A much-loved member of the BRIGHT Run family has passed away.
Dr. Juliet Daniel, a renowned biologist and breast cancer researcher and survivor, died at age 61 on April 28 in Dundas. Juliet was our BRIGHT Run survivor spokesperson in 2021.
We at the BRIGHT Run will miss her infectious smile and extraordinary energy.
“Her smile lit up every space she entered,” BRIGHT Run event chair Nancy McMillan said. “Her focus on the importance and impact of research and her dedication to the students in her lab (and their tireless efforts to sell BRIGHT Run raffle tickets each year so that they wouldn’t let Dr. Daniel down) was unwavering.”
A professor at McMaster University, Juliet was also a long-time BRIGHT Run participant and captain of BRIGHT team The Pirates of the Cure-abbean. Her team, with a three-person core and new members every year from her lab, consistently raised at least $10,000 a year for breast cancer research in Hamilton.
“The BRIGHT Run has a really awesome vibe,” she said in a 2021 interview with the BRIGHT Run. “It’s filled with hope and joy. And I am so happy to be a part of it.”
Juliet was diagnosed with breast cancer in February 2009. It was a complex case and she underwent surgery and was prescribed a drug regimen aimed at preventing a recurrence.
Previously, Juliet was involved in “basic breast cancer research.” But after attending a conference in 2008, she became interested in Triple Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC), an often-difficult-to-treat form of cancer to which women of colour are particularly susceptible.
She applied twice, unsuccessfully, for funding from a national organization that funds breast cancer research. She then applied for and received a BRIGHT Run grant in 2014 that allowed her to start her TNBC research. She used that work to apply for larger grants that kept that research going until 2025.
Juliet received countless honours and awards over the years, both for her research and her mentoring efforts. She mentored students through the African Caribbean Association at McMaster, as well as with young people in Hamilton’s African Caribbean community. She also co-found the Canadian Multicultural LEAD Organization for Mentoring and Training.
Click here to learn more about this BRIGHT star in our sky by reading her obituary notice: https://www.circleoflifecbc.com/obituaries/Dr-Juliet-Michelle-Daniel?obId=48267870
