Dr. Sharon Watanabe

Biography

Sharon Watanabe graduated from McGill University in 1988 and completed her medical training in Internal Medicine and Medical Oncology at the University of Toronto. She further specialized with a fellowship in Palliative Care Medicine at the University of Alberta. Currently, Dr. Watanabe serves as the Director of the Department of Symptom Control and Palliative Care at the Cross Cancer Institute. Her research primarily focuses on symptom assessment, particularly through the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS), which she introduced in 1991. Over the years, the ESAS has undergone widespread adoption for clinical, research, and administrative purposes, with Dr. Watanabe publishing various studies examining its limitations and validation. Recently, she has contributed to qualitative studies that led to the revision of the ESAS (ESAS-r), which demonstrated improved patient satisfaction compared to its predecessor. Dr. Watanabe has been involved in numerous research projects evaluating the integration of palliative care within oncology, finding that early palliative care leads to improved quality of life for patients with advanced cancer. She has participated as a co-investigator in clinical trials and collaborative research efforts aimed at optimizing palliative care services.

Research Interests

Experience