On November 19, 2025, Parkinson Canada hosted the Southwest Ontario Parkinson’s Research Day in London. The event brought together researchers, clinicians, trainees, community organizations, and people living with Parkinson’s for a full day of learning, collaboration, and conversation. The meeting also highlighted Southwestern Ontario’s growing strength in Parkinson’s research and clinical care, and how collaboration between these groups can support that work to ensure that patient needs are being met.

Key takeaways 

Panel discussions and presentations took place throughout the day. Here are some of the key takeaways and highlights that emerged from these conversations. 

  • Patient-centered research 
    There is a growing desire to ensure that Parkinson’s research is patient-centered and inclusive. This means including people with Parkinson’s in the research process and accounting for their perspectives in research design.  
     
  • Exercise as a cornerstone – but not the be-all, end-all 
    Exercise remains one of the most impactful current interventions for motor and non-motor symptoms. Participants discussed additional research avenues into exercise such as wearables, inflammation, and predictive markers, as well as barriers to exercise for people with Parkinson’s. Overall exercise was reinforced as a key tool, but some discussions also raised the need for options beyond exercise. 
     
  • Open science and transparent data sharing 
    The ability for transparency and shared information to accelerate discoveries was discussed. This includes sharing data, results and protocols across institutions. It also includes ensuring that research participants fully understand how and why their data is being used, and that there is trust and transparency between the Parkinson’s community and researchers. Conference participants emphasized the need for open research practices while maintaining confidentiality. 
     
  • Outreach to the community 
    A lot of amazing research is taking place behind the scenes, but information about it is sometimes slow to reach the Parkinson’s community. The development of a framework for best practices for sharing research results was discussed by participants. This included ensuring research information is made available in a variety of formats so it’s accessible and open. 
     
  • Collaboration, ecosystem building and funding 
    Perhaps the theme that underscores all others from the conference is the need to collaborate and build relationships. This includes ensuring that organizations such as academia, hospitals, advocacy groups, and the private sector have open lines of communication. This will facilitate shared goals, potentially collaborative research funding and support, and conferences such as this one are key to enabling that.  
     
  • Awareness, education, advocacy and support 
    As the fastest growing neurological disorder, there is a strong need to raise awareness of Parkinson’s. Participants discussed the need to improve knowledge of clinicians, government and the public about Parkinson’s, as well as supporting wellness programs for people living with it. Discussions featured ideas such as hosting Parkinson’s 101 sessions, more awareness campaigns, and more visible local resources. Addressing isolation with social opportunities and decreasing barriers for people with Parkinson’s were also marked as key issues. 

Wrapping up 

As the day concluded with breakout discussions, participants offered thoughtful reflections on the future. Many voiced the need for integrated care, more inclusive research models, and better support for rural communities through hybrid clinical and scientific approaches. Others emphasized the importance of addressing stigma, increasing public awareness, and improving clinician capacity to connect people with local resources. 

Conferences such as today’s Southwest Ontario Parkinson’s Research Day are key to creating the connections that fuel Parkinson’s breakthroughs. They also bridge the gaps between groups that might not regularly connect, such as the Parkinson’s community and researchers, and allow new ideas to percolate across the field that have the potential yo yield the most impact.  

Interested in learning more about how Parkinsons Canada supports research, or want to get involved? Please see Parkinson Canada’s research page. We would also like to sincerely thank and highlight our friends and partners at Western University and Parkinson Society Southwestern Ontario for their support in hosting this day and all the work they do to support the local Parkinson’s community. 

This event was generously sponsored by BlueRock Therapeutics.