pediatric luminal Crohn’s disease. Gastroenterology. 2019 Aug; 157(2): 320-348. 
   
5. Turner D, Griffiths AM, Wilson D, Mould DR, Baldassano RN, Russell RK, Dubinsky M, Heyman MB, de Ridder L, Hyams J, Martin de Carpi J, Conklin L,  Faubion WA, Koletzko S, Bousvaros A, Ruemmele FM. Designing clinical trials in pediatric inflammatory bowel diseases: a PIBDnet commentary. Gut. Jan 2020 Jan; 69(1): 32-41. 

See a full list of Anne Griffiths' publications