News & Events

Despite adoption of molecular biomarkers in the management of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), the recently adopted 8th Edition staging utilized only clinicopathologic characteristics, and validated improvement in risk stratification of early-stage disease remains elusive. We therefore evaluated the integration of a clinically-validated molecular prognostic classifier into conventional staging.... Incorporation of a molecular prognostic classifier significantly improved identification of high-risk patients and survival predictions compared to conventional staging. TNMB may lead to [...]

UCSF surgeon-scientist Johannes R. Kratz, M.D. was awarded the Inaugural Hellman Family Clinical-Translational Research Development Award from the Bakar ImmunoX initiative. This development award embeds a young investigator in an ImmunoX CoLab for two years in order to rapidly translate clinical insights into molecular-level understanding of disease. Dr. Kratz was given this prestigious award for the study of tumor immune populations in high-risk early-stage lung cancer.   The Kratz Lab focuses on the genetic and immunological mechanisms that drive early-stage, surgically resectable [...]

The 31st Annual J. Engelbert Dunphy Resident Research Symposium was held Wednesday, April 25, 2018 at UCSF Medical Center at Mission Bay. The program showcased the laboratory research of residents, fellows and medical students in the Department of Surgery, and honors the life and accomplishments of J. Engelbert Dunphy, M.D., a legendary surgeon and a former chair of the UCSF Department of Surgery. This year's J. Englebert Dunphy Visiting Professor, Carla M. Pugh, MD, PhD, FACS, Professor of Surgery and Director of the Technology Enabled Clinical Improvement (T.E.C.I.) Center at Stanford [...]

A team led by Bhairavi Tolani, Ph.D. and David M. Jablons, M.D. has developed and characterized a potential novel therapeutic for Sonic hedgehog (Shh)-driven cancers, including some lung cancers. Dr. Tolani is an assistant professor and member of the Thoracic Oncology Program, and principal investigator in the Tolani Laboratory. Dr. Jablons is director of the Thoracic Oncology Program and Thoracic Oncology Lab.  The researchers reported last October that full-length Shh protein present on the cell membrane identified cells with cancer stem cell (CSC) features implicated in NSCLC. To target [...]

The Thoracic Oncology Program proudly announces the launch of the Kratz Lab, which will focus on understanding the genetic and immunological mechanisms that drive early-stage, surgically resectable thoracic malignancies, most notably non-small cell lung cancer. The translationally-focused Kratz Lab will use the knowledge gained from investigating these mechanisms to identify novel therapeutic targets and treatments for this group of patients.  Johannes R. Kratz, M.D., assistant professor in the Division of Adult Cardiothoracic Surgery and Van Auken Endowed Chair in Thoracic Oncology, is the [...]

Johannes R. Kratz, M.D. and Yeranuí Ledesma, M.D. are among this year's recipients of the 2017 UCSF Health Exceptional Physician Award. Dr. Kratz, now a member of the Thoracic Oncology Program and Assistant Professor in the Division of Adult Cardiothoracic Surgery, and Dr. Ledesma, a Senior Resident in General Surgery, were among 8 winners out of 61 nominees, notably the only clinical fellow and resident, respectively, at UCSF to receive the award, and the only recipients not on the faculty.  The official announcement reads: We are delighted to announce the 2017 UCSF Health Exceptional [...]

The 28th Annual J. Engelbert Dunphy Resident Research Symposium was held on March 11, 2015 at Toland Hall. Jennifer Grandis, MD,  Associate Vice Chancellor of Clinical and Translational Research, Director of Clincial and Translational Science Institute, and Professor of Otolaryngology-Head & Neck Surgery, gave the keynote presentation.  Left to right: Bian Wu, Carlie Thompson, Peter Stock, Gavitt Woodard, Jennifer Grandis, Nancy Ascher, Jessica Cohan, Lily Cheng, Benjamin Howard 2015 Presentation Winners Best Basic Science Presentation Gavitt Woodard, M.D. Best [...]

Building on earlier retrospective validation studies, a team of Thoracic Oncology Program researchers, demonstrated in a small prospective study the clinical utility of a 14-gene expression assay in stratifying risk among non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. In a recently published paper in the journal Clinical Lung Cancer, lead author Gavitt Woodard, M.D., a general surgery research resident in the Thoracic Oncology Laboratory, and coauthors  David M. Jablons, M.D. (pictured second) and Michael Mann, M.D., (pictured 3rd) began  to address a key question regarding widespread use of [...]

Building on their  earlier work reported in The Lancet, two UCSF thoracic surgeons   David M. Jablons, M.D. (left) and   Michael Mann, M.D. (middle), and  Johannes Kratz, M.D. (right) a former surgical resident in the  Thoracic Oncology Lab, showed they could accurately stratify patients even with the earliest stage of lung cancer into groups at low-, intermediate- or high-risk of death based solely on the activity of 14 different genes found in their tumors. The group analyzed lung  tumors of patients diagnosed as Stage 1A  (T1a node-negative non-small-cell lung cancers (NSCLC)), the [...]

The NIH has awarded two UCF scientists, Hassan Lemjabbar-Alaoui, Ph.D and Joanna J. Phillips, M.D., Ph.D., a five-year $2.2m grant to study the clinical utility of extracellular heparan sulfate endosulfatases, or SULFs, as biomarkers for early detection of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and malignant astrocytoma. Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. and world-wide. Astrocytomas are primary brain neoplasms (tumors). Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most common and malignant primary brain tumor, was responsible for the death of the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy. [...]

In the two largest clinical studies ever conducted on the molecular genetics of lung cancer, an international team, led by UCSF thoracic surgeons David M. Jablons, M.D. and Michael Mann, M.D., demonstrated that a 14-gene prognostic molecular assay better predicted the likelihood of death in early-stage lung cancer  patients versus conventional staging guidelines. Johannes Kratz, M.D., a former surgical resident in the  Thoracic Oncology Laboratory, helped spearhead the  development of the assay and was lead author of a paper published in The Lancet discussing the results. John Minna, M.D.", [...]

A team consisting of Hassan Lemjabbar-Alaoui, Ph.D.,  Assistant Adjunct Professor of Surgery and principal Investigator in the Thoracic Oncology Laboratory and Alaoui Lab, and Steven Rosen, PhD, Professor and Vice-chair of the Department of Anatomy, are developing a novel treatment for lung cancer in a unique collaboration between UCSF and Pfizer, the world's largest drug company. The Rosen-Alaoui team has identified an enzyme found at high levels in lung and other cancers and is developing antibodies to target the enzyme and disable the cancer, even in cells rendered cancerous by cigarette [...]

On October 16th, the Porsche Race Car Classic was held at at the Quail Lodge in Napa, CA.  The event, a collaboration with Porsche AG and Porsche Cars North America, was hosted by the UCSF Thoracic Oncology Program and Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation. Proceeds from the highly successful event benefited the respective hosts. The theme, "Driving Lung Cancer Off the Planet", was underscored in a video produced by the Thoracic Oncology Program in connection with the event. Narrated by David M. Jablons, M.D., FACS, [...]

    The UCSF Thoracic Oncology Laboratory recently acquired the 5500 Series SOLiDTM , a next-generation DNA sequencer manufactured by Life Technologies Inc. This state-of-the-art sequencer offers a level of precision  previously unattainable, and empowers lab scientists to more deeply probe the underlying molecular biology of myriad cancers: from primary thoracic tumors such as lung cancer, esophageal cancer, and mesothelioma, to metastatic sarcoma, melanoma, colorectal cancer, and breast cancer that has spread to the lung.Insights gained from  this research could lead to [...]

David M. Jablons, M.D., FACS, Professor and Chief of General Thoracic Surgery and Program Leader of the Thoracic Oncology Program, was recently inducted into into the American Surgical Society. The American Surgical Association was founded in 1880 and describes itself as the nation's oldest and most prestigious surgical organization. Among its members are the nation's most prominent surgeons from leading academic medical institutions, many of whom are Department of Surgery Chairs. Membership also includes leading surgeons from around the world.

Researchers reported in the New England Journal of Medicine that screening smokers and former smokers with spiral CT scans reduced  lung cancer deaths by 20%, reaffirming earlier findings in the NLST screening trial. David M. Jablons, M.D., Professor and Chief of Thoracic Surgery and Program Leader of the Thoracic Oncology Program noted the study's significance: "This is a landmark study and a landmark day for millions of people at risk for lung cancer. This study vindicates numerous pioneering investigators worldwide who have advocated for the utility and benefit of low-dose spiral CT scans [...]

The UCSF Thoracic Oncology Laboratory, led by David Jablons, M.D., Professor and Chief of Thoracic Surgery and Program Leader of Thoracic Oncology, recently launched its first Lung Cancer Joint Laboratory in China, an alliance with Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Disease (China National Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease) and the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical College. A signing ceremony was held in Guangzhou, China.

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 rapidly gaining ground in the treatment of lung cancer.This has given hope to patients like Zheng Cao that their lung cancer can be successfully treated.

The Bonnie J. and Anthony Addario Endowed Chair in Thoracic Oncology has been created in the Department of Surgery in honor of Thierry Jahan, M.D., an Associate Professor of Medicine at UCSF, who will occupy the Chair as its first recipient. Dr. Jahan is the one of the region's most highly regarded thoracic oncologists and sarcoma specialists, known among patients, their families, and colleagues for his deep sense of empathy and compassion. Dr. Jahan  co-founded the multidisciplinary Thoracic Oncology Program with David Jablons M.D.. On July 9, 2009, there was a celebration held at the [...]

Dr. David Jablons, Chief of the Thoracic Section, is co-chairing the 13th World Conference on Lung Cancer, July 31 - August 4, 2009.  The meeting will be held at the Moscone West in San Francisco.