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So far Mitch Medina has created 564 blog entries.

Thomas McAfee named CEO of new Keck Medicine of USC Medical Foundation

By Leslie Ridgeway

Thomas McAfee, MD, dean of clinical affairs at UC San Diego Health Sciences, has been appointed the CEO of the newly forming Keck Medicine of USC Medical Foundation. He begins his new role on Sept. 3.

The development of a community medical foundation intended to add primary and specialty practices into the Keck Medicine network was a key initiative identified as part of the clinical enterprise-­wide strategic plan. … Read More »

August 9th, 2013|Announcements|

Pasadena Magazine honors USC Doctors

USC physicians continued to make impressive gains this year in an annual ranking of doctors in the San Gabriel Valley.

In all, 345 USC physicians have been included in Pasadena Magazine’s 2013 roster of “Top Doctors,” up from 273 last year and 170 in 2011. The doctors represent 34 different specialties, including oncology, radiology, neurology, orthopaedic surgery, ophthalmology and cardiology. They comprise nearly one-third of the magazine’s entire roster. … Read More »

August 9th, 2013|Announcements|

Practice makes perfect at Surgical Simulation Center

By Josh Grossberg

Becoming a doctor requires years of attending lectures, watching PowerPoint presentations and reading stacks of thick textbooks filled with charts and graphs.

But at some point, young students and physician residents at Los Angeles County + USC will have to put down the heavy tomes and pick up a scalpel or a needle holder to begin the work of helping to make patients better.

To help them reach that goal as skillfully as possible, the Department of Surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC provides them with a variety of simulation options to teach procedural based skills. This provides the opportunity to practice — and practice some more — before they ever touch a patient. Now, students and young physicians can hone their skills in an environment that is safe, but also real enough to mimic the stress of a real-life situation. … Read More »

August 9th, 2013|Announcements|

The Hirshberg Foundation enlists USC in its fight against pancreatic cancer with $25,000 grant to fund new treatments

Pancreatic cancer is among the most lethal of all cancers, but the least funded for research. According to American Cancer Society estimates, more than 45,000 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2013, and nearly 38,500 will die. The incidence of this cancer has been slowly increasing over the past decade.

The Hirshberg Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer Research, now in its 15th year, funds projects and programs designed to improve patient care, treatment and, ultimately, survival rates. In its quest to discover the biologic mechanisms of pancreatic cancer, the Hirshberg Foundation recently provided $25,000 to the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. It is the foundation’s first gift to USC. … Read More »

July 26th, 2013|Announcements|

USC Legacy Circle members learn more about individualized cancer care

By Ina Fried

A frightened 39-year-old woman with young children was referred by a friend to the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and Hospital because of recurrent lung cancer. A multidisciplinary team, including a radiologist, pathologist, surgeon and oncologist, evaluated her case.

USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center Director Stephen Gruber (left) and Legacy Circle member Jim Bonorris at the Legacy Circle luncheon Photo/Steve Cohn USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center Director Stephen Gruber (left) and Legacy Circle member Jim Bonorris at the Legacy Circle luncheon
Photo/Steve Cohn

Within a week, the woman came to USC Norris, where a lung cancer expert performed minimally invasive robotic surgery. The pathologist performed molecular profiling of her tumor to determine which targeted drugs would be helpful to her.

When USC Norris Director Stephen B. Gruber, MD, MPH, visited the woman the day after surgery, “she was sitting up in bed laughing with her husband and eating ice cream,” he said. … Read More »

July 26th, 2013|Announcements|