News & Events

Last October, opera singer Zheng Cao fell during a performance and had no idea why. Later, it turned out she had advanced lung cancer. Now, as a result of treatment with a new type of targeted therapy, her cancer is retreating. Personalized medicine - that is, customizing the treatment to the patient's tumor -is...

The San Francisco Chronicle recently profiled UCSF breastcare surgeon Dr. Laura Esserman, There is no starched white lab coat for Dr. Laura Esserman. Instead, the tall and striking breast cancer researcher, surgeon and visionary favors colorful clothes, high heels and, on a recent day, metallic blue nail polish...

Take Steps for Crohn's & Colitis is an evening walk and fundraiser supporting the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America. .......The UCSF team raised over $3,500 for CCFA - dollars that will support important research and our shared mission to improve the lives of people with colorectal conditions.......

UCSF News reports on the SGFH-based San Francisco Injury Center Research and Prevention and its innovative research to to treat, understand and prevent traumatic injuries: For the past 20 years, the San Francisco Injury Center for Research and Prevention (SFIC) has been working to treat, understand and prevent...

As a gifted pianist in high school, Assistant Professor of Surgery Tippi MacKenzie, MD, spent every Saturday studying music at Juilliard. This musical training was good preparation for her current work as a researcher and surgeon. “When you’re playing the piano, you work out the details in a dif cult passage until...

"Surgeons at UCSF have taken a major step down the path toward less invasive procedures, performing San Francisco's first gallbladder removal using only a single, small incision hidden within the navel. The procedure, which took place in May, is a significant advance in the field of minimally invasive surgery...

Pancreatic cancer can be a terrifying diagnosis. Dr. Kimberly Kirkwood, a Professor of Surgery at UCSF, was invited by the web portal, Patient Power, to discuss the latest diagnostic tools and treatments for extending the lives of those diagnosed with this disease. Dr. Kirkwood is a pancreatic cancer specialist...

San Francisco International Film Festival, Thirteen years ago, Pat Spurgeon of the indie pop band Rogue Wave received a kidney transplant. Unfortunately, just as the band started to take off, the kidney began to fail. The feature documentary "D Tour" chronicles Pat's experience as a UCSF kidney patient including...

The Department of Surgery at UCSF is pleased to announce the appointment of Madhulika G. Varma M.D. as Chief of the Section of Colorectal Surgery, Division of General Surgery. Dr. Varma specializes in the surgical treatment of diseases of the colon, rectum and anus. Dr. Varma is also director of the UCSF Center...

UCSF News reports on the "TOGA" study led by Stanley Rogers, MD, FACS , Associate Clinical Professor of Surgery and Co-Director of the UCSF Bariatric Surgery Center, and John Cello, MD, Professor of Medicine and Surgery, and Medical Director of Bariatric Surgery Center. The investigational procedure, transoral...

Despite substantial research showing that Peripheral artery disease (PAD) puts people at increased risk for heart attack, stroke, amputation and other vascular-related coniditions, PAD remains significantly underdiaganosed and undertreated. “These are very vulnerable patients,” says Michael S. Conte, MD,, chief of...

UCSF vascular surgeons have introduced a new "flow reversal" system designed to improve the safety of carotid artery stenting procedures. The FDA approved the first flow reversal system for clinical use earlier this month based upon the results of a recently completed clinical trial. Flow reversal systems...

Michael Conte, M.D. has been named the Chief of the Division of Vascular & Endovascular Surgery. Dr. Conte was previously on the faculty at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Dr. Conte's clinical and research expertise encompass carotid artery disease, diabetic vascular disease, diseases of the aorta/visceral...

Nancy Ascher, MD, PhD on NPR's Forum with Michael Krasny Each day in the U.S., 19 people die waiting for donated organs. To help increase supply, some health experts and economists want to legalize the market for human organs. We take up the issue with a panel of experts.