Approximately 33 million Americans live with osteoarthritis, a progressive disease that breaks down the cartilage that cushions joints. The condition can cause chronic pain, stiffness and reduced mobility, making everyday activities increasingly difficult. Although existing treatments can relieve symptoms, they do not stop the disease from progressing, and some patients ultimately need joint replacement surgery.

“For decades, physicians have helped patients manage the pain of osteoarthritis but have never been able to stop the disease from progressing,” said Jay R. Lieberman, MD, chief of USC Orthopaedic Surgery with Keck Medicine and chair of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery with the Keck School of Medicine of USC, who is leading the clinical trial. “We hope to one day move beyond symptom management and toward preserving joint health for the patients we serve.”

How CX-011 was developed

CX-011 was developed in the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Keck School through research led by Denis Evseenko, MD, PhD, vice chair for research in orthopaedic surgery and a professor of orthopaedic surgery, stem cell biology and regenerative medicine at the Keck School.

His team identified a series of molecular signals involving GP130, an immune system receptor that tell cells how to respond to inflammation. GP130 supports normal immune, cardiovascular and stem cell functions. However, in osteoarthritis, immune system signals can become overactive and contribute to further cartilage damage, creating a cycle of deterioration.

CX-011 was designed to interrupt this inflammation-related signaling without blocking GP130 entirely. In animal models of osteoarthritis, Evseenko’s team observed signs of reduced joint pain, improved joint structure and function, cartilage regeneration and tissue healing after administering CX-011. These preclinical findings supported further evaluating CX-011 in a clinical trial.

Details of the clinical trial

Keck Medicine is the sole site conducting the randomized, double-blind, early-phase trial.

The primary goal of the trial is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of the investigational injection. Researchers will also use standardized questionnaires and MRI scans to collect information about participants’ pain, physical function and cartilage health over the course of the trial.

Advancing biomedical discovery to clinical testing

The USC Office of Research and Innovation, through the Alfred E. Mann Institute (AMI), was instrumental in bringing Evseenko’s pre-clinical findings into a potential therapy. The AMI helps develop promising biomedical discoveries for clinical use by providing venture funding, industry connections and strategic guidance, including support for researchers who form and grow companies to develop new technologies and treatments for patients.

“As an academic health system, we bring scientists and physicians together to shape research around the needs of our patients,” said Lieberman. “That collaboration, combined with the resources needed to move discoveries beyond the laboratory, allows us to rigorously evaluate emerging approaches that may expand patients’ treatment options.”

This marks the third consecutive year that Keck Hospital has received Vizient’s highest recognition for quality and accountability. The hospital ranked No. 11 among 122 comprehensive academic medical centers nationwide.

“This recognition reflects the dedication of our physicians, nurses and staff who work every day to provide exceptional care to our patients,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, chief operating officer of Keck Medicine of USC and CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC. “Receiving this distinction for the third time in a row demonstrates our commitment to continuously improving quality and the patient experience.”

What the award measures

Vizient, a leading healthcare performance improvement company, annually evaluates participating academic medical centers and health systems through its Quality and Accountability Study. The assessment measures performance across six domains: safety, mortality, effectiveness, efficiency, patient centeredness and variation in care.

“This year’s recognition includes exceptional performance in patient centeredness, effectiveness and variation in care, reflecting Keck Hospital’s commitment to patient experience while leveraging innovation and expertise to deliver the best possible quality outcomes,” said Tom Bates, MBA, RN, chief quality officer for Keck Medicine.

The study factors in measures from the Vizient Clinical Data Base and includes performance data from the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey and the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network.

The recognition period spans from July 1, 2025 through July 30, 2026.

Keck Hospital of USC is a 343-bed acute care hospital and part of Keck Medicine of USC, the University of Southern California’s medical enterprise.

From 2022 to 2024, any alcohol use declined by nearly 2%, while heavy drinking declined more than 8%. The decline marks the first confirmed reduction in alcohol consumption observed since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"It’s encouraging to see alcohol use decline for the first time since the start of the pandemic,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine and principal investigator of the study. “However, use remains above pre-pandemic levels and certain groups continue to have concerning trends.”

Why older adults remain a concern

One of the study’s most notable findings was the variation among age groups. While younger adults reduced alcohol consumption, adults ages 50-64 continued to drink at rates higher than before the pandemic. From 2018 to 2024, any alcohol use in this age group increased by nearly 4%, while heavy drinking increased by more than 36%.

According to Lee, the increase among older adults is particularly concerning because the risk of alcohol-related conditions such as liver disease, certain cancers and cardiovascular disease increases with age. Older adults are more likely to develop these conditions even when consuming the same amount of alcohol as younger adults.

"The encouraging national decline should not overshadow the fact that some groups continue to be at increased risk," Lee said. "Heavy drinking among ages 50-64 is up by more than a third since 2018, a concerning trend because this age group faces some of the greatest risks of harm from alcohol, including cirrhosis and alcohol-related cancers.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, excessive alcohol consumption is one of the leading preventable causes of illness and death in the United States. Alcohol accounts for approximately half of all liver-related deaths, and alcohol-associated cirrhosis has become the leading cause of liver transplants, according to Lee.

Differences among subgroups

Because of the large sample size, researchers identified meaningful differences among some demographic groups. Men generally experienced a larger decline in any alcohol use than women (2.4% vs. 1.1%). However, women experienced a larger decline in heavy alcohol use than men (9% vs. 7.7%).

The largest decline in any alcohol use occurred among Gen Z adults, whose consumption dropped over 5%, while millennials experienced the greatest decrease in heavy drinking, with a 17% drop between 2022 and 2024.

The study did not examine why younger adults reduced drinking, though researchers noted that changing social attitudes toward alcohol has been proposed as one possible explanation.

“These findings suggest that alcohol prevention efforts need to become more tailored to specific populations,” Lee said. “Different groups are showing different patterns of alcohol use, and understanding those differences could help us develop more effective prevention and treatment strategies.”

How researchers conducted the study

Researchers analyzed National Health Interview Survey data from 114,352 U.S. adults between 2018 and 2024. Respondents were categorized based on whether they consumed alcohol and whether they met the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism criteria for heavy drinking. Heavy drinking is defined as five or more drinks per day or 15 or more drinks per week for men, and four or more drinks per day or eight or more per week for women within the 12 months before the survey.

The findings build on a November 2024 study by Lee that found alcohol use increased during the COVID-19 pandemic and continued to increase for the following two years.

Researchers sought to further examine findings from a 2025 Gallup poll that suggested alcohol consumption was declining among U.S. adults. Using data from more than 100,000 respondents, Lee’s study was able to assess drinking patterns and explore trends across demographic groups. Survey methods allowed participants to complete the questionnaire privately online rather than by telephone.

“The decline in alcohol use is a positive development, but we cannot assume alcohol-related harms will decline automatically,” said Lee. “Continued attention to screening, prevention and treatment will be critical, particularly among groups where alcohol use remains elevated.”

Additional study authors include Jennifer Dodge, MPH, associate professor of research medicine and population and public health science at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and Divya Ayyala-Somayajula, MD, of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia.

However, a new Keck Medicine of USC study published today in eBioMedicine suggests that increasing omega-3 levels via supplements has little effect on brain health despite showing evidence that the nutrients directly reach the brain. 

The two-year, placebo-controlled, double-blinded study of older adults with an elevated risk of developing Alzheimer’s showed that high doses of omega-3s did not improve memory, cognitive function or brain cell loss in areas of the brain related to Alzheimer’s. 

“We all wish there was a silver bullet for preventing Alzheimer’s, but our findings showed that fish oil supplements do not appear to protect brain health,” said Hussein Naji Yassine, MD, director of the USC Center for Personalized Brain Health and lead investigator of the study. “While omega-3s play an important role in forming brain cell connections needed for cognition, our results do not support fish oil supplements as a preventive measure against Alzheimer’s.” 

How the study was conducted 

Researchers recruited 365 adults, ages 55 to 80 who rarely ate fish, which is rich in omega-3s, and who study authors considered at risk for Alzheimer’s. About half (47%) carried an APOE4 gene, the strongest genetic risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer’s. Participants were randomly chosen to receive either daily fish oil supplements or a placebo. The supplements contained 2,000 mg of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a key omega-3 involved in brain function. 

Researchers were first interested to learn whether the omega-3 in the supplement was able to reach the brain.  

They measured DHA levels in cerebrospinal fluid, which surrounds the brain, and found an average 17% increase of DHA levels in patients’ brains after six months, confirming the omega-3 reached its intended target. 

Next, researchers tested participants’ memory and cognitive abilities at the beginning of the study and again two years later. Study participants who took DHA supplements did no better on the tests than those who took a placebo. Brain scans also showed that supplements did not prevent shrinkage of the hippocampus, a brain region important for memory that is often used as a marker of brain aging and Alzheimer’s risk. 

Looking beyond supplements 

Now, Yassine and his team are focused on solving why omega-3 supplements can reach the brain but not affect brain health. Based on their previous research, they believe omega-3s may work better as a part of a Mediterranean-style diet, which is naturally rich in omega-3s and linked with lower Alzheimer’s risk, than in a standalone supplement. 

“We’re focused on better understanding how the brain processes omega-3s and whether factors, such as poor health, dietary pattern, genetic risk and age, may change the brain’s ability to effectively absorb and use omega-3s,” said Yassine. “We are working to develop medications that may help the brain better utilize these nutrients to preserve cognitive function.”  

Holistic lifestyle remains the best prevention  

While out of scope of the study, the researchers stress that overall healthy living — rather than relying on fish oil supplements alone —is the best way to protect brain health.  

“Staying healthy throughout life remains the most powerful tool we have for reducing Alzheimer’s risk, including regular exercise, quality sleep and a balanced diet,” said Yassine. “Living a healthy lifestyle is the brain’s equivalent of getting regular car maintenance and high-quality oil changes. The brain is more likely to lose greater function if health issues in other parts of the body go unaddressed, in the same way that car engines stop working if regular maintenance is skipped.” 

Other USC authors for the study include Lina D’Orazio, PhD, a clinical psychologist and neuropsychology specialist with Keck Medicine; Lon Schneider, PhD, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC; Michael Harrington, MD, a professor of research neurology at the Keck School; and Meredith Braskie, PhD, an assistant professor of neurology at the Keck School. 

HEI is the industry standard benchmarking tool for LGBTQ+ inclusion and equity practices in the healthcare field, judging hospitals on five criteria:

• Non-Discrimination and Staff Training
• Patient Services and Support
• Employee Benefits and Policies
• Patient and Community Engagement
• Responsible Citizenship

To receive LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader designation, healthcare facilities must receive the maximum score in each criteria and earn an overall score of 100. 

“Every patient deserves safe and respectful care, and Keck Medicine is proud to serve the diverse needs of the LGBTQ+ community,” said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. “This recognition reflects our commitment to delivering personalized, compassionate medicine and fostering a welcoming, inclusive environment for all.”

Keck Medicine hospitals include Keck Hospital of USC, USC Norris Cancer Hospital, USC Verdugo Hills Hospital (USC-VHH) and USC Arcadia Hospital (USC-AH). This marks the eighth time that Keck Hospital, USC Norris and USC-VHH have received the LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader distinction, and the second time that USC-AH has received the designation since joining Keck Medicine in 2022. 

USC Student Health, which provides comprehensive healthcare to USC students, participated in the survey for the third time and joins a select group of college healthcare providers in receiving the leader designation. 

Commitment to Inclusivity and Equity

Keck Medicine leads multiple initiatives and programs in support of the LGBTQ+ community, demonstrating a commitment to inclusivity and equity.

• The USC Gender Affirming Care Program offers evidence-based comprehensive healthcare tailored to transgender, non-binary and gender-diverse patients. The program’s dedicated patient navigator assists patients with their personalized needs throughout their healthcare journey.
• The health system is a sponsor of the Latino Equality Alliance LGBTQ+ Youth College Scholarship Program, which includes a Keck Medicine scholarship to support LGBTQ+ students pursuing healthcare careers.
• Keck Medicine also sponsors the annual Los Angeles Pride Parade, in partnership with the Keck School of Medicine of USC.
• The health system collaborates with several local LGBTQ+ nonprofit organizations, including The TransLatin@ Coalition, a trans-led nonprofit organization that advocates for the needs of transgender, gender non-conforming and intersex immigrants; and Bienestar, a community-based social services organization addressing emerging health issues faced by Latinx and LGBTQ+ populations.
• Since 2015, the Keck Pride employee resource group, has been a pillar in creating a welcoming environment for LGBTQ+ patients, families and staff, and is a driving force in many of the health system’s initiatives.

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation is the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign, a civil rights organization working to achieve equity for LGBTQ+ people. 

Medical experts have typically calculated obesity using body mass index (BMI), a calculation based on a person’s height and weight.

In the last year and a half, however, some practitioners have shifted away from screening for obesity through BMI and have instead adopted a newer measure known as clinical obesity, which identifies obesity based on fat around the abdomen coupled with weight-related health issues.

A new study from Keck Medicine of USC, published today in the Annals of Internal Medicine, quantifies how often BMI may miss cases of obesity. The research shows that one quarter of people considered to have a normal (healthy) BMI meet the standard of clinical obesity. And 50% of those deemed overweight by their BMI would be reclassified as obese.

“Many people assume that if their BMI says they are not obese, they don’t have to worry about the many health problems linked to obesity,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine and principal investigator of the study. “Our findings show that millions of Americans may already have obesity-related health impacts and may be missing needed health interventions.”

Those with normal or overweight BMIs do not currently qualify for pharmacologic or surgical treatments for obesity, and physicians may not necessarily flag them as needing lifestyle modifications that could improve their health, added Lee.

Old definition of obesity versus new

BMI classifies people into four categories based on their weight to height ratio: a BMI under 18.5 is considered underweight; a BMI between 18.5-25 is considered normal, or healthy; a BMI between 25-29.9 is considered overweight; and a BMI of 30 or over is categorized as obese.

“BMI is problematic because it does not specifically measure body fat and instead reflects total body weight, which includes muscle and bone,” said Lee. “So a muscular person can have a very high BMI but not have excess fat, while someone without much muscle can have a normal BMI but have excess fat causing health problems.”

Clinical obesity, a term developed in 2025 by the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology Commission, an international group of obesity experts, specifically examines fat around the waist, known as adipose fat, and is a more accurate way of determining obesity and obesity-linked health problems, said Lee.

Adipose fat accumulates deep in the abdomen, causing dangerous inflammation to the body’s organs, unlike under-the-skin or subcutaneous fat, which is found in other parts of the body.

Clinicians determine clinical obesity through three measurements: a person’s waist circumference, their waist-to-hip ratio and their waist-to-height ratio.

Click here to learn more about these measurements

If a person is found to have extra fat by at least two of the three measurements and has evidence of organ, tissue or other health issues associated with extra fat, such as heart disease or chronic hip or knee pain, they are considered clinically obese, said Lee.

Obesity can lead to many illnesses, including heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, liver disease and certain cancers, making it one of the leading causes of preventable death in the country.

Toward better long-term health

For the study, researchers used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a nationally representative survey of health and nutrition. They included data from some 5,600 adults with an average age of 49 who had been tested for both BMI and hip and waist circumferences.

When they compared BMI results with clinical obesity status, they reached the conclusion that approximately 26% of people with a normal BMI and 50% of people with an overweight BMI qualified as clinically obese.

In the future, Lee hopes that more physicians will diagnose obesity using the clinical obesity definition rather than BMI to better inform people of any health risks they may be facing.

“The good news is that obesity can be treated,” said Lee. “Whether through lifestyle changes, medication or both, we have effective ways to reduce excess body fat and lower the risk of future health problems. The earlier we identify people at risk, the better chance we have of improving long-term health and quality of life.”

Keck Hospital is among only 29 hospitals in California — and only one of 385 nationally — to receive five stars on the one-to-five-star rating system.

“Receiving this prestigious recognition validates the hospital’s continuous commitment to patient safety and best possible outcomes, and demonstrates the dedication and hard work of our physicians, nurses and staff,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC. 

The CMS hospital quality star rating summarizes a variety of measures across five areas of quality into a single star rating for each hospital. The five areas include: 

• Readmission — returns to the hospital following a hospitalization.
• Mortality — death rates in the 30 days following a hospitalization.  
• Safety of care — potentially preventable injury and complications due to care provided during a hospitalization.  
• Timely and effective care.    
• Patient experience — includes how effectively physicians and nurses communicate with patients and whether patients would recommend the hospital to others.  

This CMS five-star designation follows Keck Hospital earning an "A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit focused on patient safety, in the spring of 2026. It was the 12th "A" Grade for Keck Hospital since 2019. 

The CMS rating system was launched in 2016 to help patients and caregivers make informed decisions when selecting a hospital. Hospitals report quality data to the CMS through multiple reporting programs, and the data is then reviewed and standardized to calculate hospital star rankings.  

For detailed information on how Keck Hospital scored on quality measures, please click here.  

"This is the second time the health system has received two 'A's simultaneously, which is a huge accomplishment," said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. "The Leapfrog Group grades hospitals on a set of very rigorous standards and this grade puts our hospitals among the safest in the country."  

Both hospitals earned Fall 2025 "A" Hospital Grades from The Leapfrog Group.

Keck Hospital is a 343-bed acute care hospital providing specialized care. USC-VHH, a 158-bed community hospital, serves patients in the cities of Glendale and La Cañada Flintridge, as well as the surrounding Foothill communities of Southern California. 

This is the 12th "A" Grade for Keck Hospital since 2019. 

"Such an achievement is a reflection of our commitment to pursuing the highest possible standards of care and is a testament to our staff's tireless dedication to exemplify excellence," said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC. 

This is the third "A" Grade USC-VHH has received in recent years. 

"We are proud that our hard work maximizing safety standards has resulted in yet another top grade,” said Armand Dorian, MD, MMM, CEO of USC-VHH. "This distinction recognizes the commitment shared by every care provider at the hospital to put patient safety first."

The Leapfrog Group assigns an "A" through "F" grade to general hospitals across the country based on measures representing a hospital's overall performance in keeping patients safe from preventable harm. 

The Leapfrog hospital grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring. 

To see Keck Hospital and USC-VHH's full Leapfrog grade details and access hospital safety tips for patients, please visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org. 

In addition to earning Spring 2026 “A” Grades from The Leapfrog Group, Keck Medicine has received many national quality honors in recent years, including Keck Hospital being named a 2025 top performer by Vizient, Inc., which places the hospital among the top 12 hospitals in the country for excellence in delivering high-quality care. 

However, new research from USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Keck Medicine of USC, presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research suggests that this type of diet may put non-smoking Americans under the age of 50 at greater risk of developing lung cancer.  

“Our research shows that younger non-smokers who eat a higher quantity of healthy foods than the general population are more likely to develop lung cancer,” said Jorge Nieva, MD, a medical oncologist and lung cancer specialist with USC Norris and lead investigator of the study. “These counter-intuitive findings raise important questions about an unknown environmental risk factor for lung cancer related to otherwise beneficial food that needs to be addressed.”  

Nieva and his fellow researchers speculate that this risk factor may be the pesticides used to keep crops pest-free. Commercially produced (non-organic) fruits, vegetables and whole grains are more likely to be associated with a higher residue of pesticides than dairy, meat and many processed foods, according to Nieva. He also notes that agricultural workers exposed to pesticides typically have higher rates of lung cancer, which adds credence to the theory.  

The study also showed that young women who don’t smoke have a higher incidence of lung cancer than men, and that women tended to also have a diet higher in produce and whole grains than men.  

A New Epidemic of Lung Cancer 

Lung cancer has typically been a disease that affects older adults (the average age of lung cancer onset is 71), men more than women, and smokers. 

Smoking rates have fallen since the mid-1980s, which has led to fewer lung cancer cases across the United States, except for one unique group — non-smokers age 50 and younger, especially women, who are now more likely to get lung cancer than men.  

To investigate this trend, researchers launched the Epidemiology of Young Lung Cancer Project, which surveyed 187 patients who were diagnosed with lung cancer by age 50. Patients provided details on demographics, diet, smoking history and lung cancer diagnosis.  

Most patients had never smoked and had a form of lung cancer biologically different from lung cancer caused by smoking. A 2021 study from the Epidemiology of Young Lung Cancer Project, the Genomics of Young Lung Cancer Project, found that the subtypes of lung cancer seen in people under 40 were distinct from lung cancer in older adults.  

Researchers used the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), a ranking of the overall quality of Americans’ diet on a scale of 1-100, to compare patients’ diets with the broader United States population. Young non-smoking lung cancer patients had an average HEI score of 65 out of 100, compared to the national average of 57. Among participants in the study, women had higher HEI scores than men. 

On average, the young lung cancer patients ate more daily servings of fruit, vegetables and whole grains than the general population. For example, participants averaged 4.3 servings of dark green vegetable and legumes and 3.9 servings of whole grains per day, while the average U.S. adult eats 3.6 servings of dark green vegetables and legumes and 2.6 servings of whole grains per day. 

More Research Needed 

The link between pesticides and lung cancer in young people, especially women, needs more research, said Nieva. 

In the study, researchers did not test specific foods for pesticides. Instead, they used published data on average pesticide levels for food categories such as fruits, vegetables and grains to estimate exposure. The next step, said Nieva, is to confirm the link by directly measuring pesticide levels in blood or urine samples from patients. This could also help reveal whether or not some pesticides increase lung cancer risk more than others. 

“This work represents a critical step toward identifying modifiable environmental factors that may contribute to lung cancer in young adults," said Nieva. “Our hope is that these insights can guide both public health recommendations and future investigation into lung cancer prevention.”  

The research is supported by the Addario Lung Cancer Medical Institute, a nonprofit focused on advancing lung cancer research and care, as well as AstraZeneca, the Beth Longwell Foundation, Genentech, GO2 for Lung Cancer and Upstage Lung Cancer.  

Researchers also received funding from the National Institutes of Health, grant number R25CA225513 and the National Cancer Institute, grant number P30CA014089. 

New research suggests otherwise, according to a Keck Medicine of USC study published today in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology. 

Researchers discovered that people with metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), the most common liver condition in the country affecting one-in-three adults, face significantly higher risk of liver fibrosis, or harmful scarring of the liver, if they engage in episodic heavy drinking. Episodic heavy drinking is four or more drinks in one day for women and five or more drinks in one day for men, at least once a month.  

Those who consume large amounts of alcohol in a single day at least once per month are three times more likely to develop advanced liver fibrosis than individuals who spread out the same total alcohol intake over time, according to the findings. 

Younger adults and men were more likely to report episodic heavy drinking, and the more drinks consumed at one time, the more liver fibrosis people tended to have. 

“This study is a huge wake-up call because traditionally, physicians have tended to look at the total amount of alcohol consumed, not how it is consumed, when determining the risk to the liver,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine and principal investigator of the study. “Our research suggests that the public needs to be much more aware of the danger of occasional heavy drinking and should avoid it even if they drink moderately the rest of the time.”  

How the study was conducted 

Lee and his colleagues used data from the nationally representative National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a long-running health survey of the United States population. They included data from more than 8,000 adults, collected between 2017 and 2023. In particular, they looked at the link between episodic heavy drinking and advanced liver fibrosis to understand how drinking patterns — not just total drinks — may cause harm even to moderate drinkers, which is considered seven drinks a week for women and 14 or less for men.  

The research team focused on MASLD because of its prevalence among Americans. MASLD affects people with excess weight, obesity or other metabolic conditions, such as Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure or high cholesterol, and is on the rise. Additionally, while MASLD is not defined as alcohol-related, Lee and his colleagues wanted to explore if alcohol did in fact play some role in the condition. 

More than one-half of the adults included in the study reported episodic heavy drinking and almost 16% of patients with MASLD were episodic heavy drinkers. 

The researchers compared people with MASLD with the same age, sex and average weekly alcohol consumption, segmenting some as episodic heavy drinkers and others as non-episodic heavy drinkers, to reach their conclusion that episodic heavy drinkers with MASLD had nearly three times higher odds of experiencing advanced liver fibrosis.  

Lee speculates that episodic heavy drinking can harm the liver both directly and indirectly. Drinking large amounts of alcohol at once can overwhelm the liver and increase inflammation, which leads to scarring and damage. People with MASLD may be particularly at risk, as Lee’s previous research has shown that obesity, high blood pressure and other conditions associated with MASLD can more than double liver disease risk. 

Alcohol-related liver disease has more than doubled in the last two decades, according to Lee. He believes this trend is driven by pandemic-era surges in drinking and an increase in people with risk factors for MASLD, like obesity and diabetes.  

“Although this study focused on patients with MASLD, these findings may also be pertinent to a broader patient population,” said Lee. “With more than half of adults reporting some episodic heavy drinking, this issue deserves further attention from both physicians and researchers to help better understand, prevent and treat liver disease.” 

Immune checkpoint inhibitors, medications that allow the body’s own immune system, particularly cancer-fighting T-cells, to recognize, find and attack tumor cells, can help stop the recurrence of cancer in many parts of the body.  

However, these drugs are not usually effective on brain cancers like astrocytoma due to the blood-brain barrier — a tightly sealed layer of cells that acts as a protective boundary between the brain and the bloodstream. Because this barrier is so effective, it also limits the ability of immune cells, including cancer-fighting T-cells, to enter the brain and reach the tumor.  

But now, Keck Medicine of USC researchers may have discovered a way to break through this blood-brain barrier and make immune checkpoint inhibitors effective for patients with recurrent, high-grade astrocytoma, thus potentially extending patients’ lives.   

Stunning results 

In a Phase 1/2b clinical trial, investigators combined a minimally invasive procedure that uses laser heat to both destroy the tumor tissue and disrupt the blood-brain barrier, with a common immune checkpoint inhibitor drug, pembrolizumab. 

The results, published today in Nature Communications, were striking. Nearly half of patients treated with laser interstitial thermal therapy (LITT), followed by pembrolizumab were still alive at 18 months. In comparison, none of the patients who received a conventional treatment of surgery followed by pembrolizumab were alive at the 18-month-mark.  

In addition, more than one-third of patients treated with LITT and the immune checkpoint inhibitor lived more than three years, far exceeding the typical four-to-five-month survival for patients with recurrent high-grade astrocytoma. 

“These results suggest that LITT can help the immune checkpoint inhibitor pembrolizumab work more effectively against high-grade astrocytoma,” said David Tran, MD, PhD, chief of neuro-oncology with Keck Medicine, co-director of the USC Brain Tumor Center and lead author of the study. “Patients with this type of advanced cancer have few remaining options and poor outcomes, and this approach could meaningfully extend their survival time and provide new hope for patients and their loved ones.” 

How LITT breaks through the blood-brain barrier  

Tran and his colleagues based the study on their past research showing that the heat produced by LITT can disrupt the blood–brain barrier for several weeks, which is enough time for T-cells to detect and target cancer cells once they have been activated by an immune checkpoint inhibitor.  

During the trial, participants received either LITT or surgery/biopsy, then the pembrolizumab. For those receiving LITT, neurosurgeons used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to locate the tumor in the brain, guide the LITT probe into the tumor, then precisely deliver laser heat to the tumor. The heat destroys the tumor while surgeons work to ensure no healthy brain tissue is damaged; and as a side product, the heat disrupts the blood-brain barrier.  

Once patients receive the immune checkpoint inhibitor, this disruption allows tumor materials to slip past the blood-brain barrier and into the blood. “This alerts T-cells to the presence of the tumor and provides easy passage of these T-cells to rush in, find and attack the tumor,” said Tran.  

About the clinical trial  

Forty-five patients enrolled in the study. All trial participants were in their second recurrence of astrocytoma, with nearly 15% in their third recurrence, meaning the cancer was at a very advanced stage. 

The LITT plus pembrolizumab combination was found to be generally safe and well-tolerated. 

Since the trial began, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared LITT for treating certain brain tumors, and pembrolizumab has been approved for several cancers.  

Keck Medical Center of USC was one of the three clinical trial sites nationwide, alongside researchers from Washington University in St. Louis and the University of Florida.  

Other USC authors for the study include Son B. Le, PhD, assistant professor of research neurological surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC; Harshit Manektalia, MS, computational research scientist at the Keck School; and Dongjiang Chen, MD, assistant professor of research neurological surgery at the Keck School. 

Parkinson’s disease is associated with reduced dopamine release in the brain. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter essential for movement, memory, mood and other functions. Research has shown that the tremors, stiffness, slow movement and other symptoms of Parkinson’s disease are caused by the progressive loss of dopamine-producing brain cells, disrupting the brain’s ability to regulate movement. 

Keck Medicine of USC is conducting an early phase clinical trial investigating the safety and effectiveness of implanting specialized stem cells into the brain that have been programmed to replace damaged brain cells and produce dopamine.  

“If the brain can once again produce normal levels of dopamine, Parkinson’s disease may be slowed down and motor function restored,” said Brian Lee, MD, PhD, a neurosurgeon with Keck Medicine and principal investigator of the study. 

Click here for seven warning signs of Parkinson’s disease

Unique stem cell therapy 

The therapy is a relatively new type of lab-generated stem cell called induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). Unlike embryonic stem cells, iPCSs are adult cells, such as skin or blood cells, reprogrammed to a "blank slate" state capable of evolving into any type of cell. 

“We believe that these iPSCs can reliably mature into dopamine-producing brain cells, and offer the best chance of jump-starting the brain’s dopamine production,” said Xenos Mason, MD, a neurologist who specializes in Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders with Keck Medicine and co-principal investigator of the study.  

During the procedure, Lee drills a small hole in the patient’s skull to access the brain, then precisely implants the stem cells into the basal ganglia, a part of the brain that controls movement, under the guidance of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). 

After surgery, patients are monitored for 12-15 months for any changes in their Parkinson’s disease symptoms and for possible side effects including dyskinesia — excess movements — or infection. The doctors will continue to monitor the patients and their Parkinson’s disease symptoms for up to five years. 

“Our ultimate goal is to pioneer a technique that can repair patients’ motor function and offer them a better quality of life,” said Lee. 

Keck Medicine is one of three organizations in the United States participating in the clinical trial. The multisite study includes a total of 12 participants with moderate to moderate-severe Parkinson’s disease. 

This announcement is intended to share information about Keck Medicine’s research involvement and is not soliciting participants. 

LOS ANGELES — Keck Medicine of USC radiologists use computed tomography (CT) scanners to diagnose and treat patients’ diseases and injuries.

Recently, however, this advanced technology was put to a far more novel use: examining the bodies of two ancient Egyptian mummies.

Radiologists conducted full-body CT scans of two Egyptian priests, Nes-Min, circa 330 BCE, and Nes-Hor, circa 190 BCE, whose bodies had been preserved for more than 2,200 years.

The mummies, along with 3D digital models and 3D prints of select parts of their bodies, will be on display at “Mummies of the World: The Exhibition,” an upcoming exhibit at the California Science Center opening Feb. 7.

Each mummy was scanned inside the bottom half of its sarcophagus, which weighed approximately 200 pounds each. The mummies were wrapped in linen shrouds, blackened with age. The older mummy, Nes-Min, was draped in a garment of heavily beaded net over his torso and wore several strands of colorful beads.

A state-of-the-art, 320 slice CT scanner revealed small details of their bodies that humanized the men, including facial features such as eyelids and their lower lips. The images also held clues about their health, life experiences and lifespans that resonate with people today.

Scans reveal healed injuries, dental issues and other modern-day ailments

Analysis of the scans showed that the elder of the mummies, Nes-Min, probably suffered from an aching lower back like many modern humans. His spine showed a collapsed lumbar or lower back vertebrae likely due to natural aging and wear and tear.

He was buried with several artifacts, representing several scarab beetles and a fish.

Nes-Hor’s scan revealed dental issues and a severely deteriorated hip, and that he was older at the time of death than Nes-Min.

"These scans provide a treasure trove of information made possible by Keck Medicine’s access to the latest in high-level scanning, coupled with the team’s expertise,” said Summer Decker, PhD, who leads 3D imaging for Keck Medicine and serves as director of the USC Center for Innovation in Medical Visualization with the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

“These mummies were scanned previously, but due to advancements in scanning technology, the results are much more detailed and extensive than ever before,” said Decker, who oversaw the mummy scans and visualization analysis. “The high-resolution images have revealed things that were previously unknown and helped create a picture of what their lives were like.”

After scanning the mummies, Decker and her colleague, Jonathan Ford, PhD, used the scans to create 3D digital models of the men. They also printed out life-size reproductions of the men’s spines, skulls and hips, as well as artifacts found with Nes-Min, using medical-grade 3D printers.

“Mummies have long been a mystery. Seeing beneath the surface to reveal the specific lived experience of individuals is incredibly exciting,” said anthropologist Diane Perlov, PhD, senior vice president for special projects at the California Science Center. “This modern scientific technology offers us a powerful window into the world of ancient people and past civilizations that might otherwise be lost.”

Keck Medicine’s 3D technology brings organs to life

Keck Medicine’s 3D visualization and printing technologies used on the mummies allow for surgeons to turn medical imaging, such as a CT or MRI scan, into physical reproductions of a patient’s liver, heart, pelvis or other structure.

The scans first create hundreds of detailed 3D cross-sectional images (or “slices”), then 3D visualization experts digitally “stack” the images together to form 3D digital models. These models can then be analyzed, measured or used to print on high-resolution medical-grade 3D printers, meaning that the prints can be used in surgery and are safe to touch and potentially be implanted in a patient.

Surgeons then use these prints to better visualize and understand a patient’s complex medical condition or practice the best surgical solution before entering the operating room.

“Through 3D visualization, modeling and printing, clinicians like surgeons can accurately measure hard-to-detect tumors, examine the intricate structure of a patient’s heart or liver or determine how best to repair a shoulder or hip,” said Decker. “They walk into the operating room with a much better idea of what they are facing and how they will approach surgery. With these advanced technologies, we can create custom treatments and solutions for our patients, which may lead to improved outcomes.”

Patients may also benefit from holding a replica of their own organ in their hand, Decker continued. “They gain a new understanding of what their condition is and how it will be treated,” she said.

Keck Medicine has access to almost two dozen 3D printers housed in the USC Center for Innovation in Medical Visualization.

About the exhibit

“Mummies of the World: The Exhibition” first debuted at the California Science Center in 2010. After touring the globe, the exhibition returns to Los Angeles for its closing venue with a new selection of mummies never seen before in Los Angeles.

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Click here to discover the difference between X-rays, CT scans, MRIs and more.

“Pass has more than 30 years of health care finance leadership experience with a proven history of cultivating high-performing teams and guiding organizations through critical financial and operational transformations,” said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. “He brings tremendous knowledge and skill to this position that will support the continued growth of the health system.”

As CFO, Pass will manage Keck Medicine’s strategic financial plans, financial and governmental reporting, budgeting, funds flow, revenue cycle, accounting and supply chain. He will collaborate closely with senior executives across the health system and the University of Southern California and lead financial activities and decisions that support the organization’s long-term sustainability.

“I look forward to using my expertise to further build upon Keck Medicine’s success,” said Pass.

Prior to joining Keck Medicine, Pass held senior leadership roles at the national health services organization Optum. In his most current position, he served as president overseeing provider clients and payvider clients (health care organizations that deliver care and manage the financial aspects of care).

Before working at Optum, Pass held several senior financial leadership positions at John Muir Health, a health system located in Contra Costa County in Northern California, culminating in his role as CFO.

Pass holds a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University’s Graziadio Business School.

Now, a novel clinical trial offers hope for patients with advanced “dry” age-related macular degeneration. Dry age-related macular degeneration is the most common form of the disease.

Researchers at the USC Roski Eye Institute, part of Keck Medicine of USC, are launching a phase 2b clinical trial examining if stem cells bioengineered to replace failing cells in the retina damaged by macular degeneration could restore eyesight. The cells are attached to an implant — an ultra-thin patch, thinner than a strand of hair — which holds the cells in place.

“We are hoping to determine if the stem-cell based retinal implant can not only stop the progression of dry age-related macular degeneration, but actually improve patients’ vision,” said Sun Young Lee, MD, PhD, a retinal surgeon with Keck Medicine and principal investigator of the Keck Medicine study site. “The findings could be groundbreaking because while there are a few treatments available that delay the progress of macular degeneration, there are none able to reverse the damage already done.”

The clinical trial follows early research conducted by USC Roski Eye Institute experts on a small patient population that showed the implant was well-tolerated, stayed put in the eye and was successfully absorbed into the tissue of the retina. Additionally, 27% of patients had some improved vision.

“The earlier phase of the clinical trial showed the treatment to be safe with the potential to benefit patients’ vision; this next phase will investigate whether the therapy can achieve clinically significant improvements in vision,” said Lee, who is also an associate professor of ophthalmology and physiology & neuroscience at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. 

Click here for five tips to help prevent macular degeneration.

How the retinal implant works

Approximately 20 million Americans live with age-related macular degeneration. This number also includes cases of wet macular degeneration, which is a less common but more serious form of the disease.

Age-related macular degeneration affects the eye’s macula, which is located in the center of the retina and is responsible for central vision. In advanced cases, the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells, which line the macula and are key in helping the retina produce clear vision, become damaged or destroyed, which leads to vision loss.

The retinal implant used in the clinical trial is derived from embryonic stem cells grown into RPE cells in a lab. During an outpatient surgical procedure, Keck Medicine eye surgeons will implant a tiny layer of the lab-produced RPE cells into the retina.

“The study will explore if the lab-engineered implant will take over for the damaged cells, function as normal RPE cells would, and improve vision for patients who may currently have no other options for improvement,” said Rodrigo Antonio Brant Fernandes, MD, PhD, an ophthalmologist with Keck Medicine and the study surgeon. He is also an associate professor of clinical ophthalmology at the Keck School. 

Details of the clinical trial

Keck Medicine is one of five locations in the nation enrolling patients in the clinical trial. The study is masked — some of the enrolled participants will receive the implant, while others receive a simulated implant.

Eligible patients must be between ages 55-90 with advanced dry age-related macular degeneration and a diagnosis of geographic atrophy, meaning their RPE cells are damaged or not functioning.

Patients will be monitored for at least one year to determine how the implant is tolerated and for any changes in vision. The trial is hoping to enroll 24 patients.

Those interested in learning more about the trial can contact Mariana Edwards at mariana.edwards@med.usc.edu or Kimberly Rodriguez at kimberly.rodriguez2@med.usc.edu.

"The USC Roski Eye Institute is dedicated to furthering innovative treatments to help improve lives by restoring vision,” said Mark S. Humayun, MD, PhD, co-director of the USC Roski Eye Institute, director of the USC Ginsberg Institute for Biomedical Therapeutics and the Dennis and Michele Slivinski Chair in Macular Degeneration Research at the Keck School. “Stem cell-derived retinal implants may offer one of the greatest possibilities for helping patients with dry age-related macular degeneration and one day, may offer a cure.”

"This award is one of the most competitive and prestigious in the nation and puts these hospitals among the safest in the country," said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes USC Norris Cancer Hospital and Keck Hospital. "We are honored to be recognized for creating a culture of trust, transparency and excellence in every aspect of care." 

To qualify for the distinction, hospitals must rank top among peers on the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, which assesses hospital performance on the highest standards of care. Over 2,400 hospitals were considered for the award, and less than 7% of the eligible hospitals earned the honor of Top Hospital in one of four categories: children's, general, rural and teaching. 

This is the fifth year in a row the cancer hospital has received this distinction and the first year for Keck Hospital. 

"Patient safety is our top priority at the medical center as we continually follow best practices in the field," said Stephanie Hall, MD, MHA, chief medical officer of the medical center. "This recognition by The Leapfrog Group is a testament to the hard work, dedication and commitment of the entire staff who always put our patients first." 

These awards follow on the heels of Keck Hospital earning a Fall and Spring 2025 "A" Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group. Additionally, Vizient Inc. named Keck Hospital a 2025 top performer, placing the hospital among the top 12 hospitals in the country for excellence in delivering high-quality care. 

USC Norris Cancer Hospital's cancer program is ranked in the top 25 in the country according to the 2025-2026 U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals rankings. The hospital is part of USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, which has been designated by the National Cancer Institute as one of the nation's 51 comprehensive cancer centers, a select group of institutions providing leadership in cancer treatment, research, prevention and education.  

To see the full list of organizations honored as 2025 Top Hospitals, visit http://www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals.

"This is the first time the health system has received two 'A's simultaneously, which is a huge accomplishment," said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. "The Leapfrog Group grades hospitals on a set of very rigorous standards and this grade puts our hospitals among the safest in the country."

Keck Hospital is a 343-bed acute care hospital providing specialized care. USC-VHH, a 140-bed community hospital, serves patients in the cities of Glendale and La Cañada Flintridge, as well as the surrounding Foothill communities of Southern California.

This is the 11th grade "A" for Keck Hospital since 2019.

"Every year, the Leapfrog grading criteria become more rigorous, and it is a tremendous honor for Keck Hospital to once again receive the highest safety grade possible," said Stephanie Hall, MD, chief medical officer of Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes Keck Hospital. "We are committed to staying on the forefront of safety protocols and hospital procedures to ensure our patients receive the highest quality care possible."

This is the second grade "A" USC-VHH has received in recent years.

"We are proud that our hard work maximizing safety standards has resulted in another grade 'A'," said Armand Dorian, MD, MMM, CEO of USC-VHH. "This grade recognizes the commitment shared by every care provider at the hospital to put patient safety first."

The Leapfrog Group assigns an "A" through "F" grade to general hospitals across the country based on measures representing a hospital's overall performance in keeping patients safe from preventable harm.

The Leapfrog hospital grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.

To see Keck Hospital and USC-VHH's full Leapfrog grade details and access hospital safety tips for patients, please visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org.

Keck Medicine has received many national quality honors in recent years, including Keck Hospital being named a 2025 top performer by Vizient, Inc., which places the hospital among the top 12 hospitals in the country for excellence in delivering high-quality care.

"Keck Hospital's Leapfrog grade 'A' award is once again a reflection of Keck Hospital's commitment to pursuing the highest possible standards of care and is a testament to the effort our faculty and staff put in day in and day out to exemplify excellence," said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center.

Now, a new study published in Liver International from Keck Medicine of USC reveals that tetrachloroethylene (PCE), a chemical used in dry cleaning and found in consumer products such as adhesives for arts and crafts, spot cleaners and stainless steel polish, may also be harmful to the liver.

Exposure to PCE was shown to triple the risk of significant liver fibrosis, an excessive amount of scar tissue in the liver that can lead to liver cancer, liver failure or death.

Additionally, the more exposure people had to the chemical, the more likely they were to develop significant liver fibrosis.

“This study, the first to examine the association between PCE levels in humans and significant liver fibrosis, underscores the underreported role environmental factors may play in liver health,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine and lead author of the study. “The findings suggest that exposure to PCE may be the reason why one person develops liver disease while someone with the exact same health and demographic profile does not.”  

Where PCE can be found

PCE is a human-made, colorless liquid used in dry cleaning, household goods and industrial settings to remove grease and for other purposes.

People are typically exposed to PCE through the air — for example, the chemical can be slowly released into the air over time from clothes that have been dry cleaned. PCE can also be present in drinking water from contaminated sites due to spills and improper disposal of PCE that can seep into the soil and then into the groundwater.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer has classified PCE as a probable carcinogen and linked it to bladder cancer, multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Other studies showed that exposure to PCE increased the risk of liver cancer, said Lee.

Due to its toxicity, the United States Environmental Protection Agency has launched a 10-year phaseout for the use of PCE in dry cleaning as well as banned or placed workplace controls on other uses of PCE. However, the chemical may remain present in some applications and in countries without similar regulations.

The more PCE exposure, the greater the risk of liver disease

Lee and his fellow researchers used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), a nationally representative survey of the United States population, to reach their conclusions. They tracked PCE exposure through the concentration of the chemical in individuals’ blood in people 20 and older from the years 2017-2020, the most recent years for which information is available, finding that some 7% of the population had detectable PCE.

They then examined which individuals with PCE in their blood had significant liver fibrosis and found that people exposed to PCE were three times more likely to have significant liver fibrosis than those without exposure.

These results held steady independent of factors such as age, sex, race, ethnicity and education level.

The study did show that those most at risk of PCE exposure were from higher-income households. “People with higher incomes may be more likely to use dry cleaning services, which could increase their exposure to PCE,” said Lee. “However, people who work in dry cleaning facilities may also face elevated risk due to prolonged, direct exposure to PCE at work.”

The researchers also found that for every one nanogram per milliliter increase in PCE concentration in the blood (one nanogram is one-billionth of a gram), the individual’s odds of having significant liver fibrosis increased five-fold.

Of particular note, alcohol use and fat buildup in the liver linked with obesity and other health factors did not appear to play a role in significant liver fibrosis when PCE was present. “Patients will ask, how can I have liver disease if I don’t drink and I don’t have any of the health conditions typically associated with liver disease, and the answer may be PCE exposure,” said Lee.

Future research needed

Lee would like to see future research in the field of environmental toxins and how they affect liver disease. “No doubt there are other toxins in our environment besides PCE that are dangerous to the liver,” he said.

He also thinks the study may lead to improved outcomes for patients. “We hope our research will help both the public and physicians understand the connection between PCE exposure and significant liver fibrosis,” he said. “If more people with PCE exposure are screened for liver fibrosis, the disease can be caught earlier and patients may have a better chance of recovering their liver function,” said Lee.

LOS ANGELES — Top-quality health care just became more accessible in Pasadena. 

Keck Medicine of USC’s largest and most advanced outpatient location, located at 590 S. Fair Oaks Ave., is now open, bringing Keck Medicine’s clinical expertise, world-class services and leading-edge technology to Pasadena and neighboring communities in the San Gabriel Valley. 

“USC is always looking for opportunities to extend its mission and impact,” said Beong-Soo Kim, interim president of USC. “This strategic expansion in Pasadena allows Keck Medicine of USC to better serve our community, promote health and save lives.” 

The new four-story, 100,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art medical office building more than doubles Keck Medicine’s capacity to deliver care in Pasadena. Located in the emerging biotech/biomedical corridor of Fair Oaks Ave., the health system joins other leading tech and health care organizations transforming the city. 

What makes the location stand out 

“This newest addition to Keck Medicine’s renowned health system solidifies our reputation as a health care leader in the San Gabriel Valley and brings world-class clinical care closer to home,” said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. “We are dedicated to providing greater access to our nationally acclaimed faculty physicians who provide highly specialized care and work at the forefront of medicine.” 

The new medical office offers patients access to many of the same expert physicians who treat patients at Keck Medical Center of USC. These include specialists affiliated with USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center—recognized by the National Cancer Institute as a comprehensive cancer center—as well as experts from the USC Cardiac and Vascular Institute and USC Orthopedic Surgery, which provides care for USC Athletics and the LA Kings. 

The Pasadena location also advances USC’s academic mission by offering medical students, residents and fellows valuable clinical training experience under the supervision of Keck School of Medicine of USC physicians. 

The building provides an airy, nature-filled environment designed to promote well-being. Each of the location’s four floors is suffused with light from floor-to-ceiling windows, showcasing views of the San Gabriel Mountains.  

The medical office is also designed to achieve LEED Platinum certification by the U.S. Green Building Council, the most widely recognized green building rating system in the world, for many features, including sustainable material selections and on-site renewable energy. It will be the second USC-built project to earn this prestigious rating. 

On-site valet parking is available for patients. 

Wide range of services in one convenient location 

The new location allows patients to meet many of their health care needs in one convenient location.  

“From routine imaging to managing chronic arthritis to cardiac workups, we have our patients’ health care needs covered,” said Smitha Ravipudi, MPH, CEO of USC Care Medical Group and CEO of Keck Medicine Ambulatory Care Services. “We offer more than 15 different clinical specialties all under one roof, making care easier than ever to access.” 

The wide range of services available or coming soon include:   

• Allergy
• Autoimmune Care
  • Dermatology
  • Inflammatory Bowel Disease
  • Autoimmune Liver Disease
  • Multiple Sclerosis
  • Rheumatology
  • Immunology
• Diagnostic Imaging Center
• Ambulatory Surgery Center
• Lab Services and Blood Draw
• Palliative Care
• Heart Care
  • Cardiology
  • Diagnostics
  • Vascular Surgery
• Cancer Care & Infusion
  • Gynecologic Oncology
  • Medical Oncology
  • Radiation Oncology
  • Surgical Oncology
    • Breast
    • Colorectal
    • Gastric
    • Hepatobiliary
    • Neuro-Spine
    • Thoracic
• Orthopaedic Surgery, Musculoskeletal and Spine Care
• Pain Management 

Location complements existing Pasadena office 

In addition to the new Pasadena location at 590 S. Fair Oaks Ave., Keck Medicine will continue to serve patients at our 18,000-square-foot location at 625 S. Fair Oaks Ave., with an emphasis on the following clinical services: 

• Memory, Brain Health and Aging
• Bariatric Medicine, Clinical Nutrition and Surgery
• Endocrinology
• Gastroenterology
• Comprehensive Ophthalmology
• Primary Care and Family Medicine (including Geriatric Care)
• General Dermatology 

Keck Medicine, the medical enterprise of USC, is one of only two university-based health systems in the Los Angeles area. Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital, is among the top 50 hospitals in the country in seven specialties, as well as a top 10 hospital in California, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2025-26 Best Hospitals rankings.  

Additionally, Keck Hospital is a Vizient 2025 Top Performer in health care excellence and quality, one of only 12 of 118 comprehensive academic medical centers in the nation to receive this honor. 

To book an appointment at the new medical office building, please call (626) 568-1622. 

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MASLD occurs when fat builds up in the liver and is associated with one or more of five conditions: obesity, Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high blood sugar and low HDL cholesterol, known as “good” cholesterol. These conditions are characterized as cardiometabolic risk factors because they affect the heart or metabolism.  

MASLD can lead to serious illness, such as advanced liver, heart and kidney disease, but little research has been done to examine if certain cardiometabolic risk factors for those with MASLD are more associated with death than others.  

The deadliest cardiometabolic risk factors  

Now, a new study from Keck Medicine of USC published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology reveals that three of the cardiometabolic risk factors carry the greatest risk of death for those with MASLD: high blood pressure, pre-diabetes or Type 2 diabetes, and low HDL, which raise the risk of death by 40%, 25% and 15%, respectively.  

These results were independent of how many or which combination of cardiometabolic risk factors patients had, and held steady despite individuals’ gender, sex, race or ethnicity.  

“MASLD is a complicated disease, and this study sheds new light on where doctors may want to focus their efforts when treating patients,” said Norah A. Terrault, MD, a hepatologist with Keck Medicine and a senior author of the study. “Knowing which aspects of MASLD might lead to poorer outcomes can help us offer patients the best possible care.”  

Researchers were especially surprised to discover that high blood pressure was associated with a higher chance of death than diabetes, said Matthew Dukewich, MD, PharmD, MS, a USC transplant hepatology fellow and lead author of the study. “Until now, it was commonly thought that diabetes was the most pressing health problem for MASLD patients, which is a key insight.” 

The study also found that obesity, the most common cardiometabolic risk factor of MASLD,  can substantially raise the risk of mortality depending on a patient’s body mass index (BMI), which is a formula used to estimate body fat percentage based on an individual’s height and weight. The higher a patient’s BMI, the higher the association with death. 

Additionally, the study adds to the growing body of research that patients with more cardiometabolic risk factors have poorer outcomes. The study found that the risk of death in MASLD patients increased by 15% for each additional cardiometabolic risk factor present. 

How the study was conducted  

Researchers used data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), which collected health information about children and adults in the United States from 1988-2018, the most current year for which data was available for their study. Out of 134,515 participants 20 years or older, some 21,000 patients qualified as having MASLD.  

The study authors tracked all-cause mortality rates by individual cardiometabolic risk factors to reach their conclusions.  

Looking ahead, the study authors hope to conduct further studies examining patients’ genetic background, dietary habits and alcohol use in relation to MASLD outcomes to provide more comprehensive risk profiles. “The more we can understand about the drivers of the disease, the more we can identify those most in need of interventions and prioritize our resources for enhanced outcomes,” said Terrault.  

Liyun Yuan, MD, a transplant hepatologist with Keck Medicine, is also a study author. 

This is the third year the hospital has been named a top performer, the highest possible recognition. Keck Hospital ranked 12^th out of 118 comprehensive academic medical centers nationwide. 

“Keck Hospital puts quality care above all else, and being recognized as a top performer validates the hospital’s mission to deliver safe, effective and personalized care,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, chief medical officer of Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes Keck Hospital. “Each year, the hospital continues to rank higher in the Vizient standings, and we are thankful to the entire staff for their unrelenting pursuit of excellence.”

Vizient, a leading health care performance improvement company, annually recognizes top-performing hospitals as measured by its Quality and Accountability Study.

The organization evaluates institutions in six domains: safety, mortality, effectiveness, efficiency, patient centeredness and variation in care. Of special note is the hospital’s ranking in patient centeredness, in which it received a near perfect score.

“This recognition is one of the most prestigious in health care because of Vizient’s thorough methodology. Ranking highly in all categories makes us one of the safest, most patient-centered hospitals in the country,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center.

The study factors in data from Vizient and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as a national survey of patients’ perspectives of hospital care known as the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Survey (HCAHPS).

Earlier this year, Keck Hospital earned a Spring 2025 “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit watchdog focused on patient safety. This is the 10th “A” grade the hospital has received since 2019.

“Keck Hospital’s top performer status is just one of the many recognitions Keck Medicine of USC has recently received for patient safety across its four hospitals and outpatient settings, and is a true reflection of the health system’s commitment to the highest standards of care,” said Tom Bates, MBA, RN, chief quality officer for Keck Medicine.

The recognition period spans July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025.

Keck Hospital, a 343-bed acute care hospital, is part of Keck Medicine, the University of Southern California’s medical enterprise.

In the majority of cases, the cancer disappeared after only three months of treatment, and almost half the patients were cancer-free a year later. 

“Traditionally, these patients have had very limited treatment options. This new therapy is the most effective one reported to date for the most common form of bladder cancer,” said Sia Daneshmand, MD, director of urologic oncology with Keck Medicine of USC and lead author of a study detailing the clinical trial results published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. “The findings of the clinical trial are a breakthrough in how certain types of bladder cancer might be treated, leading to improved outcomes and saved lives.” 

How the drug delivery system works  

TAR-200 is a miniature, pretzel-shaped drug-device duo containing a chemotherapy drug, gemcitabine, which is inserted into the bladder through a catheter. Once inside the bladder, the TAR-200 slowly and consistently releases the gemcitabine into the organ for three weeks per treatment cycle.  

Traditionally, gemcitabine has been delivered to the bladder as a liquid solution that only stays in the bladder for a few hours, which had limited effect destroying the cancer, said Daneshmand, who is also a member of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. 

“The theory behind this study was that the longer the medicine sits inside the bladder, the more deeply it would penetrate the bladder and the more cancer it would destroy,” he said. “And it appears that having the chemotherapy released slowly over weeks rather than in just a few hours is a much more effective approach.” 

The patient population in the clinical trial  

The clinical trial, known as the SunRISe-1, was conducted at 144 locations globally, including at Keck Hospital of USC. It included 85 patients with high-risk non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer.  

Non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer is the most common form of bladder cancer. The disease is considered high risk when, depending on the type and location of the tumors, the cancer carries a higher chance of recurrence and/or spreading to the bladder muscles or other parts of the body. 

The standard treatment for this type of bladder cancer is an immunotherapy drug, Bacillus Calmette-Guérin, which may be ineffective in a percentage of patients. All the patients in the clinical trial had been previously treated with this drug, but their cancer had returned.  

“The standard treatment plan for these patients was surgery to remove the bladder and surrounding tissue and organs, which has many health risks and may negatively impact patients’ quality of life,” said Daneshmand. 

To offer patients a better option, urologic oncologists treated patients with TAR-200 every three weeks for six months, and then four times a year for the next two years. In 70 out of 85 patients, the cancer disappeared and for almost half the patients, was still gone a year later. The treatment was well-tolerated, with minimal side effects.  

The study also showed that administering TAR-200 along with another immunotherapy drug (cetrelimab) did not prove as effective as TAR-200 on its own and had more side effects.  

While participants in the clinical trial will be followed for another year, the study is closed to new participants. 

The future of slow-release cancer drugs  

This clinical trial is one of several ongoing ones investigating the effect of TAR-200 and the slow release of cancer-fighting drugs into the bladder to fight cancer.  

“We are at an exciting moment in history,” said Daneshmand, who has been researching this novel treatment since 2016. “Our mission is to deliver cancer-fighting medications into the bladder that will offer lasting remission from cancer, and it looks like we are well on our way toward that goal.”  

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted TAR-200 a New Drug Application Priority Review, which means the FDA plans to take quicker action on the application than other applications. 

The health care corporation Johnson & Johnson manufactures TAR-200.

“Alcohol-related liver disease is the main cause of liver-related death and these results are a major wakeup call to the dangers of drinking,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine and lead author of the study.  

The study also sheds light on the demographics of American drinkers, uncovering that four groups make up a greater share of heavy drinkers than they did 20 years ago — women, adults 45 and older, those living in poverty and people with metabolic syndrome, a cluster of conditions that together raise the risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes and stroke. Previous studies have already associated these groups with a higher risk of liver disease when exposed to alcohol.  

“These findings — the first comprehensive look at the demographics of heavy drinking and their relation to liver disease since the 1990s — provide important new information about which population groups may need more intervention to curb alcohol use and may also explain the rise in liver disease over the years,” said Lee.  

Additionally, the study showed that the average drinking rate in America was unchanged over the last 20 years before the COVID-19 pandemic, suggesting that factors beyond alcohol quantity, such as changing health and demographic profiles, may be contributing to the rise in liver disease.  

“Our results show that the makeup of the American public with heavy alcohol consumption has changed compared to 20 years ago,” said Lee.  

Lee and his fellow researchers analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, which assesses the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States, from 1999-2020, the most recent year for which complete data was available.  

They tracked the total increase in significant liver disease — a stage of liver disease when the liver forms scar tissue that impairs liver function that is often caused by heavy drinking. The study examined the demographic and health profiles of adults 20 or older who drank heavily. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, heavy drinking is considered eight drinks per week for women and 15 for men. 

Lee believes that the study results will provide physicians with necessary updates to better treat patients and hopes they will lead to more screenings and interventions for high-risk populations.  

Jennifer Dodge, MPH, associate professor of research medicine and population and public health sciences with the Keck School of Medicine of USC, was also a study author.  

The study was supported by a grant from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, grant number K23AA029752.  

These findings build on Lee’s previous work, including a February 2025 study that found heavy drinkers with diabetes, high blood pressure or increased waist size had double the risk of advanced liver disease, and a November 2024 study revealing that heavy drinking rose during the COVID-19 pandemic peak and continued for two years afterward. 

The study involved 140 patients from the IGNYTE clinical trial, which included Keck Medicine and other sites worldwide. These patients had advanced melanoma that did not respond or stopped responding to immunotherapy, which uses the body’s own immune system to fight cancer.

Patients were treated with a genetically modified HSV-1 in combination with an immunotherapy (nivolumab). By the end of the clinical trial, one-third of the participants had their tumors shrink by at least 30%, and nearly one out of six patients had tumors completely disappear.

“These findings are very encouraging because melanoma is the fifth most common cancer for adults, and about half of all advanced melanoma cases cannot be managed with currently available immunotherapy treatments,” said Gino Kim In, MD, a medical oncologist with Keck Medicine and principal investigator at the Keck Medicine clinical trial site. Dr. In is also a member of the IGNYTE trial steering committee and one of the lead investigators on the trial. “The survival rate of untreatable advanced melanoma is only a few years, so this new therapy offers hope to patients who may have run out of options to fight the cancer.”

A novel class of drugs to fight cancer

The genetically modified HSV-1 evaluated in the study, RP1, is one of a relatively new, innovative class of cancer immunotherapy drugs known as oncolytic viruses that are designed to target and destroy cancer tumors while generating an anti-tumor immune response throughout the entire body. RP1 does not cause herpes.

In January 2025, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted priority review to RP1 with nivolumab for patients with advanced melanoma whose cancer had not responded to prior immunotherapy.

When injected into a tumor, RP1 replicates, killing off the cancer cells while leaving healthy cells unharmed. Additionally, RP1 stimulates the body’s white blood cells to seek out and destroy any other cancer cells in the body.

The second cancer drug used in the study, nivolumab, is a standard immunotherapy treatment in fighting advanced melanoma and other cancers that have spread through the body. Researchers theorized that nivolumab, which works by using the body’s own immune system to fight and destroy cancer cells, would enhance the potential effect of RP1.

How the treatment was administered

Patients admitted into the study had already been treated with minimal success by one or more immunotherapy therapies and had to have more than one tumor that could be injected with RP1. Some tumors were considered “superficial” — meaning visible on the skin, or just below the skin’s surface — and some were located deeper in the body, such as in the liver or lungs. Researchers injected both superficial and deep tumors with RP1.

Encouraging Findings  

During the clinical trial, patients were given a combined therapy of RP1 and nivolumab every two weeks for up to eight cycles. If patients responded to the treatment, they continued on nivolumab alone every four weeks for up to 30 cycles (or two years).

Researchers measured both treated tumors and untreated tumors. They discovered that not only did injected tumor size shrink in one third of the patients by 30%, but that patients’ uninjected tumors also shrank or even disappeared, just as frequently and as deeply.

“This result suggests that RPI is effective in targeting cancer throughout the entire body and not just the injected tumor, which expands the potential effectiveness of the drug because some tumors may be more difficult or impossible to reach,” said Dr. In, who is also a member of USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Keck Medicine of USC.

The study also found that RP1 was well-tolerated and had a favorable safety outcome.

While it is too soon to tell if the positive outcomes remain permanent, Dr. In is optimistic about the future of RP1 therapy. “I believe that oncolytic viruses will open up an important new approach to fighting cancer in some patients in the near future,” he said.

Other clinical trial researchers include Phillip M. Cheng, MD and Ali Rastegarpour, MD, diagnostic radiologists with Keck Medicine.

Phase 3 clinical trial now open

Phase 1-2 of the IGNYTE clinical trial examined the safety, side effects, best dosing and effectiveness of administering RP1 along with nivolumab on a limited patient population. Dr. In and his fellow researchers have launched the phase 3 trial, known as IGNYTE-3, to confirm their findings in a global population of more than 400 participants.

Keck Medicine will again be one of the sites of the clinical trial, with Dr. In heading up the site. Patients interested in participating can contact Sandy Tran at sandy.tran@med.usc.edu.

Replimune, a manufacturer of RP1 and other oncolytic immunotherapies, is the sponsor of the IGNYTE clinical trial

Disclosure: In Dr. In’s role as a member of the steering committee for the IGNYTE clinical trial, he has served on advisory boards for the sponsoring company and received honoraria.

The study, published today in Cancer Research Communications, showed that high doses of steroids, when given before and/or during a specific type of immunotherapy, caused patients’ tumors to shrink less than those of patients not on steroids. Those patients also did not live as long. 

“Steroids were the biggest predictor of why certain immunotherapies may not be effective, even when considering multiple other factors such as stage and progression of the disease,” said Keck Medicine oncologist and immunologist Fumito Ito, MD, PhD, lead author of the research. 

Additionally, researchers believe they have found the mechanism behind why steroids and some immunotherapies may not mix.  

“Our findings reveal that steroids stop the body’s natural cancer-fighting cells, T-cells, from maturing. This makes them unable to attack the cancer as vigorously as they usually would, leading to worse outcomes for patients,” said Ito, who is also a member and co-leader of the translational and clinical sciences research program at USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center. “While other research has indicated steroids may negatively impact immunotherapy’s efficacy, we are one of the first to pinpoint a probable cause and effect.”  

Ito and his colleagues also discovered that steroids blocked circulating biomarkers in the body — bits of cells in the bloodstream that signal when cancer is progressing so oncologists can adjust the patient’s treatment. 

“Without the presence of circulating biomarkers to inform our decisions, oncologists cannot treat the cancer as effectively and patients may miss out on the best treatment for their cancer,” said Ito. 

Two competing medications 

The study examined the effect of steroids on a type of immunotherapy known as immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). ICIs help the body's immune system fight cancer by blocking proteins that prevent T-cells from attacking cancer cells. ICIs are often used to treat non-small cell lung cancer, the most common form of lung cancer. 

Steroids are often prescribed to alleviate symptoms of the cancer or treatments given for a variety of reasons, such as fatigue and vomiting, or more serious side effects like brain swelling and lung inflammation. Steroids suppress the immune system, which reduces the inflammation that can cause these conditions. 

How the studies were conducted  

Ito and fellow researchers retrospectively studied the medical records of 277 patients with Stage II-IV non-small cell lung cancer who were treated with ICIs alone or in combination with other therapies. They compared outcomes (tumor shrinkage and survival rate) between patients prescribed steroids and those who were not at three centers, including USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center.  

They analyzed up to eight years of data to determine that steroids were the sole factor impeding the effectiveness of the immunotherapy.  

They also determined that the T-cells of significant numbers of patients on steroids were not fully matured and launched a preclinical study using mice to observe the effects of steroids on ICI therapy in real time. This mouse model study led to the discovery that steroids given before/during immunotherapy inhibit T-cells from fully maturing.  

The future of steroids  

While the Keck Medicine research indicates steroids can interfere with ICIs, Ito acknowledges that for some patients, steroids may be necessary to manage their cancer-related symptoms.  

“We know that steroids will continue to play an important role in lung cancer care, but it is important to understand their potential limitations,” said Ito. “Each patient should talk to their oncologist to make sure they have the best possible care plan tailored to their specific needs.”  

He hopes this research will lead to more studies examining the effect of steroids on immunotherapy so oncologists can make fully informed decisions that will best benefit their patients.  

Other study authors include Keck Medicine medical oncologists Jorge Nieva, MD and Robert Hsu, MD. 

The study was supported with grants from the National Cancer Institute, P30CA016056 (RPCCC), P30CA014089 (USC), K08CA197966, R01CA255240, R01CA272827 (F. Ito), R01CA188900, R01CA267690 (B.H. Segal) as well as the Department of Defense Lung Cancer Research Program and the Uehara Memorial Foundation.  

A new study from the USC Caruso Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, part of Keck Medicine of USC, published today in JAMA Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery, is the first to link hearing aids and cochlear implants, surgically implanted devices that help those with profound hearing loss perceive sound, to improved social lives among adults with hearing loss. 

“We found that adults with hearing loss who used hearing aids or cochlear implants were more socially engaged and felt less isolated compared to those who didn’t use them,” said Janet Choi, MD, MPH, an otolaryngologist with Keck Medicine and lead researcher of the study. “This suggests that hearing devices may help prevent the social disconnection and broader health consequences that can follow untreated hearing loss.” 

Hearing loss affects an estimated 40 million American adults, yet many go untreated. When left unaddressed, hearing loss can make communication difficult, leading people to withdraw from conversations and social activities, according to Choi.  

Previous research has shown that over time, social withdrawal can reduce mental stimulation and increase the risk of loneliness, anxiety, depression, cognitive decline and dementia. It has also linked chronic social isolation to biological and neurological changes, including increased brain inflammation and alterations in brain structure.  

“Understanding the link between hearing loss, hearing device use and social isolation is crucial,” said Choi. “Until this study, it has been unclear whether hearing devices could help reverse the isolation.”   

Choi and her fellow researchers conducted a comprehensive, systematic review and meta-analysis of 65 previously published studies, encompassing over five thousand participants, on how hearing aids and cochlear implants affect three key measures: social quality of life, perceived social handicap, which refers to the limitations and frustrations hearing loss can create in social situations, and loneliness.  

The researchers found that adults using hearing devices feel more socially connected and less limited in social situations. They are better able to engage in group conversations and feel more at ease in noisy or challenging listening environments. Participants also reported feeling less socially handicapped by their hearing loss, with fewer barriers and frustrations during interactions and an improved ability to stay engaged without feeling excluded. This increased confidence can help users connect more easily with family, friends and colleagues, leading to stronger feelings of belonging and reduced social anxiety. The study also suggested hearing devices may reduce loneliness, although further research is needed in this area, according to Choi. 

Those with cochlear implants reported the most improvement in their social quality of life. This is likely because cochlear implants offer greater hearing restoration than hearing aids, especially for individuals with more severe hearing loss. As a result, they may experience more noticeable improvements in social engagement once their hearing is restored. 

While it was outside the scope of the study to measure how better social lives relate to improved cognitive outcomes, Choi believes there may be a connection, as previous research has found managing hearing loss may be key to reducing the risk of cognitive decline and dementia. “While our study didn’t directly measure cognitive outcomes, the improvements we saw in communication and social engagement suggest that by restoring clearer communication, hearing devices may help preserve cognitive health by keeping the brain more actively involved and people more connected,” Choi said. 

This research follows a January 2024 study by Choi showing that adults with hearing loss who use hearing aids have an almost 25% lower risk of mortality, suggesting that treating hearing loss can improve lifespan as well as social quality of life.  

“These new findings add to a growing body of research showing that hearing health is deeply connected to overall well-being,” said Choi. “We hope this encourages more people to seek treatment and helps clinicians start conversations with patients about how hearing devices can improve their quality of life.” 

The study finds that using Tumor Treating Fields therapy (TTFields), which delivers targeted waves of electric fields directly into tumors to stop their growth and signal the body’s immune system to attack cancerous tumor cells, may extend survival among patients with glioblastoma, when combined with immunotherapy (pembrolizumab) and chemotherapy (temozolomide).

TTFields disrupt tumor growth using low-intensity, alternating electric fields that push and pull key structures inside tumor cells in continually shifting directions, making it difficult for the cells to multiply. Preventing tumor growth gives patients a better chance of successfully fighting the cancer. When used to treat glioblastoma, TTFields are delivered through a set of mesh electrodes that are strategically positioned on the scalp, generating fields at a precise frequency and intensity focused on the tumor. Patients wear the electrodes for approximately 18 hours a day.

Researchers observed that TTFields attract more tumor-fighting T cells, which are white blood cells that identify and attack cancer cells, into and around the glioblastoma. When followed by immunotherapy, these T cells stay active longer and are replaced by even stronger, more effective tumor-fighting T cells.

“By using TTFields with immunotherapy, we prime the body to mount an attack on the cancer, which enables the immunotherapy to have a meaningful effect in ways that it could not before,” said David Tran, MD, PhD, chief of neuro-oncology with Keck Medicine, co-director of the USC Brain Tumor Center and corresponding author of the study. “Our findings suggest that TTFields may be the key to unlocking the value of immunotherapy in treating glioblastoma.”

TTFields are often combined with chemotherapy in cancer treatment. However, even with aggressive treatment, the prognosis for glioblastoma remains poor. Immunotherapy, while successful in many other cancer types, has also not proved effective for glioblastoma when used on its own.

However, in this study, adding immunotherapy to TTFields and chemotherapy was associated with a 70% increase in overall survival. Notably, patients with larger, unresected (not surgically removed) tumors showed an even stronger immune response to TTFields and lived even longer. This suggests that, when it comes to kick-starting the body’s immune response against the cancer, having a larger tumor may provide more targets for the therapy to work against.  

Using alternating electric fields to unlock immunotherapy

Pembrolizumab, the immunotherapy used in this study, is an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI), which enhances the body’s natural ability to fight cancers by improving T cells’ ability to identify and attack cancer cells.

However, there are typically few T cells in and around glioblastomas because these tumors originate in the brain and are shielded from the body’s natural immune response by the blood-brain barrier. This barrier safeguards the brain by tightly regulating which cells and substances enter from the bloodstream. Sometimes, this barrier even blocks T cells and other therapies that could help kill brain tumors.

This immunosuppressive environment inside and around the glioblastoma is what makes common cancer therapies like pembrolizumab and chemotherapy significantly less effective in treating it. Tran theorized the best way to get around this issue was to start an immune reaction directly inside the tumor itself, an approach known as in situ immunization, using TTFields.

This study demonstrates that combining TTFields with immunotherapy triggers a potent immune response within the tumor — one that ICIs can then amplify to bolster the body’s own defense against cancer.

“Think of it like a team sport — immunotherapy sends players in to attack the tumor (the offense), while TTFields weaken the tumor’s ability to fight back (the defense). And just like in team sports, the best defense is a good offense,” said Tran, who is also a member of the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Study methodology and results

The study analyzed data from 2-THE-TOP, a Phase 2 clinical trial, which enrolled 31 newly diagnosed glioblastoma patients who had completed chemoradiation therapy. Of those, 26 received TTFields combined with both chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Seven of these 26 patients had inoperable tumors due to their locations — an especially high-risk subgroup with the worst prognosis and few treatment options.

Patients in the trial were given six to 12 monthly treatments of chemotherapy alongside TTFields for up to 24 months. The number and duration of treatments were determined by patients’ response to treatment. The immunotherapy was given every three weeks, starting with the second dose of chemotherapy, for up to 24 months.

Patients who used the device alongside chemotherapy and immunotherapy lived approximately 10 months longer than patients who had used the device with chemotherapy alone in the past. Moreover, those with large, inoperable tumors lived approximately 13 months longer and showed much stronger immune activation compared to patients who underwent surgical removal of their tumors.

“Further studies are needed to determine the optimal role of surgery in this setting, but these findings may offer hope, particularly for glioblastoma patients who do not have surgery as an option,” said Tran.

Moving the research forward

Keck Medicine is participating in the multicenter Phase 3 clinical trial to validate the efficacy of TTFields with immunotherapy and chemotherapy. Tran, who has been researching TTFields for more than a decade, serves as the chair of the steering committee for this trial. Frances Chow, MD, neuro-oncologist with USC Norris, is the principal investigator of the Keck Medicine study site.

This Phase 3 trial, currently open at 28 sites across the United States, Europe and Israel, aims to enroll over 740 patients through April 2029, including those with gross total resection, partial resection or biopsy-only tumors to assess the extent of how surgically removing tumors influences immune response.

LOS ANGELES - Surgeons from Keck Medicine of USC and UCLA Health have performed the world's first-in-human bladder transplant. The surgery was successfully completed at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center on May 4, 2025, in a joint effort by Inderbir Gill, MD, founding executive director of USC Urology, and Nima Nassiri, MD, urologic transplant surgeon and director of the UCLA Vascularized Composite Bladder Allograft Transplant Program.

Groundbreaking moment in medical history 

"This surgery is a historic moment in medicine and stands to impact how we manage carefully selected patients with highly symptomatic 'terminal' bladders that are no longer functioning," said Gill, who is also Chair and Distinguished Professor of Urology and Shirley and Donald Skinner Chair in Urologic Cancer Surgery with the Keck School of Medicine of USC. "Transplantation is a lifesaving and life-enhancing treatment option for many conditions affecting major organs, and now the bladder can be added to the list."

"This first attempt at bladder transplantation has been over four years in the making," Nassiri said. "For the appropriately selected patient, it is exciting to be able to offer a new potential option."

Nassiri, formerly a urology resident with the Keck School and now assistant professor of urology and kidney transplantation at UCLA, and Gill worked together for several years at the Keck School to develop the new surgical technique, design a clinical trial and secure the necessary regulatory approvals.

Numerous pre-clinical procedures were performed both at Keck Medical Center of USC and OneLegacy, Southern California's organ procurement organization, to prepare for this first-in-human bladder transplant.

A complicated yet successful surgery 

The patient had been dialysis-dependent for seven years. He lost the majority of his bladder during surgery to resect cancer over five years ago, leaving the remainder of his bladder too small and compromised to function appropriately. Both of his kidneys were subsequently removed due to renal cancer.

To address these deficits, Drs. Gill and Nassiri performed a combined kidney and bladder transplant, allowing the patient to immediately stop dialysis and produce urine for the first time in seven years. First the kidney, then the bladder, were transplanted. The new kidney was then connected to the new bladder. The entire procedure took approximately eight hours.

"The kidney immediately made a large volume of urine, and the patient's kidney function improved immediately," Nassiri added. "There was no need for any dialysis after surgery, and the urine drained properly into the new bladder."

"Despite the complexity of the case, everything went according to plan and the surgery was successful," said Gill. "The patient is doing well, and we are satisfied with his clinical progress to date."

The recovery of the kidney and bladder from the donor was performed at OneLegacy's Transplant Recovery Center in Azusa, Calif. All parts of the procedure, including surgery and post-surgical monitoring during the transplantation, were aligned with the highest current clinical and research standards.

How a bladder transplant may benefit patients

Millions of people around the globe experience some degree of bladder disease and dysfunction. Some develop terminal bladders that are either non-functioning and/or cause constant pain, repeated infections and other complications. Current treatment for severe terminal cases of bladder dysfunction or a bladder that has been removed due to various conditions includes replacement or augmentation of the urinary reservoir. These surgeries use a portion of a patient's intestine to create a new bladder or a pathway for the urine to exit the body.

"While these surgeries can be effective, they come with many short-and long-term risks that compromise a patient's health such as recurrent infections, compromised kidney function and digestive issues," said Gill.

"A bladder transplant, on the other hand, delivers a more 'normal' urinary reservoir and may circumvent some of the challenges associated with using the intestine," said Nassiri.

The biggest risks of organ transplant are the body's potential rejection of the organ and side-effects caused by the mandatory immunosuppressive drugs given to prevent organ rejection.

"Because of the need for long-term immunosuppression, the best current candidates are those with a pre-existing organ transplant or those who need a combined kidney and bladder transplant," said Nassiri.

As a first-in-human attempt, there are naturally many unknowns associated with the procedure, such as how well the transplanted bladder will function immediately and over time, and how much immunosuppression will ultimately be needed.

"Despite the unknowns, our goal is to understand if bladder transplantation can help patients with severely compromised bladders lead healthier lives," said Gill.

Collaborative research and development leading to the transplant 

Bladder transplants have not been done previously, in part because of the complicated vascular structure of the pelvic area and the technical complexity of the procedure. As part of the research and development stage, Gill and Nassiri successfully completed numerous practice transplantation surgeries at Keck Medical Center of USC, including the first-ever robotic bladder retrievals and successful robotic transplantations in five recently deceased donors with cardiac function maintained on ventilator support.

Several non-robotic trial runs of bladder recovery were performed at OneLegacy by Gill and Nassiri, allowing them to perfect the technique while working alongside multidisciplinary surgical teams.

The bladder transplant was done as part of a UCLA clinical trial. Gill and Nassiri hope to perform more bladder transplants together in the near future.

Under Gill's leadership, USC Urology has rapidly established itself as a pioneer and world leader in the most advanced robotic urologic oncologic surgeries for kidney, bladder, prostate, testicular and penile cancers, and has achieved important milestones leveraging machine learning and artificial intelligence to optimize patient outcomes.

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This is the 10th “A” grade the hospital has received since 2019.  

“The Leapfrog Group is one of the most trusted names in health care, and it is a tremendous achievement to once again receive the highest safety grade possible,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes Keck Hospital.   

Leapfrog assigns a letter grade to general hospitals across the country based on over 30 performance measures reflecting the systems hospitals have in place to prevent errors, accidents, injuries and infections.  

“The safety of our patients is the hospital’s top priority,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, MHA, chief medical officer of Keck Medical Center. “This grade reflects our staff’s continual efforts to provide high-quality care patients can trust.”  

The Leapfrog hospital grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.  

To see Keck Hospital’s full grade details and access hospital safety tips for patients, please visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org.  

In November 2024, Keck Hospital earned an “A” in The Leapfrog Group’s fall Hospital Safety Grade and in September 2024, Vizient, Inc. named the hospital a top performer along with a five-star rating, the highest possible.  

As the newest addition to the renowned academic health system, the location will significantly expand Keck Medicine clinical care for residents of Pasadena and neighboring communities in the San Gabriel Valley.  

What sets the new Pasadena location apart  

“This new location — our largest and most advanced outpatient setting — will bring even more of our research-based clinical care to the Pasadena area, where many of our patients live and work,” said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. “The new location offers state-of-the-art technology and access to acclaimed specialists who translate medical discoveries into groundbreaking treatments and cures.” 

Patients will have access to the same expert physicians who treat patients at Keck Medical Center of USC, including researchers and doctors from USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, one of the nation’s top comprehensive cancer centers designated by the National Cancer Institute; the esteemed USC Cardiac and Vascular Institute; and the nationally recognized USC Orthopaedic Surgery team, the official orthopedic medical services providers for USC Athletics and the LA Kings. 

The building will provide an airy, nature-filled environment designed to promote well-being. Each of the location’s four floors will be suffused with light from floor-to-ceiling windows, showcasing views of the San Gabriel Mountains. 

Convenient access to comprehensive services  

The location will feature a wide range of services including: 

• Autoimmune diseases care, such as rheumatology (rheumatoid arthritis and lupus), allergy/immunology, and autoimmune skin conditions (psoriasis and scleroderma)
• Cardiovascular care  
• Comprehensive oncology care  
• Infusion therapy 
• Orthopedics and spine care 
• Outpatient imaging  
• Outpatient surgery  
• Pain management 

“The new Pasadena medical office building doubles down on our commitment to the health of our community, allowing patients to visit one location for a variety of health care needs while providing access to the high-quality care only an academic health system can offer,” said Smitha Ravipudi, MPH, CEO of USC Care Medical Group and CEO of Keck Medicine ambulatory care services.  

Location complements existing Pasadena office 

In addition to the new location, Keck Medicine will continue to treat patients at the existing Keck Medicine of USC - Pasadena building located at 625 S. Fair Oaks Ave., Suite 400 with an expanded range of primary care services, including an emphasis on digestive and metabolic health; brain health and aging; and advanced ear, nose and throat and ophthalmology services.  

Keck Medicine is one of only two university-based health systems in the Los Angeles area. Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital, is among the top 50 hospitals in the country in eight specialties, as well as the top three hospitals in metro Los Angeles and top 10 hospitals in California, according to U.S. News & World Report’s 2024-25 Best Hospitals rankings.  

LOS ANGELES — USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Keck Medicine of USC, has opened Keck Medicine of USC – Newport Beach Radiation Oncology and Imaging, a state-of-the-art radiation oncology and imaging center, at 4590 MacArthur Blvd. in Newport Beach.  

The 12,500 square-foot clinical space houses new-to-market imaging and radiation therapy technology in a serene, beach-inspired space designed to help patients feel at ease.  

“Our new radiation oncology and imaging center demonstrates our ongoing commitment to providing Orange County with world-class care,” said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. “We recognize the importance of keeping cancer care close to home and are proud to expand our presence in the community.” 

The center is equipped with positron emission tomography – computed tomography (PET-CT) imaging and computed tomography (CT) scanners for diagnosis, treatment simulation and monitoring, as well as two state-of the-art linear accelerators to deliver precision radiation therapy treatment.  

Keck Medicine of USC – Newport Beach Radiation Oncology and Imaging will be the first clinical site in Orange County, and just the third in California, to offer SCINTIX^® biology-guided radiation therapy (BgRT) using the new-to-market RefleXion^® X1 system.  

Unlike other types of radiation therapy that use static images of a patient’s anatomy to map treatment areas, BgRT is the first and only radiation therapy delivery modality that uses a PET radiotracer compound that, once injected into the body, interacts with cancer cells to send up-to-the-minute “signals” about the location of cancer cells, even as the patient breathes or moves slightly. This helps radiation oncologists track, target and treat cancer cells in real time while minimizing damage to healthy cells, which may alleviate some of the side effects of radiation.  

BgRT also eliminates the need for placing markers (tiny metal objects positioned inside the patient in or near cancerous tissue to identify where to deliver treatment), as well as enables radiation oncologists to more efficiently treat multiple tumor locations in the same course of therapy.  

BgRT recently received breakthrough device designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treating lung tumors and is currently approved for certain patients with lung and bone tumors. 

Keck Medicine will install a second X1 system with BgRT at a medical facility in Pasadena opening later this year. It will be the first university-based academic institution to offer BgRT at multiple locations, bringing new cancer treatment options for the Los Angeles area, Orange County and surrounding communities. 

“This groundbreaking technology enables us to provide the best possible care and offer treatment for patients whose options may be very limited,” said May Lin Tao, MD, radiation oncologist and director of clinical operations, regional radiation oncology clinics, with Keck Medicine. Tao is also clinical associate professor of radiation oncology with the Keck School of Medicine of USC. “We are thrilled to be the first to offer this revolutionary and potentially life-saving treatment to patients in Orange County.” 

Keck Medicine of USC – Newport Beach Radiation Oncology and Imaging is less than 15 minutes away from USC Norris’ oncology locations in Newport Beach and Irvine, where patients can make appointments with respected medical oncologists who have served Orange County for decades, and who treat more medical oncology outpatients in Newport Beach than any other provider.  

“This new location expands our spectrum of cancer services in Orange County, ranging from diagnostic imaging to multiple treatment options that optimize outcomes and provide personalized radiation medicine,” said Eric Chang, MD, radiation oncologist with Keck Medicine and chair and professor of radiation oncology with the Keck School.  

As one of the eight original National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the United States, USC Norris has revolutionized cancer treatment, research and prevention for 50 years. In 2024-25, U.S. News & World Report ranked USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center among the top 25 cancer centers nationally and recognized USC Norris Cancer Hospital as a Best Specialty Hospital. 

“The addition of this new location means so much for our patients and their loved ones,” said Louis Vandermolen, MD, medical oncologist with USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, practicing in Newport Beach. “Our convenient location near our medical oncology offices means that our patients can truly benefit from multidisciplinary, collaborative care from doctors they know and trust.” 

To make an appointment at Keck Medicine of USC – Newport Beach Radiation Oncology and Imaging, call (949) 507-6700 or visit KeckMedicine.org/OCRad to learn more. 

USC Norris opened the new facility in collaboration with Advanced Radiotherapy Technologies (ART Health), a leading developer of radiotherapy centers. ART Health is a division of Kingsbarn Realty Capital, a national investment manager.  

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The answer may lie in three common underlying medical conditions, according to a new study published in Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology from Keck Medicine of USC. The research found that heavy drinkers with either diabetes, high blood pressure or a high waist circumference are as much as 2.4 times more likely to develop advanced liver disease.  

“The results identify a very high-risk segment of the population prone to liver disease and suggest that preexisting health issues may have a large impact on how alcohol affects the liver,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine and principal investigator of the study. 

Diabetes, high blood pressure and a high waist circumference (35 inches for women; 40 inches for men), which is associated with obesity, belong to a cluster of five health conditions that influence an individual’s risk for heart attack and stroke known as cardiometabolic risk factors.  

Cardiometabolic risk factors have been linked to the buildup of fat in the liver (also known as metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease), which can lead to fibrosis, or scarring of the liver. These risk factors affect more than one in three Americans, and cardiometabolic health has been worsening among the population, especially among those under 35, according to Lee.  

Alcohol also causes fat buildup in the liver, and alcohol consumption has been on the rise since the COVID-19 pandemic, said Lee. Due to the prevalence of both cardiometabolic risk factors and drinking in the United States, Lee and his fellow researchers undertook the study to investigate which cardiometabolic risk factors predisposed the liver to damage from alcohol. 

They analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, a large national survey of more than 40,000 participants, looking at the intersection of heavy drinking, individual cardiometabolic risk factors and the incidences of significant liver fibrosis. Significant liver fibrosis refers to liver scarring that can lead to liver failure.  

For the study, heavy drinking was characterized as 1.5 drinks a day for women (20 grams) and two drinks a day for men (30 grams). 

Researchers discovered that heavy drinkers with either diabetes or a high waist circumference were 2.4 times more likely to develop advanced liver disease and those with high blood pressure 1.8 times more likely. They found that the other two cardiometabolic risk factors — high triglycerides (elevated levels of a type of fat in the blood) and low HDL (high-density lipoprotein or “good” cholesterol) had less significant correlations to liver disease.  

While the study did not analyze why these three cardiometabolic risk factors are more dangerous for the liver, Lee speculates that these conditions share a common pathway to fat buildup in the liver that when combined with extra fat deposits in the liver from excessive alcohol, can cause significant damage.  

Lee emphasizes that the study does not imply it is safe for those without these three cardiometabolic risks to consume large amounts of alcohol. “We know that alcohol is toxic to the liver and all heavy drinkers are at risk for advanced liver disease,” he said.  

Lee hopes that the study results will encourage people to consider their individual health and risk profile when making decisions about alcohol consumption. He would also like to see practitioners offer more personalized health screenings and interventions for those who drink with cardiometabolic risk factors so that liver damage among this high-risk group can be caught early and treated.  

Norah Terrault, MD, a Keck Medicine gastroenterologist and division chief of gastroenterology and liver diseases at the Keck School of Medicine, was also a study author.  

LOS ANGELES — Steam eliminates wrinkles and germs, but can it destroy cancer cells too?  

Keck Medicine of USC is participating in a national, multisite clinical trial examining if a water vapor system that uses small, targeted amounts of steam to kill cancer cells is a safe and effective treatment for prostate cancer. 

Researchers hope that steam may offer patients a less invasive way of controlling or curing cancer than currently exists.  

“The most common therapies for prostate cancer often cause life-altering side effects, and we are investigating if this new treatment may not only treat the cancer, but offer our patients overall better quality-of-life outcomes,” said Andre Abreu, MD, a Keck Medicine urologist and lead investigator of the Keck Medicine clinical trial site. Abreu also leads focal therapy and artificial intelligence efforts for prostate cancer with USC Urology. 

Who may benefit from the trial   

The clinical trial is designed for patients with intermediate-risk prostate cancer, meaning that the tumor is localized in the prostate gland and has not spread to other organs. This type of cancer accounts for approximately one-third of all localized prostate cancers, according to Abreu. 

Some patients with prostate cancer may not need any treatment if the cancer is small enough and slow growing. However, when treatment is necessary, traditionally, physicians have treated patients with either surgery or radiation.  

These techniques are generally effective in treating the cancer, however, there can be side effects. The prostate is located in between the bladder, the urethra (a duct that transports urine from the bladder) and the rectum. It is surrounded by numerous nerves responsible for penile erections and the muscle that controls urine flow, the urinary sphincter. During surgery or radiation, there is a risk of injuring healthy tissue along with the cancer and damaging the delicate structures that lie next to the prostate.  

The most common side effects of surgery and radiation are impotence, urinary incontinency and bowel dysfunction. 

“While patients are happy to be free of cancer, the costs of the cure are very high,” said Abreu. “There is a growing amount of literature in the field suggesting that select patients could benefit from a procedure with fewer risks that allows them to maintain their quality of life after cancer.” 

How steam might fight cancer 

Heat is one therapy to help damage and kill cancer cells, according to the National Cancer Institute. Steam offers a targeted way to deliver heat into the body, according to Abreu.  

Before the procedure, physicians use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to locate the tumor cells in the patient’s prostate. During the procedure, doctors use an ultrasound and prostate mapping to guide a thin catheter through the patient’s urethra and into the area of the prostate where the tumor is located.  

Once the catheter is positioned, a fine needle is deployed in the tumor. Doctors then release a quick, targeted 10-second burst of steam from the needle, and more bursts as needed, to destroy the tumor.  

“This procedure is thought to be much gentler on the body than traditional therapies and is designed to target the cancerous tissue within the prostate,” said Abreu. “We are exploring if steam may be effective at destroying cancer cells without damaging the surrounding organs.”  

Another potential advantage to the investigational therapy is that unlike surgery, which requires an overnight stay in the hospital, the water vapor therapy is an outpatient procedure. And unlike radiation, which usually involves multiple sessions, the water vapor therapy is designed to work using only one application. 

Clinical trial details  

The clinical trial is being conducted at up to 30 hospitals and health centers across the nation. So far, more than 180 procedures have been completed. 

Keck Hospital of USC is the only Los Angeles area site participating in the study. Patients’ post-treatment cancer outcomes will be followed for five years.  

The study is sponsored by Francis Medical, Inc., a privately held medical company that developed the device being used, the Vanquish^® Water Vapor Ablation System.  

The water vapor ablation system is one of several minimally invasive treatments for prostate cancer either already in use or being developed within the field of urology.  

“Over the next decade or so, we hope to see innovative therapies revolutionize how we help patients become cancer-free while maintaining their quality of life,” said Abreu.  

Dr. Abreu declares no conflict of interest with the sponsor.

“The Leapfrog Top Hospital award is one of the most competitive awards a hospital can receive, and we are delighted that USC Norris Cancer Hospital places among the highest-rated hospitals in the nation once again,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes USC Norris Cancer Hospital.   

To qualify for the distinction, hospitals must rank top among peers on the Leapfrog Hospital Survey, which assesses hospital performance on the highest standards of quality and patient safety. Hospitals are evaluated across many areas of performance including  low infection rates, practices for safer surgery and the capacity to prevent medication errors.  

Nearly 2,400 hospitals were considered for the award, and less than 5% of the eligible hospitals earned the honor of Top Hospital. A total of 112 Top Hospitals were selected from four hospital categories: children’s, general, rural and teaching. 

“We are proud to be among the nation’s elite hospitals, which is a result of the exceptional efforts of the entire hospital staff, who are committed to providing high-quality, safe care for our patients,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, MHA, chief medical officer of Keck Medical Center. 

USC Norris Cancer Hospital’s cancer program is ranked in the top 25 in the country according to the 2024-2025 U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals rankings. The hospital is part of USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, which has been designated by the National Cancer Institute as one of the nation’s 51 comprehensive cancer centers, a select group of institutions providing leadership in cancer treatment, research, prevention and education.  

To see the full list of institutions honored as 2024 Top Hospitals, visit www.leapfroggroup.org/tophospitals 

However, the majority of American adults are unaware that HPV can cause throat cancer and are not taking advantage of the one proven method for prevention — the HPV vaccine.  

These are the conclusions of two recent studies from the USC Head and Neck Center, part of Keck Medicine of USC and the USC Caruso Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, that examined public knowledge of the link between HPV and throat cancer and HPV vaccination rates among adults, respectively.  

The research suggests that less than one-third of Americans associate HPV with throat cancer and less than 7% of adults eligible for the vaccine have completed the full course of the HPV vaccine, which is three doses for adults.  

“This data is very worrisome because knowledge is the first step toward disease prevention,” said Daniel Kwon, MD, a head and neck surgeon with Keck Medicine and lead author of a study examining trends in HPV vaccination rates for adults. “The public is missing crucial information about the link between throat cancer and HPV, as well as the fact that vaccines may prevent HPV-related throat cancer.”  

The need for greater HPV-related throat cancer awareness  

Each year, some 43 million Americans are infected with HPV, and most sexually active adults will contract HPV at some time in their lives. Most HPV infections are asymptomatic and resolve on their own. However, in some cases, the infection can lead to cancer, including throat cancer.  

In 2006, an HPV vaccine was made available to females ages 9-26, then expanded to males ages 9-26 in 2009. In 2018, the vaccine was expanded to adults ages 27-45. While HPV vaccination for this older group may provide less benefit because most have already been exposed to HPV, there still may be benefits of vaccination, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).   

To determine public awareness of HPV-related throat cancer, Dr. Kwon and fellow researchers compared data between the 2018 and 2020 iterations of the National Cancer Institute Health Information National Trends Survey, which tracks Americans’ knowledge about cancer and health information related to cancer.  

They focused on adults ages 27-45, who were newly eligible for the vaccine in 2018, to see how much of an impact the expansion of eligibility had on knowledge of HPV and throat cancer.  

Study authors compared data from 3,504 adults in the 2018 survey with data from 3,865 adults in the 2020 survey assessing people's knowledge of HPV, the vaccine, the link between HPV and throat cancer and changes in awareness between 2018 and 2020.  

While they found that most respondents were aware of HPV in both years studied, they were disappointed to discover that knowledge of the connection between HPV and throat cancer remained poor. In 2018, 27% of respondents reported they were aware of the link between HPV and throat cancer; in 2020, that number barely moved upward to 29.5%.  

“These results are particularly disheartening because since the vaccine eligibility was expanded in 2018, health advocates have issued many guidelines and recommendations about HPV and throat cancer,” said Kwon. “Clearly, more efforts are needed to educate the public about this risk.”  

Cervical cancer used to be the most widespread HPV-related cancer, but cervical cancer rates have declined through concerted efforts of the health care industry, according to Kwon. “HPV-related cervical cancer cases have decreased in large part due to successful HPV awareness campaigns targeting women,” he said. He also notes that women get screenings for cervical cancer through regular Pap smears, but there is no screening available for throat cancer.  

He emphasized the need for more education about the risk of HPV and throat cancer in men, as throat cancer affects men at a higher rate than women, he added. 

Investigating HPV vaccination rates 

In a second study, researchers from the USC Head and Neck Center examined HPV vaccination rates among a nationally representative cohort of more than 26,000 adults ages 30-44 who completed questions on HPV vaccination from 2018-2022 through the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System survey, a nationwide telephone survey conducted by the CDC. 

The authors discovered that only 6.5% of those surveyed were fully vaccinated, and only 15.8% had completed any HPV vaccination.  

Many factors play into the low HPV vaccination rate, according to the lead author of the study, Niels Kokot, MD, a head and neck surgeon with Keck Medicine. He cites not only a lack of general knowledge of the link between HPV and cancer, but also a lack of advertising about the HPV vaccine in comparison to other well-publicized campaigns such as for the flu or COVID-19 vaccines and growing vaccine hesitancy in the United States.  

Socioeconomic status, race, education level, access to health care, sexual orientation and gender also play roles in who is getting vaccinated, he added, with men, Asian Americans, African Americans, Hispanics and those not having a personal health care provider among those less likely to be vaccinated.  

Kokot hopes these findings will help spur greater public education on the HPV vaccine. He also recommends that any eligible adult who has not yet been vaccinated talk to a health care provider about vaccinations. “Every patient’s circumstances are different, and the subject is worth a discussion to see if an individual would benefit from the vaccine,” he said.  

Besides cervical and throat cancer, HPV can also cause anal, penile, vaginal and vulvar cancers. Learn more about HPV and cancer here.  

The study also reports that the number of suicide deaths in the AYA male cancer survivor group (ages 15-39) increased three-fold during the 21-year-study period. In 2021, one in 65 deaths among the group was attributed to suicide. Suicide deaths have also increased for other cancer survivor groups, but the gap in suicide rates between young men and other populations significantly widened over time.

Cancer is becoming more common among young people, and cancer survivors are more likely to struggle with anxiety, depression and thoughts of suicide, according to the American Cancer Society and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. This study, one of the first to examine suicide rates by gender for AYA patients with cancer, characterized the increasing suicide rate among this population as alarming.

Researchers used data from the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results Program to assess some 4.5 million deaths among cancer survivors between 2000-2021. A cancer survivor is defined as anyone who has ever been diagnosed with cancer, no matter where they are in the course of their disease. 

They then divided the data according to three age groups: ages 15-39, 40-59, and sixty-plus, and further divided each group by males or females.

The study found that in 2000, 4.9 deaths per 1,000 deaths of male AYA cancer patients were caused by suicide and the suicide rates for all other age/gender cancer patient groups ranged from 0.4 to 3.1 per 1,000 deaths.

Nearly two decades later in 2021, the number of suicide deaths per 1,000 deaths for male AYA cancer patients mushroomed to 15.4. While the rates of suicide deaths for all other age/gender cancer patient groups also increased, the rates were much lower than that of the male AYA cancer patients, ranging from 0.6 to 7.4 per 1,000 deaths.

In other findings, researchers determined that thyroid cancer, testicular cancer and melanomas of the skin were the three most common cancer diagnoses leading to suicide among male AYA cancer patients. According to the American Cancer Society, these three cancers are among those with the highest five-year-survival rates. Researchers did not have access to certain information about the patients, such as mental health status before cancer diagnosis, the reason or method of suicide death, patients’ cancer prognoses, and status of the cancer, such as disease recurrence or remission, at the time of death.

However, despite these limitations, the study authors believe that their findings warrant a call for attention focused on the suicide rate of AYA patients, specifically males. They recommend that AYA cancer patients be provided with more long-term support and resources that could potentially reverse this trend. 

Resources 

Keck Medicine provides support for its young cancer patients through The Adolescent and Young Adult Program at USC, which offers cancer patients ages 15-39 supportive care, advocacy, support groups, events and other resources to improve their health outcomes and quality of life.

National resources for young cancer survivors include: 

• Guidelines and support for AYA patients from the National Comprehensive Cancer Network
• Resources for AYA patients from The American Cancer Society

For anyone with thoughts of suicide, the National Institute of Mental Health’s suicide prevention resources and suicide lifeline can help.

This is the ninth “A” grade the hospital has received since 2019.  

“An ‘A’ grade once again puts Keck Hospital among the safest hospitals in the nation, and reflects the hospital’s dedication to maintaining the highest standards of quality and safety protocols,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC.   

Leapfrog assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D” or “F” grade to general hospitals across the country based on over 30 performance measures reflecting the systems hospitals have in place to prevent errors, accidents, injuries and infections.  

“Every year, The Leapfrog Group raises its quality standards, and each time, we successfully meet or exceed these benchmarks,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, MHA, chief medical officer of Keck Medical Center. “The entire hospital staff works tirelessly to ensure our patients have the safest environment possible.” 

The Leapfrog hospital grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.  

To see Keck Hospital’s full grade details and access hospital safety tips for patients, please visit HospitalSafetyGrade.org.  

This is the fourth such distinction Keck Hospital has received in 2024. In April, the hospital earned an “A” in The Leapfrog Group’s spring Hospital Safety Grade. In July, Keck Hospital earned five stars, the highest rating possible, on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) 2024 quality star rating report, and in September, Vizient, Inc. named the hospital a top performer along with a five-star rating, the highest possible. 

From pre-pandemic (2018) to the height of the pandemic (2020), heavy alcohol use among Americans rose by 20%, and any alcohol use rose by 4%. In 2022, the increases were sustained.  

The rise in drinking was seen across all age groups, genders, race, ethnicities and regions of the country, except for Native Americans and Asian Americans. Adults ages 40-49 had the highest increase in heavy alcohol use.  

“These numbers reflect an alarming public health issue that could result in severe health consequences for far too many people,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine of USC and principal investigator of the study. “Our results suggest men and women under 50 are at special risk.” 

Excessive alcohol use is a leading preventable cause of illness and death in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Half of all liver-related deaths are caused by alcohol, and alcohol-related cirrhosis is now the leading cause of liver transplants, according to Lee.  

To reach their conclusions, researchers studied data from the National Health Interview Survey, one of the largest and most comprehensive health surveys in the country. The survey collected alcohol use information as well as demographic and socioeconomic data for more than 24,000 adults age 18 or older. They compared 2018 with 2020 alcohol use numbers, then 2018 with 2022. 

While the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced the official end of the pandemic in May 2023, the study defined the year 2022 as post-pandemic, as behaviors were beginning to return to normal.  

Adults were characterized as having any alcohol use or heavy alcohol use within one year of the survey, and researchers calculated the rate of both measures of alcohol use. Heavy drinking was defined as greater than or equal to five drinks a day or 15 drinks a week for men, and greater than or equal to four drinks a day or eight drinks a week for women.  

The study did not analyze why there was an increase in alcohol consumption between 2018 to 2022, but Lee hypothesizes that pandemic stress may have caused drinking to become more normalized. He further speculates that the effects of the pandemic, including disruptions to school and work, may have driven the increases in alcohol use in adults ages 40-49. 

Lee hopes the study will bring more awareness to the issue. “We encourage health care providers to offer more screenings for harmful drinking as well as interventions for at-risk populations,” he said. 

Divya Ayyala-Somayajula, MD, from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, was lead author of the study. 

Jennifer Dodge, MPH, an associate professor of research medicine and population and public health science at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, Adam Leventhal, PhD, professor of population and public health sciences at the Keck School and director of the USC Institute for Addiction Science, and Norah Terrault, MD, a Keck Medicine gastroenterologist and division chief of gastroenterology and liver diseases at the Keck School, were also study authors.  

The top performer designation acknowledges the hospital’s excellence in delivering high-quality care as measured by the annual Vizient Quality and Accountability Study.

Keck Hospital was among 14 top performers out of 115 comprehensive academic medical centers nationally and achieved a five-star rating, the highest possible. This is the second time the hospital has been named a top performer in this category.

“Being named a Vizient top performer for the second time is a tremendous honor and reflects our continual efforts to provide superior clinical outcomes for our patients,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, MHA, chief medical officer of Keck Medical Center, which includes Keck Hospital. “The hospital uses a rigorous quality and accountability framework to guide and benchmark our performance across many markers of patient care, which has led to this success.” 

The Vizient Quality and Accountability Study evaluates hospitals in six domains: safety, mortality, effectiveness, efficiency, patient centeredness and equity of care. The study factors in data from Vizient and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as a national survey of patients’ perspectives of hospital care known as the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Survey (HCAHPS).

“This latest distinction achieved by Keck Hospital of USC is made possible by our culture of shared goals, collaboration and adaptability in an ever-changing health care environment, and is a testament to our staff’s unwavering commitment to deliver nationally recognized high-quality, equitable care,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center.

The Vizient recognition period spans from July 1, 2023, through June 30, 2024.

This distinction is the third national quality designation Keck Hospital has received in 2024. The hospital also earned an “A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization, and was awarded five stars, the highest rating possible, on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) quality star rating report.

This is especially true for patients with diabetic foot ulcers (open sores), which affects one-third of people with diabetes. Approximately 20% of those who develop a diabetic foot ulcer will require a lower-extremity amputation, according to the American Diabetes Association.  

When physicians debride, or clean out, a wound, they remove as much bacteria as possible. However, they face one key limitation — not all bacteria can be seen by the human eye, and some may be missed during the debridement. 

New Keck Medicine of USC research published in Advances in Wound Care suggests there may be a more effective method to detect bacteria during wound debridement. Autofluorescence (AF) imaging, where a handheld device “lights up” bacteria previously invisible to the human eye, uses violet light to illuminate molecules in the cell walls of any bacteria. Different types of bacteria turn different colors, allowing physicians to immediately determine how much and which types of bacteria are in the wound. 

“We’re hopeful this new technology can help surgeons improve their accuracy when pinpointing and consequently removing bacteria from wounds and therefore improve patient outcomes, particularly for those with diabetic foot wounds,” said David G. Armstrong, DPM, PhD, a podiatric surgeon and limb preservation specialist with Keck Medicine and senior author of the study. “The early detection and removal of bacteria from a wound is vital to preventing avoidable amputations.”    

The research, a literature review of 25 studies examining the effectiveness of AF imaging in treating diabetic patients with foot ulcers, reveals that AF imaging can identify bacteria in wounds in approximately 9 in 10 patients that traditional clinical assessments miss.  

Traditionally, physicians debride wounds, then send tissue samples to the lab to identify specific types of bacteria present in the wound and determine the best treatment protocol based on those findings, such as starting the patient on antibiotics or providing a special type of wound dressing. This process can take days, during which time an infection can set in, said Armstrong.  

With AF imaging physicians are able to make medical decisions during the wound debridement, rather than waiting for lab results to initiate treatment.  

Another benefit to the technology is that if bacteria is caught early, the patient may avoid being prescribed antibiotics, which in wound care can be prolonged, thus avoiding possible antibiotic resistance. 

“This real-time intervention may allow for faster, more effective treatment for wounds,” said Armstrong.  

Keck Medicine physicians are already using the technology to successfully treat patients with chronic wounds, including diabetic foot ulcers.  

“I look forward to more research in this area as we hope to see AF imaging become the standard of care for wound care in the near future,” said Armstrong.  

The study is partially supported by the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Award Number 1R01124789-01A1 and the National Science Foundation (NSF) Center to Stream Healthcare in Place (#C2SHiP) CNS Award Number 2052578.  

A large, multicenter study published in JAMA Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery revealed that adults with cannabis dependence, known as cannabis use disorder, are 3.5 to 5 times more likely to develop head and neck cancer than those who do not use the substance. 

“This is one of the first studies — and the largest that we know of to date — to associate head and neck cancer with cannabis use,” said Niels Kokot, MD, a head and neck surgeon with the USC Head and Neck Center and senior author of the study. “The detection of this risk factor is important because head and neck cancer may be preventable once people know which behaviors increase their risk.”  

Kokot is also a professor of otolaryngology – head and neck surgery at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. 

Head and neck cancer, the sixth most common cancer in the world, includes several cancers, including cancer of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, oropharynx (tongue and tonsils and back wall of the throat) and adjacent salivary glands.  

The researchers, including lead study author Tyler Gallagher, an MD/MPH candidate at the Keck School, discovered that those with cannabis use disorder had higher rates of all types of head and neck cancers. They also found that the prevalence of head and neck cancer among those with cannabis use disorder was independent of other factors, such as age, gender and ethnicity. Alcohol and tobacco use, which have been associated with head and neck cancer, also did not play a role in the findings. 

Kokot and his fellow researchers hypothesize that the primary reason cannabis raises the risk of head and neck cancer is because of the damaging effect of the smoke. Cannabis is primarily consumed through inhalation (even though the study did not distinguish between methods of consumption). Additionally, research has shown that tobacco smoke contains numerous chemicals that cause DNA damage and inflammation to the area, which, if unchecked, can lead to cancer, and they speculate that cannabis smoke may cause similar harm.  

In fact, there is some evidence, Kokot theorizes, that the smoke from cannabis may even be worse than tobacco smoke.  

“Cannabis smoking is typically unfiltered and involves deeper inhalation compared to tobacco,” he said. “Additionally, cannabis burns at a higher temperature than tobacco, increasing the risk of cancer-causing inflammation.”  

Kokot would like to see further research examining the link between cannabis and head and neck cancer. In the meantime, he hopes this study will help people make more informed choices and raise awareness about the link between head and neck cancer and cannabis use. 

To reach their conclusions, the researchers compiled 20 years of data through a health research network of 64 health care organizations that accounted for more than 90 million individuals. They tracked cancer cases from one to five years of cannabis use.   

The new location address is 4590 MacArthur Blvd. in Newport Beach, less than 15 minutes away from USC Norris’ oncology centers in Newport Beach and Irvine. Those centers are staffed by respected oncologists who have served Orange County for decades, and who treat more medical oncology outpatients in Newport Beach than any other providers.  

“We are excited to build upon USC Norris’ well-established, robust cancer practices in Orange County and broaden our spectrum of services,” said Louis Vandermolen, MD, medical oncologist with USC Norris Oncology/Hematology. “Our radiation oncology and imaging center is a testament to our continued commitment to offer world class, comprehensive cancer services for patients without having to leave the local community.” 

As one of the eight original National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the United States, USC Norris has revolutionized cancer treatment, research and prevention for 50 years. In 2024-25, U.S. News & World Report ranked USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center among the top 25 cancer centers nationally and recognized USC Norris Cancer Hospital as a Best Specialty Hospital. 

USC Norris is collaborating on their new Newport Beach facility with Advanced Radiotherapy Technologies (ART Health), a leading developer of radiotherapy centers. ART Health is a division of Kingsbarn Realty Capital, a national investment manager.  

Only approximately 16% of hospitals across the country, 483 out of 3,076, received five stars out of a one-to-five-star rating system.  

“Receiving this prestigious recognition for the second time in a row validates the hospital’s continuous commitment to patient safety and best patient outcomes and is a testament to the dedication and hard work of our physicians, nurses and staff,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Hospital and USC Norris Cancer Hospital. 

The CMS hospital quality star rating summarizes a variety of measures across five areas of quality into a single star rating for each hospital. The five areas include: 

• Readmission — returns to the hospital following a hospitalization.
• Mortality — death rates of patients in the 30 days following a hospitalization.  
• Safety of care — potentially preventable injury and complications due to care provided during a hospitalization.  
• Timely and effective care.    
• Patient experience — such as how effectively physicians and nurses communicate to the patient and if a patient would recommend the hospital to others.  

“A five-star rating means that Keck Hospital outperforms the national average in all five of these areas, which is a tremendous accomplishment,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, MHA, chief medical officer of Keck Hospital and USC Norris Cancer Hospital. “I am particularly proud of our continued successful efforts in the safety of care, including low rates of hospital-associated infections, and in our sustained performance in creating a positive patient experience.” 

She credits the high patient experience ranking in part to a leadership rounding program that launched two years ago, where hospital leaders conduct regular rounds in all of the hospital units.  

“Our patients feel very special and cared for when the hospital CEO or chief nursing officer appears by their bedside,” said Hall. “This is a wonderful way for our leaders, who are often removed from day-to-day patient care, to connect with our patients.” 

This CMS five-star designation follows on the heels of Keck Hospital earning an "A” Hospital Safety Grade from The Leapfrog Group, an independent national watchdog organization, this spring. The Leapfrog Group assigns grades A – F to general hospitals across the country based on over 30 measures of errors, accidents, injuries and infections and the systems hospitals have in place to prevent them. This is the eighth “A” grade that Keck Hospital has received in the last five years.

The CMS rating system was launched in 2016 to help patients and caregivers make informed decisions when selecting a hospital. Hospitals report quality data to the CMS through multiple reporting programs, and the data is then reviewed and standardized to calculate hospital star rankings.  

For detailed information on how Keck Hospital scored on quality measures, please click here.  

A new study from Keck Medicine of USC published in The American Journal of Gastroenterology finds that transgender adults have double the prevalence of cirrhosis compared to cisgender adults (people whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth), suggesting a need for more supportive, preventive care. 

“Our study reveals that cirrhosis disproportionately affects transgender individuals and highlights a pressing health issue that needs addressing,” said Brian P. Lee, MD, MAS, a hepatologist and liver transplant specialist with Keck Medicine and principal investigator of the study.   

Lee and his colleagues launched the study to provide scientifically backed liver health guidance for physicians so they could offer transgender patients a higher level of care. 

Besides discovering that transgender cirrhosis rates are double that of the cisgender population, the study authors also learned that the majority of transgender adults with cirrhosis (60%) have a diagnosis of anxiety and/or depression, compared to 40% of the cisgender patients with cirrhosis.  

They also found that alcohol was the leading cause of cirrhosis in the transgender group, accounting for some 60% of cases while the percentage of cisgender adults with alcohol-associated cirrhosis was approximately 50%. 

In other findings, transgender patients with cirrhosis also tended to be younger (a larger portion were 44 or younger), had higher rates of viral hepatitis and were five times more likely to have HIV/AIDS than their cisgender counterparts.  

Possible reasons behind the disparity  

Lee hypothesizes that the increased rates of depression and anxiety may be driving higher rates of alcohol use among transgender patients, which in turn, may result in greater cases of cirrhosis.  

The increased rate of HIV/AIDS among transgender patients may also be a factor in that both conditions are known to be associated with liver disease progression, according to Lee.  

Lack of access to quality health care could also play a role, hypothesizes Jeffrey Kahn, MD, a hepatologist and liver transplant physician with Keck Medicine and co-author of the study.  

Researchers also studied the five-year outcomes among all transgender and cisgender patients with cirrhosis. Interestingly, despite the differences in the two groups, the number of possible negative outcomes of cirrhosis — liver failure, liver transplant and liver cancer, as well as death, by any cause — was the same.  

“This finding suggests that the transgender community is underserved in the initial stages of liver disease, but individuals are able to secure the care they need once cirrhosis is diagnosed,” said Kahn. “Early prevention is key because if liver disease is caught in time, there is less of a chance it will progress to cirrhosis.”  

To reach their conclusions, study authors culled data from a large national database, Optum Clinformatics® Data Mart Database (Optum), that contained medical claims for more than 60 million patients covered by commercial insurance or Medicare between the years of 2007-2022. They first identified all transgender and cisgender adults, and then compared the incidences of cirrhosis among each group as well as causes of the disease. Additionally, researchers tracked depression and anxiety in patients. 

Lee and Kahn hope the study will spur more research and motivate health care practitioners to provide transgender patients with extra support, including liver screenings and access to mental health resources. “This population requires specific attention from clinicians and researchers alike,” said Lee.  

Keck Medicine efforts to support transgender patient wellness  

Keck Medicine launched the USC Gender-Affirming Care Program to provide tailored, supportive health care to the transgender population. The program provides a full range of expert, compassionate health care services for the transgender, non-binary and gender-diverse community, including everything from routine health care, such as preventive cancer screenings, yearly checkups and flu shots, to gender-affirming hormone therapy and surgery.  

The program is comprised of physicians from several disciplines, including family medicine, plastic surgery, gynecology, urology and otolaryngology. Specialists in voice, occupational and physical therapy are also available to patients.  

Additionally, Keck Medicine hospitals have been awarded the ‘LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader’ designation in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2024 Healthcare Equality Index (HEI) for seven times in recent years. HEI is the leading national benchmarking survey of health care facility policies and practices dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees. 

However, a new Keck Medicine of USC study in Leukemia Research suggests that a bone marrow transplant from a haploidentical, or half-identical relative, may greatly increase patients’ odds of success, in addition to being easier to find. Parents and children are guaranteed half-matches, while siblings have a 50% chance of being half-matches, which is twice as likely as finding a fully matched sibling (25%).

The study retrospectively assessed outcomes from 88 patients with B-cell ALL (an aggressive type of leukemia wherein the body overproduces abnormal white blood cells called B-lymphocytes) who underwent a bone marrow transplant at USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of Keck Medicine. Bone marrow donors included fully matched sibling donors, fully matched unrelated donors identified through the national donor registry, and half-matched donors from the patient’s family. The study assessed patient outcomes after two years following transplantation.

Patients who received their transplant from a half-identical relative were about 70% more likely to avoid relapse than those who received a bone marrow transplant from a fully identical relative.

Compared to patients who received a bone marrow transplant from an identically matched registered donor, half-identical relative transplant recipients were more than twice as likely to avoid both relapse and graft versus host disease, a debilitating condition wherein the body rejects the transplanted stem cells.

“These results suggest that Hispanic patients may benefit more from receiving a bone marrow transplant from a half-matched parent, child or sibling, rather than a full match from the national donor registry,” said George Yaghmour, MD, a hematologist with USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and lead author on the study. “This creates opportunities for patients to receive a life-saving procedure that may otherwise be out of reach.”

Finding a Perfect Match

Prior to receiving a bone marrow transplant, potential recipients must first find a donor with a matching human leukocyte antigen (HLA) tissue type. HLAs are proteins on cells that act like a signature or passcode for the immune system. When white blood cells find foreign cells with an unfamiliar HLA type, it triggers an attack response. To ensure that a patient’s immune system accepts the new bone marrow stem cells, doctors aim to find a donor with the closest possible match for the patient.

Because HLA tissue type is inherited, patients often look first to immediate family members as potential donors. Unrelated matched donors may be available through the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), which manages the largest registry of potential bone marrow donors.

Despite the size of the NMDP registry, certain ethnic backgrounds have more difficulties finding a match due to being underrepresented in the registry. While white patients have a 79% chance of finding a match through the registry, Hispanic patients are only 48% likely to find a match.

Hispanic patients have a higher incidence of ALL compared to white patients, and often present with higher-risk disease characteristics that are associated with more challenging outcomes and require complex care. This makes finding a bone marrow donor all the more crucial.

New Opportunities with Half-Identical Donors

Bone marrow transplants from half-identical family members have been performed more frequently due to the challenges in finding a fully matched donor, as well as due to treatment advances that help the body accept the new cells despite not having a fully matched HLA type.

Yaghmour hopes the study results will inspire larger clinical trials to further investigate the findings and provide insight as to why bone marrow transplants from half-identical relatives result in positive outcomes, particularly among patients with high-risk subtypes of ALL.

 “These findings are a strong basis to continue researching the clinical benefits of haploidentical bone marrow donation, particularly among patient groups with historically limited access to fully matched donors,” said Yaghmour, who is also the associate director of transplant and cellular therapy with USC Norris and an associate professor of clinical medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC. “Future studies can potentially address health disparities while optimizing outcomes, and ultimately provide more hope for all patients facing this difficult diagnosis.”

The institute will support nurses across the health system’s four hospitals and more than 100 clinic locations to ensure nurses have access to the tools, education and training to provide exceptional patient care, facilitate collaboration and encourage career growth and leadership opportunities. 

“Nurses are the backbone of our health system. The USC Nursing Institute supports a culture of excellence where nurses feel empowered to expand their skill set, collaborate with colleagues from different specialties and leverage their impressive talents,” said Deborah “Debbie” McCoy, MS, RN, NEA-BC, executive director of the USC Nursing Institute.  

Keck Medicine employs approximately 4,000 nurses, which include registered and licensed vocational nurses; nurse scientists; and advanced practice nurses, including clinical nurse specialists, nurse practitioners, certified nurse anesthetists, certified nurse midwives and registered nurse first assists.  

In the first year, the USC Nursing Institute will focus on supporting nurse-driven clinical and scientific research. The institute has created a research council which will host the first-ever nursing symposium in summer 2024 to showcase Keck Medicine nurses’ work in the areas of performance improvement, evidence-based practice and research. 

The institute will also provide nurses with opportunities to advance their academic degrees, certifications and specialty training. 

“Keck Medicine of USC recognizes the importance of investing in our nurses as they provide highly specialized and compassionate patient care at the highest levels,” said Annette Sy, DNP, RN, NE-BC, chief nursing executive officer of Keck Medical Center of USC, which includes Keck Hospital of USC and USC Norris Cancer Hospital. 

The institute will supplement already prestigious Keck Medicine nursing services. In 2023, Keck Hospital of USC achieved redesignation from the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s (ANCC) Magnet Recognition program, which recognizes nursing excellence and the highest standards of patient care. 

Additionally, in 2022 and 2023, the USC Verdugo Hills Hospital (USC-VHH) emergency department received the prestigious Lantern Award from the Emergency Nurses Association, which recognizes those who demonstrate exceptional and innovative performance in leadership, practice, education, advocacy and research. In 2024, the hospital received its first-ever Practice Transition Accreditation Program accreditation from the ANCC for its nurse residency program, which helps transition novice nurses into clinical practice. The hospital’s intensive care unit also received the Beacon Award for Excellence from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses.  

Keck Medicine’s Council of Chief Nursing Officers, which includes McCoy, Sy and chief nursing officers for Keck Hospital, USC Norris, USC-VHH and USC Arcadia Hospital, will oversee the institute. 

“The USC Nursing Institute offers professional nurses from across the health system the opportunity to work in collaboration with nurse leaders as they continue to build upon their essential and expansive role in patient care,” said Theresa Murphy, RN, MSHCA, CENP, chief nursing officer of USC-VHH. “We look forward to seeing our dedicated nurses reap the benefits of these additional resources.” 

Looking to the future, the USC Nursing Institute hopes to create a simulation lab, which will provide an immersive learning experience to help nurses practice new skills, and to collaborate with nursing schools to build and nurture community relationships.

HEI is the leading national benchmarking survey of health care facility policies and practices dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees. A record 1,065 health care facilities participated in the 2024 HEI survey; only 36% (384 facilities) earned ‘LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader’ designation. 

“Keck Medicine is proud to serve the LGBTQ+ community through patient-centered care, dedicated advocacy and fostering a safe, welcoming and inclusive environment,” said Rod Hanners, CEO of Keck Medicine. “This recognition is a testament to our commitment to delivering quality care tailored to the diverse needs of the LGBTQ+ community within a supportive and inclusive setting.” 

Keck Medicine hospitals include Keck Hospital of USC, USC Norris Cancer Hospital, and community hospitals, USC Verdugo Hills Hospital (USC-VHH) and USC Arcadia Hospital (USC-AH). This marks the seventh time in recent years that Keck Hospital, USC Norris and USC-VHH have received the 'LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader' distinction, and it is the first time USC-AH is honored with this distinction since joining Keck Medicine in 2022. 

“Receiving this designation is a significant milestone for USC Arcadia Hospital,” said Ikenna (Ike) Mmeje, CEO of USC-AH. “We are proud to stand with our health system colleagues in support of our LGBTQ+ community.” 

USC Student Health, which provides comprehensive health care to USC students, participated in the survey for the second time and joins a select group of college health care providers in receiving the leader designation. 

Continued Commitment to Inclusivity and Equity 

Keck Medicine leads multiple initiatives and programs in support of the LGBTQ+ community, demonstrating a steadfast commitment to inclusivity and equity.  

The USC Gender Affirming Care Program offers comprehensive health care tailored to transgender, non-binary and gender-diverse patients. The program’s dedicated patient navigator assists patients with their personalized needs throughout their health care journey. 

Keck Medicine also maintains a collaboration with The TransLatin@ Coalition, a trans-led nonprofit organization that advocates for the needs of transgender, gender non-conforming and intersex immigrants. The collaboration includes education and training opportunities for faculty and staff across both organizations regarding best practices in LGBTQ+ health care, as well as community engagement, focus groups and forums to advance dialogue to share progress and solicit input and feedback. 

As a sponsor of the Latino Equality Alliance LGBTQ+ Youth College Scholarship Program, the health system created the Keck Medicine of USC scholarship to support LGBTQ+ students pursuing health care careers and has awarded more than $20,000 in scholarships since 2019. 

Keck Medicine has also been a medical sponsor of AIDS/LifeCycle since 2020, supporting riders and volunteers, including staff, who raise funds to provide access to HIV/AIDS medical care and end stigma. 

Since its inception in 2015, the Keck Pride employee resource group has been a pillar in creating a welcoming environment for LGBTQ+ patients, families, staff and the community and is a driving force in many of the health system’s initiatives.   

HEI Criteria  

The HEI evaluates and scores health care facilities on detailed criteria in four categories: 

• Foundational non-discrimination protection for patients, visitors and staff via policies and training in LGBTQ+ patient-centered care. 
• LGBTQ+ patient services and support. 
• LGBTQ+ inclusive employee policies and benefits.  
• LGBTQ+ community and patient engagement. 

To receive ‘LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader’ designation, health care facilities must receive the maximum score in each criteria and earn an overall score of 100. 

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation is the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign, a civil rights organization working to achieve equality for LGBTQ+ people. 

“This grade puts Keck Hospital among the safest in the nation, and is a testament to the hospital’s commitment to the highest standards of quality and safety protocols,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC.  

The Leapfrog Group assigns an “A,” “B,” “C,” “D” or “F” grade to general hospitals across the country based on over 30 measures of errors, accidents, injuries and infections and the systems hospitals have in place to prevent them.  

This is the eighth “A” grade that Keck Hospital has received in the last five years.

“This grade reflects the dedication of the entire hospital staff working together to create a continuously safe environment for patients,” said Stephanie Hall, MD, MHA, chief medical officer of Keck Medical Center. “We are proud of our ranking, including our low rates of hospital-associated infection and our high ratings in quality outcomes and patient experience. Nothing is more important than the health of our patients, which is why we make safety and quality our number one priority.” 

The Leapfrog Group grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public. Grades are updated twice annually, in the fall and spring.  

To see Keck Hospital’s full grade details and access hospital safety tips for patients, visit hospitalsafetygrade.org.  

Amid the growing need for additional transplant services in the state, Keck Medicine of USC has opened a new location in Las Vegas that will provide specialized care for patients in Las Vegas and surrounding communities who need a liver or heart transplant.  

The clinic is the first in Nevada to offer in-state heart transplant services. 

“Organ transplantation offers patients new hope and may extend lives,” said Marty Sargeant, MBA, CEO of Keck Medical Center of USC. “We are proud to bring our lifesaving care and clinical expertise to Nevada and look forward to working with local physicians, patients, families and the community to promote optimal health for patients in need.” 

Patients who undergo transplantation through Keck Medicine have access to a multidisciplinary team of specialists including USC Transplant Institute surgeons, physicians, nurses, social workers and counselors, specially trained dietitians and pharmacists, and a dedicated transplant coordinator to manage care throughout all phases of transplantation.  

When patients visit the Las Vegas location, they will first undergo a transplant evaluation, which may include medical imaging and diagnostic tests conducted by other local medical providers, to determine if they are candidates for transplantation.  

Upon completing evaluation and if matched with an appropriate organ donor, patients may undergo transplantation at Keck Hospital of USC in Los Angeles and return for post-surgical follow-up care at the Las Vegas location. 

Excellence in heart transplant care 

The USC Heart Transplant Program provides expert care for heart failure and other serious conditions that may require a heart transplant. The program’s one-year survival post-transplant outcomes exceed the national average, according to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR), which gathers national organ transplant data.  

“As a pioneer in heart transplantation with some of the best post-transplant outcomes, Keck Medicine is often able to successfully treat patients who traditionally might not have been considered candidates for transplant,” said Raymond Lee, MD, surgical director of the USC Heart Transplant Program and mechanical circulatory support with Keck Medicine. 

The transplant program offers patients access to state-of-the-art care, including noninvasive heart transplant rejection testing, which helps reduce the need for invasive biopsies.  

“Our new clinic addresses an important need for increased access to specialized and compassionate care for patients in need of a heart transplant in Las Vegas and the surrounding communities,” said Ajay Vaidya, MD, medical director of the USC Heart Transplant Program and cardiologist with Keck Medicine. 

Advanced liver transplant care 

The USC Liver Transplant Program has been a leader in liver transplantation for more than 25 years. In January 2024, Keck Hospital outperformed other medical centers as the only liver transplant program in Southern California to receive a 5-tier rating from the SRTR, recognizing Keck Hospital’s one year organ survival rate.  

The transplant team, which treats all types of liver disease and conditions, specializes in several types of liver transplantation, including deceased-donor, transfusion-free and living-donor liver transplants, when a portion of the liver from a healthy person is removed and transplanted into the patient. 

“Our extensive experience and advanced care capabilities support our goal of providing patients with the best possible outcomes and greatest chance of survival after transplantation,” said Jeffrey Kahn, MD, medical director of the USC Liver Transplant Program and hepatologist with Keck Medicine.  

“As a leader in liver transplantation that treats some of the most complex cases, we understand the importance of easily accessible care. We are excited to work closely with Las Vegas patients in their home city to help guide them through their transplant journey,” said Aaron Ahearn, MD, PhD, surgical director of the USC Liver Transplant Program and hepatobiliary and pancreatic surgeon with Keck Medicine. 

The new clinic is located at 2911 N. Tenaya Way, Suite 106, Las Vegas, NV 89128. 

For more information on services and treatment offered at the transplant clinic, please click here. You can learn more about the USC Transplant Institute here.  

Keck Medicine’s growing local presence 

In addition to the new transplant care clinic, Keck Medicine has provided health care to the members and families of the Culinary Workers Union in Las Vegas since 2019. Keck Medicine provides primary care, including internal medicine and pediatric care, and physical therapy at two Culinary Health Center locations across the Las Vegas Valley.

Immunotherapy, medicines that use the body’s immune system to eliminate or control cancer cells, are effective for many cancer patients, but are currently only administered intravenously (into the vein) in a doctor’s office or hospital. 

The study will examine if a new formulation of atezolizumab, an immunotherapy approved for treating certain types of non-small cell lung cancer, can instead be safely and effectively administered subcutaneously, meaning it is injected under the patient’s skin, by a nurse at the patient’s home, along with telemedicine appointments and remote monitoring through wearable trackers.  

This will be the first clinical trial to test at-home administration of subcutaneous immunotherapy and could potentially lay the foundation for the future of at-home cancer care. 

“Many types of drugs are now being delivered subcutaneously at home for several conditions, and we hypothesize that this method of drug delivery can also be successful for cancer patients,” said Jorge Nieva, MD, a medical oncologist and lung cancer specialist with Keck Medicine, a member of USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center and lead investigator of the clinical trial. “Additionally, since COVID-19, we’ve learned that physicians have the digital tools to provide patients with excellent remote care.” 

The benefits of at-home treatment 

Lung cancer is the second most diagnosed cancer in the world and the leading cause of cancer deaths for both men and women worldwide. Non-small cell lung cancer accounts for 81% of all lung cancer cases in the United States.  

Immunotherapy is a relatively new treatment option that has been approved to treat many cancer types both on its own or in combination with other therapies, such as radiation and chemotherapy.  

Nieva believes that moving immunotherapy from a medical setting to the home will benefit patients. Patients will save time and energy traveling to a clinic or doctor’s office, which can be especially difficult for those who are very sick, and they may feel more relaxed in their own homes. This could also potentially expand access to cancer treatment to patients who live in more remote areas or lack reliable access to transportation. 

Delivering the drug under the skin rather than through an intravenous line (IV) has advantages as well.  

“The procedure is easier and faster to administer and less likely to cause infection or complications, and patients avoid the potential discomfort of being stuck with a needle several times in the attempt to find a suitable vein for the IV,” said Nieva.  

Nieva was motivated to research at-home cancer treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic when a patient who was afraid of catching the virus died after he stopped going into the hospital for his cancer treatments. 

“I realized we had to change the delivery of cancer care,” said Nieva.  

Clinical trial will use an immunotherapy consisting of monoclonal antibodies 

The drug used in the clinical trial, atezolizumab, consists of a monoclonal antibody, a man-made protein that triggers the immune system to attack cancer cells. It was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2016 for late-stage lung cancer and more recently in 2021, for early stage, non-small cell lung cancer. 

Investigators aim to enroll 37 patients with non-small cell lung cancer who are deemed eligible to receive immunotherapy as treatment. Patients will receive treatments administered by a nurse who will visit their home every three weeks for one to two years.  

Additionally, Nieva and his colleagues will use the latest digital tools to track patients’ vital signs, physical activity and other markers of health remotely and monitor patients with telehealth visits.  

The study will not only examine the feasibility of home administration of the medication, but how well patients comply with the program and how satisfied they are with being treated remotely and through telehealth appointments. 

Nieva hopes that the clinical trial will not only benefit patients with non-small cell lung cancer, but other cancer patients as well. 

“Increasingly, health care is moving in a direction where instead of patients going to us for services, we are able to come to them, increasing access to care and potentially addressing existing health care disparities,” said Nieva. “If this study can show that at-home cancer immunotherapy is safe and feasible for non-small cell lung cancer, it will open the door for more home treatments for other types of cancers in the future.” 

To learn more about the criteria to participate in the clinical trial, click here. Those who are interested in participating in the trial may contact Sandy Tran at (323) 865-3935 or sandy.tran@med.usc.edu.  

The sponsors of the clinical trial are the National Cancer Institute (NCI), grant number ML43326, and Genentech, Inc.