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Dr. Davinder S. Jassal

Dr. Davinder S. Jassal

Principal Investigator
Cardiovascular Imaging, Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences

Professor
Department of Internal Medicine, University of Manitoba

Research Focus

Dr. Jassal’s research focuses on the complementary use of multimodality non-invasive cardiovascular imaging in the assessment of heart failure syndromes. Using a combination of echocardiography (ultrasound of the heart), cardiac CT (computed tomography), and CMR (cardiac MRI), the Cardiovascular Imaging Laboratory at St. Boniface Albrechtsen Research Centre is dedicated to translational research in the fields of Cardio-Oncology, Women’s Heart Health, and Sudden Cardiac Death.

1. SHIELD-HF study (The cardioprotective role of SGLT2 inhibition in the prevention of anthracycline-mediated heart failure)

Breast cancer is a major public health concern in Canada. Doxorubicin and Trastuzumab (DOX+TRZ) are two of the most common anti-cancer drugs used in the treatment of breast cancer. While these two anti-cancer drugs improve survival in the breast cancer setting, they may also increase the risk of developing heart failure. Approximately 1 in 4 women with breast cancer are at risk of developing heart failure due to DOX+TRZ, affecting over 8000 women annually in Canada. As a novel anti-diabetic medication, several recent randomized controlled trials have demonstrated that SGLT2 inhibitors reduce the risk of heart failure-associated hospitalization and mortality in patients with and without diabetes. Little is known, however, about whether SGLT2 inhibitors are cardioprotective in the setting of chemotherapy-mediated cardiotoxicity. In the present “SHIELD-HF” study, we will explore the role of SGLT2 inhibitors in preventing heart failure caused by DOX+TRZ. This innovative study will enhance the quality of “heart health” in women with breast cancer.

2. CANFLAX study (Can flax “milk” prevent broken hearts in women with breast cancer?)

As Manitoba continues to be one of the top flaxseed (FLX) producers in the world, there is increasing public awareness about the importance of consuming this whole grain commodity in the prevention of cancer and cardiovascular disease. Given that women with breast cancer are at risk of developing chemotherapy-induced heart failure, FLX has demonstrated a promising capacity to prevent this adverse outcome. Pizzey Ingredient’s FLX “milk” is a breakthrough advancement for dietary FLX, providing an efficient and delicious way to consume over 30 g of FLX on a daily basis. FLX “milk”, with its cardioprotective components, including omega-3 fatty acid, alpha-linolenic acid, and plant lignans, is a new alternative in this expanding global market of non-dairy “milk” products. The purpose of the CANFLAX study is to establish FLX “milk” as an effective method of preventing heart failure in women with breast cancer undergoing anthracycline-based chemotherapy. Researching the health benefits of FLX “milk” in this study will help generate: i) an increase in consumer interest; ii) an increase in the demand for FLX; and iii) an increase in FLX acreage within Manitoba. Overall, Manitoba-produced FLX “milk” is an ideal product to prevent broken hearts in women with breast cancer.

3. GLACIER (The role of GLP-1 receptor agonists in the prevention and treatment of chemotherapy-mediated cardiotoxicity in breast cancer)

Cancer and cardiovascular disease are the leading causes of mortality in Canada. As a novel anti-diabetic medication, recent randomized controlled trials have demonstrated that glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs), including Semaglutide (SEMA, also known as Ozempic), reduce the risk of heart failure in patients with and without diabetes. Little is known about the role of SEMA in the Cardio-Oncology setting. In the “GLACIER study”, we will explore the role of SEMA in both preventing and treating heart failure caused by Doxorubicin and Trastuzumab (DOX+TRZ) in a pre-clinical model. This innovative study will enhance the quality of heart health in women with breast cancer.

About Dr. Davinder S. Jassal

Dr. Jassal was born in Thompson, Manitoba, Canada, obtained an International Baccalaureate Degree at Sisler High School in Winnipeg, and graduated from the University of Manitoba with an MD in 1998. He completed a residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Manitoba from 1998 to 2001 and a residency in Adult Cardiology at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. Subsequently, he completed a clinical and research fellowship in Cardiac Imaging, specializing in echocardiography, CT, and MRI at Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.

Dr. Jassal joined the Section of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Manitoba in 2006 as an Academic Clinician Scientist, where half of his time is devoted to patient care in the acute cardiac care unit (ACCU) and cardiac imaging and the other half is devoted to translational research in the field of Cardio-Oncology. He is currently a Full Professor of Medicine, Radiology, and Physiology and Pathophysiology. As Head of the Section of Cardiology in the Department of Internal Medicine, Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, at the University of Manitoba, Dr. Jassal is also a member of the Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences as the Principal Investigator of the Cardiovascular Imaging Laboratory.

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Davinder S. Jassal
Rm. 4010, St. Boniface Hospital Research, 351 Tache, R2H 2A6
Lab Phone. (204) 237-2599
Lab Office. (204) 235-3056
Hospital Office. (204) 258-1290
Fax. (204) 233-2157

Mr. David YC Cheung
Research Technician
Rm. 4010, St. Boniface Hospital Research, 351 Tache, R2H 2A6
Lab Phone. (204) 237-2599, (204) 235-3741
Fax. (204) 233-6723

Publications

2026

  1. Surendran A, Stamenkovic A, Jassal DS, Shah A, Ravandi A. Lipidomic remodelling is associated with hemodynamic severity in calcific aortic valve stenosis. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2026 Jun 1;330(6):H2036-H2055. doi: 1152/ajpheart.00960.2025. Epub 2026 May 13. PMID: 42126129.
  2. Malik A, Cheung DCY, Ledingham DA, Desautels D, Herrmann J, Singal PK, Jassal DS. Regulation of Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress by Empagliflozin in Doxorubicin-Induced Cardiotoxicity in Rats. J Cell Mol Med. 2026 May;30(9):e71161. doi: 1111/jcmm.71161. PMID: 42057146; PMCID: PMC13128534.
  3. Rozovsky T, Siapno A, Cheung DYC, Telles-Langdon SM, Ledingham A, Haasbeek PR, Castagna L, Mackic L, Schwartz L, Thliveris JA, Desautels D, Herrmann J, Jassal DS. The Cardioprotective Effects of Empagliflozin with and Without ACE Inhibition in Chemotherapy-Induced Cardiotoxicity. Biomedicines. 2026 Apr 16;14(4):903. doi: 3390/biomedicines14040903. PMID: 42072444; PMCID: PMC13113674.
  4. Arya V, Mackic L, Langdon SMT, Cheung DYC, Haasbeek PR, Eastman S, Castagna L, Grandy S, Heinze SS, Desautels D, Gordon V, Graham J, Green S, Grenier D, Kim CA, Thiessen M, Pitz M, Jassal DS. Can flaxseed “milk” prevent anthracycline mediated cardiotoxicity in women with breast cancer (CANFLAX-BC)? Cardiooncology. 2026 Jan 8;12(1):20. doi: 10.1186/s40959-025-00441-3. PMID: 41508221; PMCID: PMC12870242.

2025

  1. Goyal V, Raghavan AA, Jassal DS. Heart in the Crossfire: Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Mediated Cardiotoxicity. Can J Cardiol. 2025 Dec;41(12):2463-2466. doi: 1016/j.cjca.2025.10.006. Epub 2025 Oct 11. PMID: 41083065.
  2. Zhang H, Atefi N, Surendran A, Han J, Goodlett DR, Jassal DS, Shah A, Ravandi A. Conjugated bile acids are elevated in severe calcific aortic valve stenosis. J Lipid Res. 2025 May 21:100830. doi: 1016/j.jlr.2025.100830. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40409472.
  3. Kunutsor SK, Jassal DS, Ravandi A, Lehoczki A. Dietary flaxseed: Cardiometabolic benefits and its role in promoting healthy aging. Geroscience. 2025 Jan 16. doi: 1007/s11357-025-01512-0. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39821819.
  4. Ren H, Rozovsky T, Seidman MA, Jassal DS. Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Mediated Myocarditis With Complete Heart Block: Is the Rhythm Reversible? CJC Open. 2025 Jan 2;7(3):295-296. doi: 1016/j.cjco.2024.12.011. PMID: 40182414; PMCID: PMC11963202.

2024

  1. Kunutsor SK, Kurl S, Jae SY, Jassal DS, Savonen K, Laukkanen JA. The Interplay Between Type 2 Diabetes, Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Sudden Cardiac Death: A Prospective Cohort Study. CJC Open. 2024. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cjco.2024.08.007.
  2. Su S, Wang YM, Zaborniak K, Hamza S, Jassal DS, Blouw M. Severe distributive shock, neutrophilic dermatosis, and ST-elevation myocardial infarction in the setting of azathioprine hypersensitivity syndrome. Allergy Asthma Clin Immunol. 2024 Jul 20;20(1):39. doi: 1186/s13223-024-00906-7. PMID: 39030633
  3. Telles-Langdon SM, Arya V, Haasbeek PR, Cheung DYC, Eekhoudt CR, Mackic L, Bryson AN, Varghese SS, Austria JA, Thliveris JA, Aukema HM, Ravandi A, Singal PK, Jassal DS. Efficacy of Flaxseed Compared to ACE Inhibition in Treating Anthracycline- and Trastuzumab-Induced Cardiotoxicity. CJC Open. 2024 Mar 25;6(7):925-937. doi: 1016/j.cjco.2024.03.009. PMID: 39026621; PMCID: PMC11252538.
  4. Hamel C, Avard B, Isaac N, Jassal D, Kirkpatrick I, Leipsic J, Michaud A, Worrall J, Nguyen ET. Canadian Association of Radiologists Cardiovascular Imaging Referral Guideline. Can Assoc Radiol J. 2024 May 11:8465371241246425. doi: 1177/08465371241246425. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38733286.
  5. Malik A, Bagchi AK, Jassal DS, Singal PK. Doxorubicin induced cardiomyopathy is mitigated by empagliflozin via the modulation of endoplasmic reticulum stress pathways. Mol Med Rep. 2024 May;29(5):74. doi: 3892/mmr.2024.13198. Epub 2024 Mar 15. PMID: 38488036; PMCID: PMC10958136.
  6. McGregor M, Bews H, Jassal DS. Thrombosis of a mechanical aortic valve: stuck between a clot and a hard place. Eur Heart J. 2024 Mar 4:ehae115. doi: 1093/eurheartj/ehae115. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38437581.

2023

  1. Bews HJ, Mackic L, Jassal DS. Preventing broken hearts in women with breast cancer: a concise review on chemotherapy-mediated cardiotoxicity. Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 2023 Dec 1. doi: 1139/cjpp-2023-0358. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38039515.
  2. Chow BJW, Galiwango P, Poulin A, Raggi P, Small G, Juneau D, Kazmi M, Ayach B, Beanlands RS, Sanfilippo AJ, Chow CM, Paterson DI, Chetrit M, Jassal DS, Connelly K, Larose E, Bishop H, Kass M, Anderson TJ, Haddad H, Mancini J, Doucet K, Daigle JS, Ahmadi A, Leipsic J, Lim SP, McRae A, Chou AY. Chest Pain Evaluation: Diagnostic Testing. CJC Open. 2023 Sep 7;5(12):891-903. doi: 1016/j.cjco.2023.09.001. PMID: 38204849; PMCID: PMC10774086.
  3. Nair P, Chen-Tournoux A, Almufleh AS, Blissett S, Ducas R, Fine NM, Johri AM, Kushneriuk D, Ramer S, Sanfilippo A, Thibodeau-Jarry N, Yu E, Bewick D, Burwash IG, Chow CM, Cooley H, De S, Douflé G, Fagan SM, Henri C, Jassal DS, Jelic T, Lee D, Leipsic J, Leong-Poi H, Luksun W, Mulloy AJ, Mulvagh S, Nesbitt G, Promislow S, Sebag IA, Tran DTT, Tsang TSM. 2023 CCS/CSE Standards for Physician Training and Maintenance of Competence in Adult Echocardiography: Executive Summary. Can J Cardiol. 2023 Jun 22:S0828-282X(23)01448-4. doi: 1016/j.cjca.2023.06.418.
  4. Su S, Shah P, Jassal DS. Ventricular tachycardia triggered by electroconvulsive therapy: Case report and review of the literature. Clin Case Rep. 2023 May 29;11(6):e7450. doi: 1002/ccr3.7450. eCollection 2023 Jun.
  5. Hassan-Tash P, Ismail U, Kirkpatrick IDC, Ravandi A, Jassal DS, Hiebert B, Kass M, Krasuski RA, Shah AH. Correlation of Impedance Cardiography-Derived and Cardiac Magnetic Resonance-Derived Stroke Volumes. Curr Probl Cardiol. 2023 Feb;48(2):101457. doi: 1016/j.cpcardiol.2022.101457. Epub 2022 Oct 21. PMID: 36273652.

2022

  1. Nagalingam RS, Chattopadhyaya S, Al-Hattab DS, Cheung DYC, Schwartz LY, Jana S, Aroutiounova N, Ledingham DA, Moffatt TL, Landry NM, Bagchi RA, Dixon IMC, Wigle JT, Oudit GY, Kassiri Z, Jassal DS, Czubryt MP. Scleraxis and fibrosis in the pressure-overloaded heart. Eur Heart J. 2022 Dec 1;43(45):4739-4750. doi: 1093/eurheartj/ehac362.
  2. Dhingra R, Rabinovich-Nikitin I, Rothman S, Guberman M, Gang H, Margulets V, Jassal DS, Alagarsamy KN, Dhingra S, Valenzuela Ripoll C, Billia F, Diwan A, Javaheri A, Kirshenbaum LA. Proteasomal Degradation of TRAF2 Mediates Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Doxorubicin-Cardiomyopathy. Circulation. 2022 Sep 20;146(12):934-954. doi: 1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.121.058411. Epub 2022 Aug 19.
  3. Al-Shudiefat AA, Ludke A, Malik A, Jassal DS, Bagchi AK, Singal PK. Olive oil protects against progression of heart failure by inhibiting the remodelling of heart subsequent to myocardial infarction in rats. Physiol Rep. 2022 Aug;10(15):e15379. doi: 14814/phy2.15379.
  4. Bews H, Bryson A, Bortoluzzi T, Tam JW, Jassal DS. COVID-19 Vaccination-Induced Myopericarditis: An Imager’s Perspective. CJC Open. 2022 May;4(5):497-500. doi: 1016/j.cjco.2022.01.007. Epub 2022 Jan 29.
  5. Eekhoudt C. R, Bortoluzzi T, Varghese S. S, Cheung D.Y.C, Christie S, Eastman S, Mittal I, Austria J. A, Aukema H. M, Ravandi A, Thliveris J, Singal PK, Jassal DS. Comparing Flaxseed and Perindopril in the Prevention of Doxorubicin and Trastuzumab-Induced Cardiotoxicity in C57Bl/6 Mice. Oncol. 2022 Apr; 29:2941-2953. doi: 10.3390/curroncol29050241.
  6. Malik A, Bagchi AK, Jassal DS, Singal PK. Interleukin-10 mitigates doxorubicin-induced endoplasmic reticulum stress as well as cardiomyopathy. Biomedicines. 2022 Apr13;10(4):890. Doi: 3390/biomedicines10040890.
  7. Kirkham AA, Pituskin E, Thompson RB, Mackey JR, Koshman SL, Jassal D, Pitz M, Haykowsky MJ, Pagano JJ, Chow K, Tsui AK, Ezekowitz JA, Oudit GY, Paterson DI. Cardiac and cardiometabolic phenotyping of trastuzumab-mediated cardiotoxicity: a secondary analysis of the MANTICORE trial. Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Pharmacother. 2022 Feb 16;8(2):130-139. doi: 1093/ehjcvp/pvab016.

    2021
    St. Boniface Hospital Ron Duhamel Innovation Award

    2019
    Manitoba Medical students Association Teaching Award Nominee for Pre-Clerkship Mentor and Best Teaching in small group setting

    Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada 2025-2028
    Title: Empagliflozin in the prevention and treatment of doxorubicin and trastuzumab mediated cardiotoxicity (EMPACT) study 

    CIHR (Co-applicant) 2024-2029
    Title: A Multi-Centre Non-Inferiority Randomized Controlled Trial of STOPping Cardiac MEDications in Patients with Normalized Cancer Therapy Related Cardiac Dysfunction – The STOP-MED CTRCD Trial

    CAN-USA grant 2022-2025
    Title: The cardioprotective role of SGLT2 inhibition in the prevention of anthracycline mediated heart failure (SHIELD-HF)

    Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada 2019-2022
    Title: Flaxseed in the prevention and treatment of anthracycline and trastuzumab mediated cardiotoxicity

    Canadian Agricultural Partnership/ Ag Action Manitoba 2019-2023
    Title: Flaxseed prevents broken hearts in breast cancer (CANFLAX) study

    Canadian Cancer Society/ CIHR Grant Innovation (Co-applicant) 2018-2024
    Title: Exercise to prevent AnthraCycline-based Cardio-Toxicity (EXACT 2.0) in individuals with breast cancer

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    Life In the Lab

    Jassal Lab 2025
    Jassal Lab - 2022
    Jassal Lab 2019
    Group photo from Dr. Jassal's lab.
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    Dr. Jassal's lab
    Dr. Jassal lab group photo
    Dr. Jassal lab group photo
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    Dr. Jassal lab group photo