FYI…UCSF in the News is a daily summary of news stories published worldwide that highlight UCSF, its affiliated programs, and issues that affect the University.  To read the full news story, click the individual headlines listed below.

On the second Wednesday of each month, FYI…UCSF in the News includes an additional "Research Roundup" section that lists research papers authored by UCSF faculty and published in the journals Cell, Health Services Research, JAMA, Lancet, Nature, NEJM, Nursing Research, and Science.

UCSF PRINT AND ONLINE COVERAGE

  • Answers Elusive in Kessler Firing (Science)
    Science Magazine reports: "Key questions remain unresolved in the firing of dean David Kessler by the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine last week. Kessler and the university had been at odds over "financial irregularities" Kessler says he discovered shortly after taking the post in 2003."
  • UPDATE: UCSF Fired Med School Dean, Labels Him Whistleblower (Wired Magazine)
    Wired reports: "After firing its medical school dean last week, the University of California at San Francisco released a statement on Friday at around 5:15 p.m. confirming that the former dean, David Kessler had indeed been fired, rather than having left voluntarily. Kessler had said he'd been fired, but the university previously only said he 'had left' the post."
  • 'Gray's Anatomy' Before McDreamy (San Francisco Chronicle)
    The Chronicle reports: "A San Francisco author and journalist, Bill Hayes, 46, didn't set out to write a journal of the year he spent dissecting bodies at UCSF. Instead, he intended to write the first-ever biography of Henry Gray, the little-known English author of classic medical reference, 'Gray's Anatomy.'"
  • Readers' platform: Newsome's sweet tooth tax (San Francisco Chronicle - Online)
    The Chronicle reports: "And we have some equally ridiculous ideas of our own. That was a prominent sentiment among SFGate readers with regard to Mayor Gavin Newsom's proposed 'fee' on major purveyors of sugary soft drinks. On the other hand, quite a few readers thought the idea not half-bad." A North Beach resident said: "I recommend a 2-cent tax on all fried hamburgers within San Francisco city limits, for obesity research at UCSF Medical Center."
  • Teenage Risks, and How to Avoid Them (New York Times)
    New York Times writer Jane Brody asks: "Why is risky behavior so common among teenagers and what might be done to curtail it?" A UCSF study is mentioned.
  • Bruce Alberts Named Science Editor-in-Chief (Science Magazine)
    Science reports: "Bruce Alberts, professor of biochemistry and biophysics at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), and president emeritus of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, has been named the next editor-in-chief of Science. A prominent cell biologist best known for his work on the protein complexes that allow chromosomes to be replicated, Alberts has focused in recent years on public issues, especially the improvement of science education."
  • New Type of Cholesterol-Lowering Drug Shows Promise (Washington Post - Online)
    The Washington Post reports: "A new kind of drug designed to lower levels of 'bad' low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and reduce heart disease risk has proved safe and effective in a phase II clinical trial, researchers report. (Source: UCSF news release)
  • Hospitals' ability to handle crisis is deteriorating (San Francisco Examiner)
    The Examiner reports: "Half of The City’s hospitals are considered overcrowded and in less than 25 years will suffer a shortage of hundreds of acute-care beds, according to a report that will be discussed today by the Health Commission. ... The report comes as San Francisco voters are expecting a bond measure of at least $800 million on the November ballot that would fund the rebuild of San Francisco General Hospital."
  • Kessler Firing Wasn't Retaliation, California University Says (Bloomberg)
    Bloomberg reports: "David Kessler wasn't fired as medical school dean by the University of California at San Francisco because he was a whistle-blower, the school said. The university 'categorically denies' that Kessler was dismissed for pointing out financial irregularities, according to a statement issued yesterday by the school. Under state law, the reasons for his removal can't be discussed publicly, the university said."

UCSF TELEVISION COVERAGE

  • Understanding the mysteries of Alzheimer's (ABC 7 News at 11 PM - KGO-TV)
    Joy Walters, diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2005, is taking part in research at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. "'The study that Joy is participating in right now is of a new type of agent that would allow us to detect the disease really early, especially when new drugs are much more effective and would be expected to work better,' said UCSF neurologist Dr. Adam Boxer. Dr. Adam Boxer is director of Alzheimer's disease clinical trials at UCSF's Memory and Aging Center," reports ABC 7. -- Air Time: 6:40 PM
  • Is San Francisco faces a tax on soda? (ABC 7 News at 11 AM - KGO-TV)
    San Francisco may impose a soda tax to fight childhood obesity. Dr Robert Lustig MD, an endocrinologist UCSF, is interviewed. -- Air Time: 6 PM
  • Dan Fogelberg Remembered (CNN -- Larry King Live)
    Last night, Larry King and a panel of guests -- that included Dr. Peter Carroll, chair of urology at UCSF, and Dr. Dean Ornish, from the Preventative Medicine Research Institute -- discussed soft rock singer Dan Fogelberg's death from prostate cancer. -- Air Time: 9 PM

UCSF HEADLINES

  • Pediatric Heart Patients a World Apart (UCSF Today)
    UCSF Children’s Hospital pediatric cardiothoracic surgeon Tom Karl, MD, and his team returned from a two-week volunteer mission to the Dominican Republic to help children suffering from congenital heart defects.
  • New strategy to cut heart attack risk is effective in initial test (UCSF News Office)
    The UCSF News Office reports: "The first clinical trial of a new kind of drug to cut the risk of cardiovascular disease has been found safe and effective at dropping levels of 'bad' low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol by as much as 40 percent. High LDL levels increase the risk for heart attack and stroke."
  • Pioneering Leader in Plastic Surgery Dies of ALS (UCSF Today)
    UCSF Today reports: "Stephen Mathes, MD, professor emeritus in the UCSF Department of Surgery and a pioneer in reconstructive surgery, died on Nov. 20, 2007, after a long and valiant battle with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease)."
  • UCSF Names New Pediatric Diabetes Chair (UCSF Today)
    UCSF Today: "Thanks to a generous gift made possible by a family whose lives have been affected by type 1 diabetes, the Mary B. Olney, M.D./KAK Chair in Pediatric Diabetes and Clinical Research has been awarded to Stephen Gitelman, MD, director of the UCSF Pediatric Diabetes Program."