UCSF in the News

NOTE: These summaries link to stories published online in the local and national press and other sources. Please note that we cannot guarantee the accuracy or availability of links, as over time some links may expire or be made available only to registered users of the originating sites.

Neuro-Intensive Care Nursery Opens at UCSF — The new state-of-the-art Neuro-Intensive Care Nursery (NICN), a newborn care unit designed to host clinical trials and bring the latest cutting-edge treatments to patients, has opened at the UCSF Children's Hospital. Read the Nov. 13 story on KGO-TV San Francisco.

UCSF Medical Center Doctors and Marin Activists Work to Aid Wounded 3-year-old Iraqi — Drs. Daniel Lowenstein, neurologist, and Larry Lustig, director of the UCSF Douglas Grant Cochlear Implant Center, along with Marin community organizers lead efforts to bring an Iraq War wounded boy to the Bay Area to receive a cochlear implant device. Read the Nov. 10 story in the Marin Independent Journal.

Would You Take Prozac? — Dr. Patrick Finley, professor of psychopharmacology and behavioral health at the UCSF School of Pharmacy, discusses clinical depression during pregnancy. Read the Nov. 5 story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

A Life of Fighting — The Peralta family discuss the importance and joy of receiving a life-saving kidney transplant for their 10-year-old daughter, Miranda. Read the Oct. 13 story in the Vallejo Times Herald.

Barry Bonds Passes Time at UCSF Children's Hospital — Barry Bonds, chair of the Macy's Tree Lighting fundraiser that benefits UCSF Children's Hospital, helped launch the annual campaign. Read the Oct. 8 story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Crisis of Care — Dr. Karen E. Hauer, a hospitalist at UCSF Medical Center, and her colleagues report in the Journal of the American Medical Association that "the number of medical students choosing to train in internal medicine is down, and young physicians are leaving the field." Read the Sept. 29 story about the study in the New York Times.

UCSF Celebrates 10,000 Organ Transplants — UCSF Medical Center surgeons recently celebrated 45 years of providing organ transplant services. Read the the Sept. 24 article in the San Francisco Chronicle.

UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay — Mark Laret, CEO of UCSF Medical Center, discusses the plan to build a new hospital complex — including a cancer, children's and women's facilities — at UCSF's Mission Bay campus. Read the the Sept. 19 commentary in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Obese Teens Face Liver Damage, Transplants — Overweight teens are at risk for liver disease and the need for liver transplants. Dr. Philip Rosenthal, a pediatric liver specialist at UCSF Children's Hospital, discusses the problem. Read the Sept. 7 story in USA Today.

Zoo's Gorilla Gets Heart Checkup — It would've been an expensive day at the doctor's office but for Nneka it was free. The lowland gorilla is part of a national project to improve understanding of the giant creatures' cardiac health. On hand for the exam at the San Francisco Zoo was Dr. Dana McGlothlin, a cardiologist from UCSF Medical Center. Read the Aug. 28 story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Price to Clear Acne — Dermatologist Dr. Cynthia Chen and colleagues at UCSF Medical Center reported in the August issue of Archives of Dermatology that teenagers would pay on average $275 to "erase" acne.Read the Aug. 26 story in the Toronto, Canada Globe and Mail.

Tobacco Control Program Saved Billions of Dollars — Stanton Glantz, director of the UCSF Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, and his colleagues reported in the journal PLoS that California's state tobacco program saved $86 billion in health care expenses while costing the state $1.8 billion. Read the Aug. 26 story in U.S. News & World Report.

Pancreatic Cancer Tough to Detect — The death of Los Angeles Raiders Hall of Fame player Gene Upshaw has focused attention on pancreatic cancer that can be a swift killer and very difficult to treat. Dr. Andrew Ko, a nationally recognized expert on cancer of the pancreas at UCSF Medical Center, was interviewed on Aug. 22 by KGO-TV, channel 7, a San Francisco ABC affiliate.

Castro Valley Toddler Gets Kidney Transplant — For nearly three years, the family of Angelo Miramontes has prayed for a miracle to save the life of the cheerful yet long-suffering toddler. On Aug. 20, their prayers were answered. Angelo, who turns 3 in October, received a donor kidney during transplant surgery at UCSF Children's Hospital. Read the Aug. 21 story in the Hayward Daily Review.

Safeguarding Medications From Teens — Parents who don't safeguard their medications are putting their teenagers at serious risk of addiction to prescription drugs, according to a national survey. Peter Koo, a clinical professor of pharmacy at the UCSF Medical Center, said much of the problem can be pinned on people who are careless about unused medications. See the Aug. 15 story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

SF Police Officers Cheer Up Kids at UCSF — Each month, San Francisco police officers visit UCSF Children's Hospital to chat with kids and cheer them up. The monthly visits started almost four years ago and take place every second Wednesday of the month. Read the Aug. 14 story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Disney Wish Fulfilled for Kidney Transplant Patient — Isaiah Molano, 10, from Porterville, who was diagnosed with kidney disease at 1 week old, underwent a kidney transplant at UCSF Children's Hospital. After his transplant surgery, the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Central California fulfilled his wish for a Disney vacation. Read the Aug. 11 story in the Porterville Recorder.

Joyful Wedding for Lung Transplant Recipient — Nearly five years ago, when Carrie Shellhammer was dying at UCSF Medical Center, she and her mother selected songs for her funeral, which they assumed was just weeks away. On Saturday, Aug. 9, those songs were played at her wedding instead. Read the story in Aug. 11 story in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Debate Continues Over Prostate Cancer Test — New advice that men over 75 should not be screened for prostate cancer won't quell the long-standing controversy over the blood test for the disease. Dr. Charles Ryan, a prostate cancer specialist at UCSF Medical Center, is interviewed in an Aug. 6 story on www.msnbc.com.

Compiled by UCSF Public Affairs