UCSF Today - News and Special Features

New studies just published in a special supplement to the Journal of General Internal Medicine examine the consequences of language barriers for patients who speak little, if any, English and the impact of the absence of language services in health care settings. Overall, the studies report that measurable disparities in quality of care result when patients and providers do not speak the same language.

UCSF Student Wins Competition for Invention of Instrument that Measures Pain Levels

UCSF Faculty Coach Vietnamese Medical Education Leaders to Reform Curriculum Using Evidence-Based Medicine, Problem-Based Learning

NIH Doubles Support for Vital HIV/AIDS Research Center

Autism Early Invention Topic of KQED Forum

UCSF’s OLLI Courses Focus on Stress and Nutrition

Leading experts in medicine and the health sciences will lead the fall session of UCSF’s Mini Medical School, presented by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.

Patients Prefer Simplified Advance Directive over Standard Form

inSites: What’s on the Web? UCSF.edu Index for October 2007

Project Teaches the ‘Magic of Science’ in Western Addition

Fifth-graders at Rosa Parks Elementary School in San Francisco’s Western Addition are learning about science with the help of UCSF School of Pharmacy students.

Halloween Happenings at UCSF

Rosen Elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences

UCSF Experts Discuss “Translational Research” for UCSF Foundation Wellness Lecture Series

Pediatric Diabetes Specialist Gitelman Speaks to BBC

Cellular “Self-Eating” Might Be Turned Against Tumors

UCSF’s Miller Speaks to BBC About Life-Saving Anti-Shock Garment

QB3 Hosts Course to Help Seed and Speed Asian Biotech

UCSF Public Affairs Offers Multimedia Segments from Recent Research Perspectives Series Program Focused on Inflammation

National LGBT Leader Reflects on Progress Made Advancing Civil Rights

UCSF and Community Work Together to Address Concerns About Proposed Helipad at Mission Bay

“Moving Pictures” Chronicles Life in UCSF Neonatal Unit for One Premature Baby and Her Parents

Genes that Both Extend Life and Protect Against Cancer Identified

In Light of Voluntary Recall of Infant Cold Medicines, UCSF’s Soller Comments on Safety and Efficacy

UC Study Uncovers Tobacco Industry Efforts to Undermine Secondhand Smoke Link to Cardiovascular Disease

UCSF Children’s Hospital to Hold Macy’s Tree Lighting Kick-off Event

UCSF’s Rowitch Selected as Howard Hughes Medical Institute Patient-Oriented Research Investigator

UCSF Scientists Highlighted in NewsHour Stem Cell Story

UCSF Steroid Expert Tracks Origins of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome

Study Shows Physicians Do Not Consistently Inquire About Suicide with Patients Exhibiting Depressive Symptoms

Roseville Baby Battles Rare Heart Defect at UCSF Children’s Hospital

Bill Soller Provides Analysis of Potential New FDA Prescription Rules

Bruce Miller Provides Insight on Sen. Pete Domenici’s Brain Disease

Study Directly Correlates Emergency Department Crowding with Poor Quality Care

Berger Named to Lead Two National Neurosurgical Organizations

Six UCSF Faculty Inducted into American Academy of Arts and Sciences

UCSF’s Blackburn Shares Columbia University’s 2007 Horwitz Prize

360: The Positive Care Center at UCSF Featured on KFOG’s Fogfiles

inSites: What’s on the Web? UCSF.edu Index for September 2007

UCSF Alumnus Awarded Grant for Humanitarian Efforts in Kenya

KQED Forum Explores Inflammation and Disease, the Focus of First UCSF Research Perspectives Series

UCSF’s Osher Lifelong Learning Institute’s Brain, Mind and Behavior Series Premieres on UCTV

UCSF Diabetes Teaching Center Launches New Diabetes Management Educational Website

Simple Tool for Improving Doctor-Patient Communication Yields Significant Health Benefits

A UCSF research team has developed a simple tool that can improve the effectiveness of communication between doctors and patients about prescribed medications and result in dramatic improvements in health and safety.

She’s a Stem Cell Scientist by Day, but UCSF’s Elias Also Makes Time for the Tango

UCSF Hosts Second Annual Interprofessional Education Day

In 117th Shattuck Lecture, UCSF’s Schroeder Addresses “Improving the Health of the American People”

UCSF Scientist and Colleagues Develop Diagnostic Aid for Rare Inherited Immune System Disorder

Philanthropist Dede Wilsey Discusses Efforts to Raise Funds for UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay

A Sneak Peek at the Above and Beyond Gala

UCSF Researcher’s Drug Strategy for Huntington’s Disease

Physician Satisfaction—and Dissatisfaction—the Focus of KQED’s Forum

Novel Virus Detection Identifies New Viruses in Study of Respiratory Infections

NPR Discusses New NIH Asthma Treatment Guidelines with UCSF’s Boushey

Increased Risk for Arthritis and Lupus Tied to New Gene

inSites: What’s on the Web? UCSF.edu Index for August 2007

Each weekday Public Affairs publishes online the news from and about UCSF — from the latest research in basic and clinical science to weekly Science Café conversations and podcasts, from stories that embody the UCSF tagline, advancing health worldwide™, to daily campus news and calendar events. Here's a handy index of the content we brought you in August on the UCSF.edu website, in case you missed something the first time around.

HHMI News: Structural Studies Reveal New Clues to Prion Infectivity

New Breeds of Mice Shed Light on Human Cancers and Treatments

Scientists are not in the business of making better mousetraps, but they’re serious about making better mice to understand cancer biology.

UCSF Faculty on Expert Panel Releasing Updated National Asthma Guidelines

The Doctors’ Doctors: Department of Medicine Names Seven Master Clinicians

UCSF’s Children’s Hospital Now Serving as School for Kids Battling Chronic Diseases

Nature vs. Nurture Explored in Perfect Pitch Study

As a geneticist, Jane Gitschier, PhD, is interested in teasing out the relative contributions of genes and environment on behavior. For more than a decade, she and former UCSF colleague Nelson Freimer, PhD, now at UCLA, have been exploring this question by studying the capacity that some people have for “perfect pitch,” the ability to instantly and precisely identify a musical note.

Study Finds Patients Have Shorter Wait Times for Botox Injections than Mole Examinations

UCSF’s Fullerton Interviewed for Chronicle Story and Podcast on Pediatric Stroke

Strokes are the third most common killer of adults in the United States, but they're unusual in children. In fact, pediatricians and family physicians—and parents—often don't consider strokes, even when children show symptoms that would cause instant alarm in adults. For decades, there was a notable lack of research in pediatric stroke.

UCSF HARC Center Among Three New HIV Research Centers Funded by NIH

UCSF Scientists Aim to Use Saliva to Detect Oral Cancers

More than 30,000 new cases of oral cancer are diagnosed each year in the US alone, many when it’s too late to prevent death. Dentists and hygienists find oral cancers during exams, but researchers at UCSF now are developing ways to detect cancers earlier — before tumors become visible to the naked eye.To do so they are examining telltale proteins in saliva.

New UCSF Programs Premiere on UCTV in September

San Francisco Chronicle Profiles UCSF Autism Expert Bryna Siegel

UCSF’s Brizendine Discusses the Female Brain on KPBS’s These Days

Neuropsychiatrist Louann Brizendine, MD, director of the UCSF Women’s and Teen Girls’ Mood and Hormone Clinic and author of The Female Brain, appears on the KPBS radio show These Days to discuss the differences between the male and female brain.

UCSF Scientists Present at Synthetic Biology 3.0 Conference

CNBC Fast Money Interviews UCSF’s Kriegstein for Segment on Stem Cell Trade

Study Reveals Link Between Breast Cancer Decline and Decreasing Use of Hormone Therapy

For a report on a National Cancer Institute study showing a significant drop in breast cancer rates in women who had stopped postmenopausal hormone therapy, KGO-TV interviews Karla Kerlikowske, MD, lead author of the study.

Researchers Shed New Light on Three Types of Cancer

UCSF’s Fang Discusses Benefits and Risks of Warfarin

UCSF’s Chan Returns from Medical Mission in Afghanistan

On the Media Revisits Smoking and the Movies with UCSF’s Stanton Glantz

Bursts of Waves Drive Immune System “Soldiers” Toward Invaders

Scientists have discovered that torrents of microscopic waves propel white blood cells toward invading microbes. The discovery – recorded on videotape -- holds the potential for better understanding and treatment of cancer and heart disease.

UCSF Fetal Treatment Center Featured in National Association Special Report

Answers to Aging from the Amish

Partnership Forged to Fight HIV/AIDS in China

A relationship established during the bleakest days of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in San Francisco has developed into a landmark affiliation agreement signed between the AIDS Research Institute at UCSF and the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (China CDC’s) National Center for AIDS Prevention and Control (NCAIDS).

Summer Assignment: Genetically Engineer a New Cell

Just a few weeks ago, they were finishing high school. Today, they’re trying to reprogram the “molecular bar code” that distinguishes one part in a cell from another. Six pre-college students and one undergraduate are working with UCSF graduate student and postdoc mentors to fashion a new kind of organelle inside a living cell.

UCSF’s Brizendine Comments on New Study Examining Motivations for Having Sex

Can Looking into the Sun Make You Sneeze?

inSites: What’s on the Web? UCSF.edu Index for July 2007

Each weekday Public Affairs publishes online the news from and about UCSF — from the latest research in basic and clinical science to weekly Science Café conversations and podcasts, from stories that embody the UCSF tagline, advancing health worldwide™, to daily campus news and calendar events. Here's a handy index of the content we brought you in July on the UCSF.edu website, in case you missed something the first time around.

“Izzy Time” in Demand at Kids’ Hospital

UCSF’s Boxer Discusses Alzheimer’s Disease on KQED-FM

More Power to Population Studies in Pancreas Cancer Research

UCSF clinicians and researchers are joining with counterparts far and wide to conduct large studies that will yield the statistical power necessary to clearly identify factors associated with risk for pancreas cancer.

Rising Rate of Premature Births Explored on KQED’s QUEST

UCSF Nutritionist Participates in KPFA Discussion of US Obesity Rates

KPFA's Peter Laufer addresses a recent study from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health that predicts, based on the current rate of increase in obesity in the U.S., that 75 percent of adults will be overweight by 2015 and 41 percent will be obese. The study also found 66 percent of adults were overweight or obese between 2003 and 2004.

UCSF’s Brindis Discusses Efficacy of Abstinence Education Programs

Federal funding for abstinence education is on the rise: a proposed $191 million dollars for 2008, up $28 million from 2007. But recent studies are raising questions, finding no difference in sexual activity between kids with abstinence education and those without. On Point, produced by WBUR-FM, Boston, examines the effectiveness of sex education for children and adolescents in the current climate of increased federal funding for abstinence education programs.

WNYC’s Radiolab Interviews UCSF Researchers About “Life’s Limit” and “Fountains of Youth”

Looking for Cancer Clues in the Skeleton of Our Cells

For many infectious diseases, a strategy for drug design is clear: Find something that kills what’s causing the disease that won’t kill the patient. But what’s the best approach when our own cells spread within and make us sick — as when normal cells turn cancerous?

William T. Grant Foundation Appoints UCSF’s Rosenblatt as Distinguished Fellow

The William T. Grant Foundation has announced the appointment of Abram Rosenblatt, PhD, among its third group of Distinguished Fellows.

Finding the Missing Links in Translational Research: Nursing Science Critical to Bridging Gaps Between Bench, Bedside and Community

In October 2006, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded UCSF more than $100 million to establish a Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) in the next five years.

Medical Center Expresses Concerns About State Cardiac Study Results

The California CABGs Outcomes Reporting Program (CCORP) has issued a two-year report based on 2003-2004 data, which purported "worse-than-expected" outcomes for coronary artery bypass graft surgery at UCSF. In a July 13 message to the Medical Center community, Chief Operating Officer Tomi Ryba explained UCSF’s concerns about the CCORP report, citing the inclusion of highly complex cases in the data leading to a higher reported mortality rate for UCSF.

Morning Shows Discuss Potential Use of Nicotine-Addiction Drug in Treating Alcohol Dependence

As reported by the UCSF News Office on Monday, a new animal study shows that a drug already approved for nicotine addiction also curbs alcohol dependence. One dose alone cut drinking in half. The finding is particularly encouraging, the researchers say, because the animals did not turn to drinking in excess after the drug was stopped, a common pattern when people take current drugs to curb alcohol consumption.

UCSF’s Lustig Discusses the Role of Fructose in Pediatric Obesity

UCSF to Build World-Class Medical Center at Mission Bay

Elissa Epel Discusses Stress and Obesity Connection on Public Radio Program

KQED Forum Discusses Recent Findings in Juvenile Diabetes

Helping Young Survivors Manage Risks from Treatment

In the 1960s, the population of childhood cancer survivors might have rivaled that of Death Valley – a diagnosis was nearly a death sentence.

UCSF’s Voigt Praises Venter’s Synthetic Genome Research

Craig Venter’s recent announcement that his J. Craig Venter Institute research team had successfully made one new bacterial species from another brought this reaction from UCSF’s premier synthetic biologist, Christopher Voigt, PhD.

For the New York Times, UCSF’s Blackburn Answers Questions About Stress and Aging

In May, TIME magazine named UCSF microbiologist Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD, as one of this year’s 100 most influential men and women shaping our world.

inSites: What's on the Web? UCSF.edu Index for June 2007

Each weekday Public Affairs publishes online the news from and about UCSF — from the latest research in basic and clinical science to weekly Science Café conversations and podcasts, from stories that embody the UCSF tagline, advancing health worldwide™, to daily campus news and calendar events. Here's a handy index of the content we brought you in June on the UCSF.edu website, in case you missed something the first time around.

New Google Advisory Group on Health Includes Three UCSF Healthcare Experts

Every day, people use Google to learn more about an illness, drug or a treatment, or simply to research a condition or diagnosis.

Translating Form into Function: Scientists Figure out How an Enzyme Works by Knowing Its Atom-by-Atom Structure

In the last 40 years, scientists have perfected ways to determine the knot-like structure of enzymes, but they’ve been stumped trying to translate the structure into an understanding of function — what the enzyme actually does in the body. This puzzle has hurt drug discovery, since many of the most successful drugs work by blocking enzyme action. Now, in an expedited article in Nature, researchers show that a solution to the puzzle is finally in sight.

Silicon Valley’s Mike Homer Teams up with UCSF Scientists for Fight of His Life

Mike Homer has been one of the leading forces in Silicon Valley for more than two decades. In May, he was diagnosed with the rare neurodegenerative disease Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, known as CJD. Now, the 49-year-old husband and father of three young children is fighting for his life, with the assistance of physicians at UCSF Medical Center.

UCSF’s Kriegstein Says Bush Veto Disappointing, but Field Advancing

Last Wednesday, President Bush issued his second veto of a bill that would have ended federal restrictions on human embryonic stem cell research. UCSF’s Arnold Kriegstein, MD, PhD, director of the UCSF Institute for Regeneration Medicine, says the move puts a strain on a field that is just finding its wings.

Dogs Guide Search for Genes in Panic and Anxiety

According to the US Census Bureau, more than one in three American households include at least one dog.

JAMA Study: Give Doctors Info on Most Widely Covered Medicare Drugs

While millions of elderly Americans are skipping medications because they can’t afford them, a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association offers a solution: Tell doctors upfront which drugs are most widely covered by Medicare so that patients can get their medications faster and more cheaply.

UCSF’s Kahn Discusses Universal Health Care, Michael Moore’s Film Sicko

UCSF Researcher Tracks Genes that Predict Response to Antidepressants

Centennial Video Celebrates 100 Years of the UCSF School of Nursing

Mother Mice Are More Attuned to Pup Sounds than Are Other Mice

Christoph Schreiner, MD, PhD, professor and vice chair of otolaryngology, head and neck surgery and a member of the W.M. Keck Foundation Center for Integrative Neuroscience at UCSF, is senior author of a study reported in PLoS Biology on the way in which auditory neurons detect and discriminate vocalizations. Robert Liu, PhD, the first author of the study, began the work while a postdoctoral fellow in the Schreiner lab. He is now assistant professor of biology at Emory University.

MRI Is Key to Understanding Cartilage Health

Cartilage injury, repair and regrowth have long been mysterious processes. In part, this is because injured cartilage doesn’t act like many other injured tissues; cartilage continues to decline in function well after trauma, and is very slow to heal.

UCSF Opens Cartilage Repair and Regeneration Center

The treatment of cartilage injuries is one of the most difficult challenges facing orthopaedic surgeons. Clinicians and researchers at UCSF are combining forces to establish a multidisciplinary center to meet this challenge. “The UCSF Cartilage Repair and Regeneration Center is unlike any other in the region,” says UCSF orthopaedic surgeon Hubert Kim, MD, PhD.

New Species of Bacteria Discovered at UCSF

NPR’s All Things Considered reports that “[a] new species of bacteria has been discovered, thanks to an American tourist who caught it while traveling in Peru. Dr. Jane Koehler, an infectious-disease specialist who led the team that found the species, named it Bartonella rochalimae, after a long-dead Brazilian scientist.” NPR’s Rebecca Roberts speaks with Koelher about the discovery of the bacterium, and why that particular name was selected for it.

Vet Disability System Needs Overhaul, Report Says

Modern weapons, like IEDs, or improvised explosive devices, have left many soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan with debilitating injuries, while advances in trauma care have ensured their survival and return home to cope with those unique injuries, relying on a VA system that is antiquated and can’t support their physical and emotional needs, according to a report released Thursday by the Institute of Medicine.

inSites: What's on the Web? UCSF.edu Index for May 2007

Each weekday Public Affairs publishes online the news from and about UCSF — from the latest research in basic and clinical science to weekly Science Café conversations and podcasts, from stories that embody the UCSF tagline, advancing health worldwide™, to daily campus news and calendar events. Here's a handy index to the content we brought you in May on the UCSF.edu website, in case you missed something the first time around.

UCSF Needs You: Join or Sponsor a Team for the July 15 AIDS Walk San Francisco

UCSF walkers are busy getting sponsors and rallying their co-workers to join them in the San Francisco AIDS Walk on Sunday, July 15. Walkers and sponsors both are very much needed.

Stem Cell Research Breakthrough

Blackburn Awarded Honorary Doctorate by Princeton

Princeton University awarded honorary degrees during Commencement exercises June 5 to seven distinguished individuals for their contributions to humanitarian efforts and athletic achievements, aerospace and public service, science, literature, medicine, history and the arts.

UCSF's Julius Explains to NPR How the Body Detects Cold and Feels Pain

Long-Anticipated Gene Search Technique Is Now Powerfully Real

In the wake of national-headline-making reports about how inheriting particular bits of DNA can increase one’s risk for diabetes and breast cancer, UCSF’s John Witte, PhD, stands ready to try his hand at using a similar scientific strategy to track down genes that affect prostate cancer risk.

AIDS Walk Deadlines Fast Approaching

New UCSF Mini Medical School Programs Premiere on UCTV
in June

UCSF Stem Cell Faculty Featured on KQED's QUEST

Benefits and Risks of New Radiotherapies in Children

Thanks to rarely talked-about recent advances in radiation treatments, young children are surviving cancers that would have been incurable a decade ago. One strategy that is helping to boost survival is radiation treatment provided at the time of surgery. UCSF and fewer than a dozen other medical centers nationwide are at the forefront in advancing this mode of treatment, called intraoperative radiation therapy (IORT).

Women and Heart Disease – A UCSF Doctor Discusses the Symptoms, Solutions and Best Food Choices

Discover: Cynthia Kenyon and Anti-Aging Genes

House Veterans’ Affairs Committee PTSD Symposium

The Pritzker Center at UCSF Launched to Improve Emotional Well-Being of Bay Area Youth

UCSF has announced that a $25 million donation, one of the largest ever given to an American university for child and adolescent mental health services, will jump-start the creation of a comprehensive program dedicated to improving the emotional well-being of Bay Area youths, regardless of socioeconomic status.

Cracking Code of Rare Disorder May Aid MS Fight

A UCSF geneticist recently identified a gene that triggers a rare disorder resembling multiple sclerosis (MS).

Battling Hospital-Acquired Infections

Impact of the Iraq War

Science, Ethics and Censorship

Using Magnets to Perform Delicate Procedures

More than 20 years ago, UCSF pioneered cardiac ablation surgery to help patients with erratic heartbeats by zapping their hearts. Now they've opened an impressive new high-tech surgery suite to improve this surgery.

UCSF Researchers Engineer Cells to Change Shape and Movement

Scientists have carried out a bioengineering feat that advances the possibility of “reassembling” and reprogramming living cells to serve as mini-robots in the body to treat disease.

Combination Malaria Therapy Effective in Treating African Children

UC Regents Approve Fundraising Campaign for UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay

The UC Board of Regents today approved a proposed fundraising campaign to raise at least $500 million toward the development of the first phase of UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay.

Learning Cut-and-Paste Rules to Fight a Deadly Fungus

Vaginal and oral yeast infections caused by Candida are rarely serious -- but in those with weak immune defenses the fungus can rapidly change, spread and even kill. A young UCSF researcher is beginning to learn how.

New Drug Offers Hope for Osteoporosis Sufferers

Iraq War Vet Counselors Battling Traumatic Stress

UCSF Medical School Dean Testifies on Food and Drug Safety

David Kessler, MD, vice chancellor for medical affairs and dean of the UCSF School of Medicine testified on Tuesday, May 1, before the House Oversight and Investigations Committee hearing on the future of the Food and Drug Administration. Kessler was FDA Commissioner from 1990 to 1997.

Bay Area Doctor Pioneers Fetal Surgery to Save Lives

UCSF Blogs: Michael Merzenich “On the Brain”

UCSF’s Shlipak Discusses Cystatin C on Australian Radio Health Program

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco have looked at cystatin C, an alternative measure of kidney function that may have prognostic significance among elderly people who do not meet the standard criteria for chronic kidney disease.

UCSF's Paul Blanc Discusses Environmental Toxins at Home and in the Workplace

Toxins are well-recognized sources of stress on the body and we can be exposed to them in the general environment, at work and at home — perhaps a neglected place when it comes to chemical exposure.

New Law Requires Dental Exams Among Public School Children

The California Dental Association sponsored a new law that requires children in their first year of public school to get a dental exam before May 31.

UCSF Sleuths Identify Suspects in Mystery of Vanishing Honeybees

UCSF scientists have identified two suspects in the massive die-off of half a million bee colonies in the US. Joe DeRisi, PhD, and Don Ganem, MD, both Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigators at UCSF, have used a powerful combination of a "virus chip" — a microarray with DNA samples of most known viruses and fungi — and "shotgun" sequencing, which identifies telltale DNA from random samples of the biological sample.

Drop in Hormone Therapy Leads to Cancer Decline

A decrease in hormone use by women has led to a decline in breast cancer cases, according to new research published in the New England Journal of Medicine this week.

One of Life’s Most Common Compounds Causes Allergic Inflammation

The beetle’s back and the crab’s shell owe their toughness to a common compound called chitin that now appears to trigger airway inflammation and possibly asthma, UCSF scientists have found.

UCSF Newsbreak Focuses on Identity and Impact

The spring issue of Newsbreak focuses on stories that explain how UCSF is making a difference to improve health locally, nationally and internationally.

KQED Forum Discusses Virginia Tech Tragedy

Keith McBurnett, PhD, associate adjunct professor of psychiatry at UCSF, who specializes in disruptive behavior in children and adolescents, is one of Michael Krasny's guests discussing Monday's shooting rampage at Virginia Tech.

New Progress in Matching Cancer Patients to Drugs

Breast cancers differ from one another and from tumors that arise in other tissues. A drug that is life-saving for one cancer patient may fail in another with a tumor that originated in the same organ. But it’s tough to match the patient to the best treatment.

New England Journal of Medicine Interviews Steven Schroeder on the State of Tobacco Control

UCSF Mission Bay: A California Success Story

inSites: Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Launch Redesigned Web Site

Do “Truth Serums” Work?

Lawyers of alleged al Qaeda operative Jose Padilla have argued that he should not be tried because of questionable interrogation techniques used on him, including the use of truth serums.

UCSF Blogs: Orthopaedic Surgeon Assists Physicians in Wenzhou, China

Orthopaedic surgeon Rebecca Yu, MD, blogs from Wenzhou, China, where she and Jonathan Lam, MD, PhD, are assisting physicians at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou through an opportunity with Orthopaedics Overseas/Health Volunteers Overseas.

UCSF’s Kriegstein Discusses Stem Cell Research Bills Debated by U.S. Senate

Two separate bills that would subsidize stem cell research are in Senate debate this week. The White House says President Bush will veto a bill supporting research that destroys viable human embryos. An alternative bill, one supported by the White House, would fund stem cell research on fertilized embryos that are no longer capable of full development.

View from the Bay: The Female Brain at Menopause

On View from the Bay, Louanne Brizendine, MD, neuropsychiatrist and founder of the UCSF Women’s and Teen Girls’ Mood and Hormone Clinic, discusses how hormones and the environment go hand in hand, and the effects they can have on relationships.

View from the Bay: Be Beautiful at Any Age!

Would you have the courage and the confidence to pose nude after age 50? Two Bay Area women did, as part of a national advertising campaign.

Charlie Rose and Cynthia Kenyon Explore the Science of Living Longer

On the third episode of The Charlie Rose Science Series, co-hosts Charlie Rose and Nobel Laureate Sir Paul Nurse, PhD, speak with UCSF’s Cynthia Kenyon, PhD, Herbert Boyer Distinguished Professor in Biochemistry and Biophysics, and director, Larry L. Hillblom Center for the Biology of Aging, about Kenyon’s cutting-edge research in genes and aging.

New UCSF Hospital Complex Planned at Mission Bay

In May, the UC Board of Regents is expected to give UCSF Medical Center the approval to begin fundraising for its new hospital at Mission Bay, scheduled to open in 2013. The $1.2 billion hospital complex, part of the UCSF Medical Center, will be among the first in the nation devoted exclusively to the care of women and children, and cancer.

Boosting Colon Cancer Survival

Colon cancer is largely preventable and curable when detected early through routine screening. But patients who skip screening or who fall prey to particularly aggressive colon cancers may already have widespread disease by the time they are diagnosed.

UCSF Physical Therapy “Health and Wellness Center”

A new Health and Wellness Center opens Monday, April 2, 2007 with support from the UCSF campus and the community. In the beautiful setting of Bakar Fitness Center, many different wellness programs will be offered. Physical therapy faculty will provide physical therapy education and consultation services as well as injury screening.

Debate Rekindled on the Two-Drinks-a-Day Road to Heart Health

No one really wants to hear that alcohol isn’t good for us after all, which could be why scientists worldwide have convened on paper this month to debate a UCSF researcher’s study that debunks the popular notion.

Facts About UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay

Plan Ahead to Save Lives from Heart Attack, Dracup Tells Australian Audience

Don't think twice, phone the ambulance about heart attack symptoms, UCSF School of Nursing Dean Kathleen Dracup told Australian audiences on March 19, in an interview with host Norman Swan of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's radio show, The Health Report.

Elizabeth Blackburn in Conversation on Australian Radio

For the Australian Broadcasting Company, Robyn Williams interviews Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD, about her work on telomeres, aging, stress, and about her involvement with politics—and her falling out with President George W. Bush—when she was part of the President’s Council on Bioethics. Blackburn says she saw science presented in an unbalanced way and evidence ignored.

Promising Vaccine Against Brain Tumor

Andrew Parsa, MD, PhD, speaks with host Norman Swan of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s radio show, The Health Report, about an experimental immunological treatment for the malignant brain tumor known as glioblastoma.

Health Care Costs of Iraq War Under Debate

Innovative Pediatric Asthma Care Program at SFGH Wins National Award

Treating pediatric asthma has long been appreciated as a complex endeavor requiring the collaboration of children, their families, health care providers and school officials, among others.

UCSF Wins Big on Stem Cell Funding

UCSF was the biggest winner of grants awarded by the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) Friday, with seven grants worth nearly $17.4 million, and an additional $1.1 million going to UCSF and UC Irvine researchers for grants that had not been approved by the institute last month but were funded under the previous outlays. All of the new grants will fund "mature, ongoing studies," according to the stem cell institute.

Helping Vets Cope with Trauma

Keith Armstrong, LCSW, co-author of the book Courage After Fire, which explores how troops readjust to civilian life after battle, talks about how to reach troubled soldiers coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan who may be extremely reluctant to receive therapy.

Paul D. Blanc, MD, Discusses Toxic Products at Home and in the Workplace

UCSF medical school Professor and Chief of the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine Paul D. Blanc, MD, is a guest on AM1090 Seattle’s Eco Talk program, to discuss his book How Everyday Products Make People Sick: Toxins at Home and in the Workplace (University of California Press).

UC Joins Research Institutions to Unveil Report Urging Congress to Support Funding of Biomedical Research: Universities See Threat to Medical Progress in Combat

The University of California (UC) today joined a consortium of leading scientific and medical institutions around the country to warn that persistent flat-funding of biomedical research could thwart advances in treatments for such devastating diseases as cancer and Alzheimer’s disease.

Puberty, Obesity, Environment and Breast Cancer

A woman’s likelihood of getting breast cancer peaks in her 70s, but some researchers are focusing on puberty to better understand risks. That’s because girlhood appears be a window of vulnerability to environmental insults that may result in breast cancer decades later.

UCSF Team Battles Pediatric MS

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is typically thought of as a neurological disorder affecting adults. But children get it too.

Bringing the War Back Home

A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine by Karen Seal, MD, MPH, and colleagues at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco, measures mental illness in injured vets returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

On the Media: Smoke Gets in Their Eyes

The impact of movie sex and violence on kids may be up for debate, but with smoking, the science is solid. Teens who see a lot of it are more likely to take up the habit than those who don’t. Stanton Glantz, PhD, professor of medicine at UCSF and renowned anti-tobacco researcher and activist, wants the MPAA to take smoking as seriously as it takes cursing.

Peripheral Vascular Disease: Keeping the Blood Flowing

Rajabrata Sarkar, MD, PhD, describes his job as “taking care of people who have problems with poor blood flow to different parts of their bodies.” In practice, it means that the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center vascular surgeon is constantly on his way to or from the operating room. He’s happy to schedule time to discuss his work, as long as the questioner understands one proviso: “I may be in surgery.”

SFGH Surgeon: Helping the Wounded in Germany

Peggy Knudson, MD, San Francisco General Hospital trauma surgeon of 18 years, has been selected for a second time to work at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center, as part of the Senior Visiting Surgeon Program funded jointly by the American Association for the Surgery of Trauma, the American College of Surgeons and the US military.

The Serbian Connection: UCSF Teaching Goes International

Igor Mitrovic, MD, UCSF associate adjunct professor of physiology, still remembers the unexpected email that showed up on his campus computer screen in the spring of 2005.

Cancer Cluster: Tracking a Killer in Nevada

An environment rife with arsenic, tungsten, cobalt and jet fuel does not seem adequate to explain an unusually high incidence of childhood leukemia – three deaths and 16 cases in all – that first struck Fallon, Nevada, almost a decade ago. Despite a major public health investigation launched by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), no smoking weapon of a caliber sufficient to account for the cluster has been found.

Macular Degeneration: Preserving Eyesight Through Regeneration Science

Macular degeneration is the major cause of vision loss in the United States. The disease, which kills photoreceptors that convey visual signals from the eye to the brain, often strikes the elderly. Its defining symptom is blurriness in the central visual field, a blurriness that robs many people of their ability to drive or read.

Genes, Environment and Health Research

Neil Risch, PhD, director of the UCSF Institute for Human Genetics, co-chair of the department of epidemiology and biostatistics at UCSF, and lead co-investigator of the Research Program on Genes, Environment and Health, talks to Forum host Michael Krasny about genetic and environmental factors that may influence common diseases like heart disease, cancer, high blood pressure, asthma and Alzheimer’s disease, among others.

The Dangers of Blood Clots and How You Can Protect Yourself

Vice President Dick Cheney, 66, is being treated at a Washington, DC, hospital after developing deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot in his left leg, after 65 hours of plane travel. Such clots are rare but are sometimes caused by extended air travel.

UCSF Acknowledges Generosity of Late Ernest Gallo

Medical Computer Tablet May Replace Paper Hospital Charts

Bay Area hospitals are testing a new device called Motion C5 which could make the paper patient medical chart a thing of the past. The handheld computer tablet, developed in collaboration with UCSF, allows medical staff to enter patient data at the bedside, and logon is controlled by a fingerprint ID.

Controversial Cancer Treatment Draws Some Overseas

A gene therapy treatment for cancer offered in Beijing involves injecting a tumor suppression gene called p53 mixed with a modified virus into a cancer cell to suppress its growth. "The virus is sort of like a Trojan horse," says UCSF oncologist Alan Venook, MD, a cancer specialist who has studied p53.

UCSF on UCTV: The Promise and the Perils of Drug Development

Medical advances made from the development of new drugs are astounding. However, the competition for potential profit has created many critics. Tune in to UCTV this month for a range of UCSF programs that explore these amazing developments and the dangerous territory that comes with them.

Surgery on the Smallest Patients

Pediatric surgeon Hanmin Lee, MD, of the UCSF Fetal Treatment Center, operated on newborn Arissa Mangewala to correct a birth defect where her intestines protruded outside her body. Arissa just celebrated her first birthday, and her parents feel blessed she has a healthy future ahead of her.

UCSF to Open the First Headache Clinic in the West with an Inpatient Component for Diagnosis and Treatment

The initial member of a team developing the first headache clinic in the West with an inpatient component for diagnosis and treatment has arrived at UCSF.

HHMI News: New Functional Atlas Gives the 411 on Gene Partners

“Sometimes it helps to have a ‘cheat sheet’ when you are working on a problem as difficult as deciphering the relationships among hundreds of thousands of genes. At least that's the idea behind a powerful new technique developed by Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers to analyze how genes function together inside cells.

San Francisco Chronicle Explores “The Other Dementia”

San Francisco Chronicle writer Katherine Nichols' interest in frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a degenerative brain disease, stems from her experience with a loved one who suffers from the disease.

UCSF Researchers Seek Volunteers for Study on Connections Between Stress and Sleep

A study underway at the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center (SFVAMC) and UCSF is probing the connection between post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sleep disturbances and stress hormones. Investigators hope the study will reveal a new potential method for treating PTSD, as well as shed light on the biology of sleep

The Facts Behind the HPV Vaccine

The new HPV vaccine is the first one for girls only, and the first immunization recommended for children to protect against a sexually transmitted virus. But the vaccine also has global implications—cervical cancer is a leading cause of death among women in developing countries, and in some countries, young men are being vaccinated as well.

UCSF Scientists Provide Overview on State of Therapeutic Cloning Studies

Ten years ago Thursday, the public learned that Scottish scientists had cloned a sheep. On NPR’s All Things Considered, UCSF stem cell scientists Robert Blelloch, MD, PhD, and Susan Fisher, PhD, spoke with science reporter Joe Palca about their efforts to study the human embryo in a difficult political climate, and confirm that cloned human embryos will inevitably produce stem cell therapies.

New Ideas, Funding Infused into Search for Blood Markers of Cancer

Clinicians dream of being able to diagnose cancer reliably with a simple lab test. Cancerous cells make some proteins abnormally. Some of these proteins are secreted or shed, and make their way into body fluids. The quest to identify proteins in blood or urine that signal the presence of cancer has long been a focus of research.

Racial Divide in Breast Cancer Detection

Research at the University of California, San Francisco found a racial disparity in the diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer.

Quest: Genetic Testing Through the Web

If you could learn your odds of getting cancer, heart disease or diabetes, would you? A new generation of home genetic testing kits allows anybody with a cotton swab and a mailbox to find out. But does convenience come with a privacy risk?

How Safe Is Extended Cycle Birth Control?

Some say extended cycle birth control pills are revolutionizing contraception for many women because it provides fewer periods, which means less pain, PMS and inconvenience, but is it safe? UCSF neuropsychiatrist and female hormone specialist Louann Brizendine, MD, says various forms of extended cycle pills have been used for years.

HPV Vaccine’s Side Effects Come to Light

KPIX-TV’s HealthWatch reports that the CDC has collected more than 500 complaints about adverse reactions to Merck's HPV (human papilloma virus) vaccine Gardasil, including soreness at the injection site, fainting or dizziness, and fever or nausea.

UCSF Nurses Test Mobile Clinical Assistant Tablet PCs

Nurses at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center will be among the first health care workers to use a tablet-like PC called a mobile clinical assistant (MCA), developed specifically for medical professionals by Intel and Motion Computing. Motion Computing’s C5 is the first product based on Intel’s MCA platform and has earned support from clinicians and nurses participating in pilot studies around the world.

inSites: UCSF Outdoor Programs Helps You Get Away from It All

Outdoor Programs creates rejuvenating outdoor experiences for students, staff and families in UCSF and the local community. Whether it's “rock-climbing” four stories above the ground atop the Mission Bay Community Center, paddling the San Francisco Bay, hiking through Yosemite, enjoying a day on the beach, or taking best advantage of recent snowfall in Tahoe, Outdoor Programs makes it easy to take advantage of the fun opportunities right outside your back door.

Inside New Stem Cell Research

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger attended an event Friday where research grants for stem cell research were handed out. KGO-TV reports that now that grants have been given out there is still concern about how long it will take to make the research a reality.

KQED Forum Explores Possible Health Benefits of Napping

Host Michael Krasny interviews Rita Redberg, MD, MSc, about the new research from Harvard finding taking naps decrease the incidence of cardiac death.

Researchers Identify Strategy for Overcoming Breast Cancer Drug Resistance

UCSF researchers have discovered why drugs designed to target about one out of every four cases of breast cancer often fail to save women’s lives or to stop these tumors from growing.

International Meeting Brings Scientists, Educators, Students, Policymakers to San Francisco

The largest meeting of the year aimed at a broad audience of scientists, educators, students and policymakers meets in San Francisco from Thursday through Monday, Feb. 15-19. The annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) focuses this year on environmental, health and policy issues and trends. The theme is “Science and Technology for Sustainable Well-Being.”

The Science of Pain on the Naked Science Podcast

On the Naked Science Podcast, David Julius, PhD, professor and chair of physiology at UCSF, discusses with host Dr. Chris Smith the molecular mechanisms of pain and what a chili pepper has in common with a tarantula.

KQED Forum Discusses Teen Suicide

On Friday, February 9, KQED-FM’s Forum with Michael Krasny explored increasing rates of depression and suicide among college students and adolescents. Lynn Ponton, MD, joined guest host Dave Iverson to discuss factors responsible for the increase, and what can be done about them.

Study Aims at High Military Smoking Rate

The long-standing military tradition of cheap cigarettes in military stores persists because of politics in the U.S. military sales system and tobacco industry pressures, according to a new UCSF study.

Dramatic Improvements in Today’s Spinal Medicine Technology

Mohammad Diab, MD, associate professor of orthopaedic surgery at UCSF, comments on the complications of scoliosis. Orthopedic surgeon Shane Burch, MD, says new O-ARM imaging technology helps surgeons improve their chance of success in treating the mysterious twisting curve of the spine that severely affects 14-year-old patient Charlotte Holl. Burch also notes that colleagues at UCSF continue to explore treatments for scoliosis that won’t require permanently fusing the spine.

To the Best of Our Knowledge Tackles the Mystery of Consciousness

On Sunday, February 11, Wisconsin Public Radio’s To the Best of Our Knowledge explored the “mystery of consciousness.” In the program’s second segment, Louann Brizendine, MD, discussed the physical and chemical differences between male and female brains. The 9-minute segment with Brizendine begins 19 minutes into the broadcast.

KCBS News Interviews and Analysis Podcast: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Daniel Weiss, PhD, professor of medical psychology at UCSF, talks about how a virtual-reality computer program helps returning Iraq War vets.

Autism in US More Prevalent than Thought

In the largest report yet on autism from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in 150 American children are found to have been diagnosed with the disorder.

Personalized Vaccines to Fight Brain Cancer

UCSF neurosurgeon Andrew Parsa, MD, PhD, is running a clinical trial on patients with glioblastoma multiforme, the most deadly type of brain tumor, using a vaccine made from the patient’s own tumor to trigger the immune system.

Not So Fast: Healthwatch Special Report on Premature Ejaculation

For a two-part special report on premature ejaculation, Healthwatch correspondent Kim Mulvihill, MD, spoke to three top specialists in sexual medicine, including Paul J. Turek, MD, and Louann Brizendine, MD, both of UCSF.

Universal Health Care Coverage

The debate over how to make health insurance available to everyone in California made it's way to those dealing with the crushing costs of health care.

Early-to-Bed Mice Offer Window into Sleep Disorders, Other Conditions

UCSF neuroscientists Louis Ptáček, MD, Ying-Hui Fu, PhD, and colleagues are exploring the body’s biological rhythms. Sometimes these are referred to as “clocks,” and at other times as circadian rhythms.

MRI Provides Insights into Fetal Brain

Technological advancements have made it possible to produce detailed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of a fetus in the womb, a fact that is making MRI an increasingly important clinical tool for diagnosing fetal abnormalities and understanding normal fetal development, UCSF physicians say.

Saving the World in Ethiopia: One Child at a Time

On NPR’s All Things Considered, independent producer Jake Warga offers a profile of the person he admires most: his best friend, American health worker Jenafir House.

UCSF Medical Center Names Dede Wilsey to Lead New Philanthropic Effort

UCSF Medical Center has named Diane "Dede" Wilsey to lead the philanthropic effort in behalf of UCSF Medical Center's new state-of-the art clinical facility planned for construction at Mission Bay.

TV Ads Overstate Benefits of Medication

Drug advertisement has doubled in recent years and one study shows the commercials work, in terms of convincing consumers to go to their doctors with a request for specific prescription drugs they saw advertised on television. But a study in the Annals of Family Medicine is raising questions about the messages ads promote.

Test Could Predict Heart Attack, Stroke Risk

Experts said a blood test commonly given in the emergency room could help predict the risk of a heart patient having a heart attack or stroke in the near future, NBC11's Marianne Favro reported.

Facial Birthmarks Can Signal Deeper Problems in Brain

In the 1970s, some researchers recognized that facial hemangiomas like port-wine stain were associated with certain cerebrovascular anomalies. But it wasn’t until 10 years ago that UCSF researcher Ilona Frieden, MD, and her colleagues recognized and described the association between facial hemangiomas and a wide variety of disorders like seizures, glaucoma, cardiac disorders, and various brain and cerebrovascular malformations.

Insights into p53 Tumor-Suppressor Gene to Fuel Cancer Strategy

UCSF scientists are reporting key insights into the p53 tumor-suppressor gene that they say should help harness the gene to treat cancer.

UCSF, Karolinska Institute Scientists Explore Stem Cell Collaborations

UCSF and Karolinska Institute scientists are exploring a possible exchange of each other’s human embryonic stem cell lines, with the goal of carrying out complementary studies that would characterize the physical distinctions between what are considered some of the best stem cell lines in the field.

Coping with Stress

School of Medicine Retreat Tackles Translational Research

Constructing an environment that fosters success in translational research was the subject of the School of Medicine’s annual retreat held in Napa on Jan. 19 and 20. More than 150 members of UCSF’s leadership grappled to understand the barriers that keep researchers from conducting the kind of research that translates basic and clinical scientific findings into discoveries that can be applied to advance human health.

The View from the Bay: Hidden Toxins Can Make You Sick

UCSF medical school Professor and Chief of the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine Paul D. Blanc, MD, MSPH, is the author of How Everyday Products Make People Sick: Toxins At Home and in the Workplace.

Aging: Will Research into “Longevity Genes” Help Us Live Longer and Healthier Lives?

Renowned astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson hosts NOVA scienceNOW, a fast-paced and provocative science newsmagazine bringing viewers an array of intriguing reports from the frontlines of scientific research and discovery.

Alternatives to Surgery and Radiation for Prostate Cancer

Due to aggressive prostate cancer screening, more men than ever before are being diagnosed with small, low-grade tumors that may pose little immediate threat.

Chancellor’s Health Policy Lecture on Jan. 11: Rowe to Broaden Perspectives on Health Care

As California’s governor and lawmakers prepare to hammer out a plan for universal health insurance coverage, health economics expert Jack Rowe, MD, will offer a broader perspective on America’s health care crisis when he delivers the second UCSF Chancellor’s Health Policy Lecture at noon on Thursday, Jan. 11.

Prostate Cancer – Who Needs Treatment?

Many men with early-stage prostate cancers may be undergoing treatment unnecessarily with surgery or radiation, according to a leading prostate cancer surgeon.

San Francisco School Nursing Rediscovers Its Roots and Expands Its Mission

In 1902, smallpox and influenza were among the contagious diseases threatening New York City schoolchildren. To help treat and prevent these diseases, the district hired a nurse named Lina Rogers. In just her first month of service, Rogers worked with hundreds of students and their families, both at school and in students’ homes. When the Board of Health hired a dozen additional nurses to help with the workload, school nursing was born.

Experimental HIV Drug to Get Expanded Trials in SF

An experimental HIV drug, MK-0158, soon will become available to a select group of patients.

Smokeless Tobacco Stirs Health Debate

Sales of chewing tobacco are on the rise, and some public health officials are actually advocating it as an alternative to smoking—or at least as a tool to use while quitting smoking. Stanton Glantz, PhD, professor of medicine and director of the Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education at UCSF, and a leading anti-smoking crusader, agrees that smokeless tobacco isn't as deadly as cigarettes, but he doesn't think it's safe to promote any kind of tobacco use.

Genes, Disease and Difference

Scientists are discovering that subtle differences in our genes can affect the way we respond to drugs. Using genetic information to tailor disease prevention and treatment based on people's race and ethnicity is all part of the science of "genomics."

WIRED SCIENCE: Stem Cell Explorer

On the pilot episode of the PBS series WIRED SCIENCE airing Wednesday, January 3, 2007, host Brian Unger interviews leading stem cell researcher Renee Reijo Pera, PhD, co-director of the UCSF Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research Center and associate professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences.

UCSF Scientists Honored for Pioneering Studies of Aging, Cancer, Learning and Memory

UCSF’s Elizabeth Blackburn, PhD, and Roger Nicoll, MD, have each received a 2006 Peter Gruber Prize, awarded annually to individuals in various disciplines who have made discoveries and contributions that effect fundamental shifts in human knowledge and culture.

Trauma Surgeon Keeps Operating Room Swinging

NPR's Farai Chideya interviews Andre Campbell, MD, a trauma surgeon and chief of the medical staff at San Francisco General Hospital, and professor of surgery at UCSF, about his daily work in SFGH's Emergency Department. Campbell recently was featured in the first of a four-part San Francisco Chronicle series on SFGH.

Long-Term Costs of Prostate Cancer Treatments Compared in New Study

The first comparison of the long-term costs of all strategies for treating prostate cancer is presented in the February 1, 2007, issue of Cancer, published online December 21, 2006. Lead author is Leslie S. Wilson, PhD, associate adjunct professor of clinical pharmacy in the School of Pharmacy at UCSF.

Former Aetna CEO Jack Rowe, MD, to Deliver Second UCSF Chancellor’s Health Policy Lecture on Jan. 11

UCSF Chancellor J. Michael Bishop, MD, will introduce Jack Rowe, MD, on Thursday, Jan. 11, 2007, as the second speaker in his Chancellor’s Health Policy Lecture Series.

Digital Mammovan Rides into New Year

Loleta Carpenter coordinates mammovan services, and drives too.

Elena Fuentes-Afflick Named Editor of Feature in Ambulatory Pediatrics

Elena Fuentes-Afflick, MD, MPH, professor of pediatrics and epidemiology and biostatistics at UCSF, has been named editor of the “Perspectives” section of the journal Ambulatory Pediatrics, which focuses on reviews of important pediatric topics, with an emphasis on research findings in the previous five years and on identifying areas for future study.

Clinical Trial Tests New Kind of Treatment for Stroke Patients

A new multi-center trial clinical trial now under way has the potential to “open up a whole new world of treatment” for patients recovering from stroke, says Gary Abrams, MD, chief of the rehabilitation service at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and associate professor of clinical neurology at UCSF. Abrams is site co-principal investigator at UCSF and SFVAMC.

Comparing Mars and Venus in Neuroscience

On NPR’s All Things Considered, Louann Brizendine, MD, neuropsychiatrist and director of the UCSF Women’s and Teen Girls’ Mood and Hormone Clinic, is interviewed about her book, The Female Brain, which attributes differences between the sexes to brain chemistry. Brizendine discusses these differences with Debbie Elliott.

UCSF Blogs

From students documenting their first year at the University and student groups offering updates on campus events, to UCSF-trained nurses and physicians recording their experiences in such far-flung locations as Malawi and Swaziland, UCSF faculty, staff and students have joined the blogging revolution in force.

Q & A with Michael Lawton: Senator Tim Johnson and AVM

It has been widely reported that Senator Tim Johnson of South Dakota was treated on Wednesday, Dec. 13, for a ruptured arteriovenous malformation, or AVM. To learn more about this condition, we contacted Michael Lawton, MD, associate professor of neurological surgery at UCSF and an expert on AVMs.

UCSF Students in the Valley: UCSF Fresno Medical Education Program

The School of Medicine’s website this week features several stories about UCSF Fresno and the UCSF Fresno Medical Education Program.

General, Life and Death at San Francisco’s Hospital of Last Resort

Last week, The San Francisco Chronicle presented a series of stories and slideshows exploring life and death at San Francisco General Hospital (SFGH), the city’s level one trauma center.

UCSF Pediatric Epilepsy Program Featured on Discovery Channel Series

The work of physicians in UCSF’s pediatric epilepsy program will be featured on Thursday, December 14, at 9 p.m. during a one-hour-long episode of Surgery Saved My Life, a new series airing on the Discovery Channel that focuses on lifesaving surgical interventions.

Medical Student with Camera Follows as a Man Donates Part of His Liver to His Mother

Second-year medical student Harras Zaid has seen his share of organ transplants. Under the wing of UCSF transplant surgeons, he has traveled to distant hospitals to observe as the body of a person whose life has ended gives up the organs that will save or enhance many other lives.

Center Offers Introduction to Kids at UCSF Day

Those interested in offering children a look behind the scenes at this health sciences campus are invited to learn more about Kids at UCSF Day on Monday.

New Imaging System a “First” for Spine Surgery in the Western United States

The UCSF Spine Center recently acquired a new imaging system that will assist surgeons in navigation techniques and help the center expand and enhance surgical procedures. The technology is the first of its kind in the western United States.

Number of Teens Abusing Cough Medicine Soars

Ilene B. Anderson, PharmD, reports in the December Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine that the number of California teenagers using over-the-counter cough medicines to get high has soared in recent years, mirroring a national trend.

Q & A with Robert Hiatt: Are Most Lung Cancer Deaths Among Long-Term Smokers Preventable with Affordable Screening?

Lung tumors are the leading cancer killer, striking down more than 160,000 Americans each year. A large majority of lung cancer deaths might be prevented by screening exams. At least that’s what the principal investigator of a recent, controversial study says.

Papers of UCSF Nobel Laureate Harold Varmus Added to NLM Profiles in Science Website

National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, December 1, 2006 - The National Library of Medicine, a part of the National Institutes of Health, announced today the release of an extensive selection from the papers of molecular biologist and science administrator, Harold Varmus, on its Profiles in Science website.

inSites: Tune in to the Science Café

Audio recordings and podcasts of all earlier Science Café conversations now have been added to the website, and each new weekly conversation will be made available simultaneously as a column and as a podcast.

Study: Women Talk 3 Times More than Men

Louann Brizendine, MD, neuropsychiatrist and director of the UCSF Women’s and Teen Girls’ Mood and Hormone Clinic, talks about her book The Female Brain and the brain chemistry that explains why women talk more than men.

San Francisco Union Square’s Lights Represent Sick Children at UCSF

Macy's tree-lighting ceremony took place Friday night, with each light representing a donation to programs for children facing life-threatening illnesses at UCSF Children's Hospital.

Costa Rican Family Celebrates First Thanksgiving

Pediatric heart surgeon Tom Karl, MD, MS, checks up on his patient, 6-month-old Valentina Guzman, diagnosed with a very complicated cardiac condition and originally given two years to live. Valentina’s parents brought her from Costa Rica to UCSF Children's Hospital, which donated much of the time, expertise and equipment so the Guzmans could afford the surgery.

Anti-Aging Research: Seeking Certainty on Sirtuins

For decades, scientists have been kicking around theories as to why we age. But in recent years, researchers have been starting to identify specific molecules that may be involved. Is a fountain of youth at hand?

Why Some Non-Fat Foods May Backfire: Is a Little Fat Healthy?

People who try to eat a healthy diet by cutting out most fats end up denying their bodies important vitamins. Marian Deveraux, RD, UCSF nutritionist, tells KGO’s Dr. Dean Edell that fats are needed to absorb critical nutrients.

UCSF Study Leads to Medicare Coding Changes

Total joint replacement (TJR) is one of the most commonly performed procedures in orthopaedics, with high rates of clinical success in terms of pain reduction and improved function and quality of life. However, the complexity of TJR surgeries, the number of such surgeries and the cost of implants have steadily increased over the past decade.

UCSF Police Department Reports Robbery at Parnassus and Cole

At approximately 9:20 PM on November 19, a visitor to the UCSF Parnassus Heights campus was the victim of a robbery as she walked on Parnassus Avenue near Cole Street. The victim was approached by two individuals who pushed her to the ground, forcibly took her purse, and then fled on foot.

Management of Symptoms and Psychosocial Issues Is Crucial in Cancer Care

“Treating illness means treating the whole patient,” says Steven Pantilat, the physician who directs the UCSF Adult Palliative Care Service at the UCSF Medical Center at Parnassus. About half of the patients who consult with members of the service are cancer patients.

Brain Tumor Patient Education Center Opening

To complement the strong basic science and clinical research in brain tumors at UCSF, the Division of Neuro-Oncology has a priority to enhance the quality of survivorship for patients. To this end, the UCSF Department of Neurological Surgery opened the “Brain Tumor Patient Education Center” on the 8th floor of the Ambulatory Care Center at the Parnassus campus, to improve access to resources and provide educational information for patients.

Germs Help Fight Asthma in Newborns

Michael Cabana, MD, MPH, chief of the Department of General Pediatrics at UCSF Children’s Hospital, is heading a study to see if asthma and allergies can be prevented by purposely giving germs to newborns to strengthen their immune systems. KGO-TV’s Dr. Dean Edell reports on the UCSF research.

“Wrinkle Fillers” Can Give a Whole New Look

For KGO-TV, Dr. Dean Edell explores a number of wrinkle fillers, some temporary, that are growing in popularity. Richard Glogau, MD, UCSF clinical professor of dermatology, talks about injectable fillers, in particular Restylane, and issues around effectiveness and safety. Dr. Glogau says Restylane is a good all-purpose filler that lasts four to six months.

The Scientist’s News Podcast The Week Talks with Steven Deeks About Elite Controllers

On The Week, the weekly news podcast from The Scientist, feature contributor Gail Dutton talks with Steven Deeks, MD, associate clinical professor in the Department of Medicine at UCSF, about "elite controllers," HIV-infected patients who are resistant to the onset of the disease.

Tamiflu Warning

Cynthia Kim, MD, a pediatrician at UCSF Children’s Hospital, talks to KPIX -TV’s Dr. Kim Mulvihill about the FDA warning that users of the flu medication Tamiflu should be monitored for reported bizarre side effects.

Senator Jackie Speier Promotes New State Law at UCSF National Center of Excellence in Women’s Health

When Titus Chang was an infant, he was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, a life-threatening condition which stopped his body from producing enough blood cells.

UCSF Professor Paul D. Blanc Writes Book: How Everyday Products Make People Sick

UCSF medical school Professor and Chief of the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine Paul D. Blanc, MD, reveals how commonplace products have poisoned significant sectors of the human population in his first book, How Everyday Products Make People Sick: Toxins at Home and in the Workplace (University of California Press).

The View from the Bay: Stopping the Spread of HIV

Malcolm John, MD, MPH, director of PositiveHealth Practice at UCSF (PHP-UCSF) and the Men of Color Program, and assistant clinical professor in the Department of Infectious Disease, is interviewed in the KGO studio about why minority and impoverished communities have a higher rate of HIV infection than other groups, and discusses a UCSF program aimed at turning around this trend.

Childhood Matters: Diabetes in Childhood: Who’s at Risk?

There are two types of diabetes that affect children. Do you know the factors that can put a child at risk? Steve Rosenthal, MD, a pediatric endocrinologist and professor of pediatrics at UCSF, talks about pediatric obesity.

New Drugs Target Treatment-Resistant Leukemia

The drug imatinib (Gleevec) is generally considered to be the most significant new entrant in the armamentarium of anticancer drugs in the past 20 years.

New Clues to Heart Transplant Rejection

A protein that contributes to the rejection of transplanted hearts has been identified by a UCSF research team. The finding raises hopes for future developments that may boost transplant success and reduce the side effects of current anti-rejection drugs.

Children Celebrate Halloween at UCSF Children’s Hospital

Fun was the prescription at UCSF Children’s Hospital on Tuesday as children went door-to-door – or nursing station-to-nursing station – trick-or-treating for Halloween.

UCSF Discovery Is Major Focus of $46 Million Grant to Combat Diarrhea

A $46 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to develop new treatments for severe diarrhea will focus much of its initial support on potential, new drugs discovered at UCSF. Diarrhea is a leading killer of children under the age of 5 worldwide and kills about 5 million people a year.

Cancer-Preventing Benefits of the Traditional Asian Diet

Studies show that Asian populations have a lower incidence of chronic diseases, such as cancer, than their Western counterparts. One such study, by the National Cancer Institute, found that whites had a 65 percent higher rate of cancer mortality than Asian-Pacific Islanders from the years 1998 to 2002.

Forum: Breast Cancer in Young Women

Forum discusses breast cancer in younger women; looks at prevention, diagnosis, and research; and examines some of the less-traditional approaches for treatment.

Giving Sight to the Blind: Children’s Hospital Pediatric Ophthalmologist Treats Patients in Vietnam

Doug Fredrick, MD, director of pediatric ophthalmology at UCSF Children’s’ Hospital, joined a medical mission to Vietnam, sponsored by the non-governmental vision care organization ORBIS. Fredrick’s week-long visit will have lifelong effects for the dozens of children he treated while there for conditions that are treated easily in developed countries like the United States.

UCSF Executive Vice Chancellor Named One of 50 Most Important African-Americans in Technology

A. Eugene Washington, MD, executive vice chancellor (EVC) and provost of the University of California, San Francisco, has been named one of the 50 Most Important African-Americans in Technology for 2006, in an annual listing selected by eAccess Corp.

UCSF Doctor Explores North Korea

Ricky Choi likes to challenge assumptions with experience. A self-described intellectual with a passion for health and human rights, Choi has traveled and studied widely. But there was no place on earth about which this third-year pediatric resident in UCSF’s PLUS (Pediatric Leadership for the UnderServed) program was more passionately curious than North Korea.

Study: Vegetables May Help Keep Brains Young

New research from the National Institute on Aging found that eating vegetables could help keep our brains younger. Howard Rosen, MD, professor at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center, talks about the study with KPIX Health and Science correspondent Dr. Kim Mulvihill.

Inside the Female Brain

Louann Brizendine, MD, is director and founder of the Women and Teen Girls' Mood and Hormone Clinic, at UCSF, the first clinic in the country devoted to the study of women, and their mental, sexual and physical health. Brizendine is one of the country’s foremost neuropsychiatric experts, best know for her ground-breaking work in the field of female neurology, and now, for her much-lauded book, The Female Brain.

Evaluating Risks of Surgery for Sleep Apnea

Individuals with obstructive sleep apnea repeatedly stop breathing during the night due to upper airway obstruction. This condition is very common, as common as adult diabetes, and affects more than 12 million Americans, according to the National Institutes of Health. Risk factors include being male, overweight and over the age of 40, but sleep apnea can strike anyone at any age, even children.

Kid-Safe Foods

The Institute of Medicine has released a report about which fish are the most healthy for kids. Cheryl Davis, RD, CNSD, a pediatric nutritionist at the University of California, San Francisco, was interviewed on what types of meat also are good to feed children.

UCSF Medical Center Named Among Top Hospitals for Quality

UCSF Medical Center was one of eight California acute care hospitals among the top 50 U.S. hospitals named by the Washington, D.C.-based Leapfrog Group, a coalition of large employers that works to leverage employer purchasing power to promote high quality health care.

Cancer Biology on the Naked Scientists Radio Show Podcast

On the Naked Science Radio Show Podcast, host Dr. Chris Smith interviews Gerard Evan, PhD, FRS, about the causes of cancer and how cancer spreads around the body.

On the Spot: Dr. Lustig Responds

As part of our new On the Spot web feature, Dr. Robert Lustig, professor of clinical pediatrics and director of the Weight Assessment for Teen and Child Health (WATCH), agreed to answer your questions.

UCSF Neurologists Focus on Depression in Patients with Parkinson’s

Doctors have found that nearly half of all Parkinson’s patients also suffer from depression, and many patients mistakenly assume that the condition is simply something they have to live with. Not so, say physicians at UCSF Medical Center, who are conducting a study to test the effectiveness of antidepressants in patients with the disease.

On the Spot: Dr. Abrams Responds

As part of our new On the Spot web feature, Dr. Donald Abrams, the new director of clinical programs at the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine and an expert in complementary therapies, agreed to answer your questions.

Transgendered: Biology, Identity and Society

KQED’s Forum with Michael Krasny discusses gender identity, assesses how it is constructed and challenged, and examines the role of biology, psychology, society and law in determining sexual categories.

Expert Explains Diet to Reduce Breast Cancer Risk

What women put on their plates may actually help reduce their risk of developing breast cancer. NBC11's medical reporter Marianne Favro interviewed UCSF biochemist Clyde Wilson, PhD, who recommends that breast cancer patients make four simple changes to help boost their immune systems and reduce the risk of reoccurrence.

National Center for X-ray Tomography Opens Under Directorship of UCSF Faculty

The National Center for X-ray Tomography (NCXT) has officially been dedicated at the US Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).

A "Defining Moment": First Annual Lesbian Health Institute Hailed as Success

Karina Walters, MSW, PhD, said succinctly at Wednesday’s first annual Lesbian Health Institute that, “It’s not about coming out; it’s about becoming what we’ve always been.”

Do Men and Women Feel Pain Differently?

NBC health correspondent Robert Bazell interviews Jon Levine, MD, PhD, professor of medicine, oral and maxillofacial surgery and a prominent pain researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, on his new research that is showing the differences between how men and women experience pain.

Researchers Discover Tiny Gene Mutations that Cause Birth Abnormalities

The causes of developmental delay — what used to be known as mental retardation — are often unknown.

Scots, Californians Prove: Smoking Bans Boost Non-Smokers’ Health

The time has come to ban smoking in all workplaces -- in fact, in all public places in general, UCSF pulmonologist Mark Eisner, MD, MPH, writes in an editorial in the Journal of the American Medical Society. Eisner wrote the editorial to comment on a study published in the same issue of JAMA that shows the effects of Scotland's national ban on smoking.

"On the Spot" Lets You Ask the Questions

UCSF researchers routinely publish groundbreaking research, write books, and provide context and commentary for scientific and medical news. Our job is to tell their stories, showcase their accomplishments, and highlight the implications and global consequences of their research for our readers.

National Coming Out Day Shines Spotlight on UCSF Lesbian Health & Research Center

One of the biggest challenges lesbians face when seeking health care is the complexity of talking openly about health issues with a clinician without the stigma of judgment, disapproval, and condemnation or the fear of having care withheld.

UCSF’s Mini Medical School for the Public Begins in October

The public is invited to join the conversation with the world's leading experts in medicine and the health sciences at UCSF’s Mini Medical School for the community, which begins October 24.

UCSF Ophthalmologist Researching Drug for Use in Treating Macular Degeneration

New evidence surfaced Wednesday that a high-tech drug developed in the Bay Area offers significant hope to those afflicted with macular degeneration, a disease that can cause blindness.

Free Cardiovascular Screenings During Chinatown Night Fair

This past Saturday night, UCSF’s Asian Heart and Vascular Center offered free cardiovascular screenings to the public during the Chinatown Night Fair in Portsmouth Square, San Francisco.

UCSF Nikon Imaging Center Opens

UCSF and the California Institute for Quantitative Biomedical Research (QB3) have collaborated with Nikon Instruments Inc. to open the UCSF Nikon Imaging Center at the Mission Bay campus.

Nobel Winner Credits UCSF Scientist with Early Lead to Key Finding

In a press conference at Stanford on Monday, and reported later in the San Francisco Chronicle, one of the scientists who received the Nobel Prize for discovering how RNA can turn genes off credited early experiments by UCSF's Su Guo, PhD, for sparking the research.

Studies in Translational Research: Bench to Bedside

The pulse of translational research is quickening throughout UCSF. Among the numerous endeavors under way are several that represent different disease areas and tactics.

UCSF In the 21st Century: Translating Scientific Discovery to Patient Care

In 1999, UCSF broke ground for a new campus in San Francisco. The intent was to alleviate space restrictions on its primary campus, UCSF Parnassus Heights, and allow UCSF, world-renowned for its basic science research, clinical training and patient care, to stretch in ways that would allow it to enhance its performance.

UCSF Set to Transform Itself into Engine of Translational Research

Signaling a watershed moment in the evolution of University of California, San Francisco, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) today announced that UCSF has received funding for a major new venture designed to accelerate the pace at which scientific discovery is translated into patient care.

Sales of Pink Breast Cancer Awareness Ribbon Stickers to Support Friend to Friend Shop

North Bay-based sticker company Mrs. Grossman’s has chosen the Friend to Friend Specialty Shop in UCSF Medical Center at Mount Zion as their primary beneficiary of sales from a new pink breast cancer awareness ribbon line being introduced in October to recognize National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

"The Wait for Life" Highlights Organ Sharing Debate, with UCSF's Liver Transplant Service at the Center

A difficult conundrum for the nation's transplant patients was aired September 22 when the news program California Connected featured UCSF's liver transplant program.

Weight Gain During Pregnancy: Q & A with Naomi Stotland, MD

Putting on a few extra pounds during pregnancy has been thought to be a normal and healthy part of the gestation