The Time Is Now for Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning

From artificial intelligence (AI) and data integration to natural language processing and statistics, the Cedars-Sinai Department of Computational Biomedicine is utilizing the latest technological advances to find solutions to some of the most complex healthcare issues.

RESEARCH ALERT: Stopping Multiple Myeloma

Cedars-Sinai Cancer investigators have discovered a protein expressed on multiple myeloma cancer cells that drives disease growth and development. The new study found that blocking part of the protein’s unique signaling pathway stops myeloma growth in culture and in laboratory mice.

Breast Cancer Experts, Patients Available for Interviews

During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Cedars-Sinai Cancer experts are available to discuss an uptick in breast cancer among younger patients and the innovative ways the academic medical center is treating breast cancer in diverse Southern California communities and beyond.

Cedars-Sinai July Research Highlights

A roundup of the latest medical discoveries and faculty news at Cedars-Sinai.

Lali Medina-Kauwe, PhD, Named Inaugural Chair in Medical Discovery

Cedars-Sinai has named Lali Medina-Kauwe, PhD, as the inaugural holder of the Carol Moss Foundation Chair in Medical Discovery.

Cedars-Sinai Cancer Welcomes Gynecologic Oncologist Margaret Liang, MD

Gynecologic oncologist Margaret Liang, MD, has joined the Cedars-Sinai Cancer Division of Gynecologic Oncology, providing care and clinical services for patients within the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. She also joins as director for the Gynecologic Oncology Fellowship Program.

Targeted Chemotherapy Helps Cure Some Inoperable Tumors

Physicians at Cedars-Sinai Cancer are using a unique chemotherapy delivery system that offers hope to colorectal cancer patients whose disease has spread and who now have inoperable liver tumors. Cedars-Sinai is one of the few centers in the area to offer the therapy, called hepatic artery infusion (HAI) pump chemotherapy.

MEDIA ADVISORY: Cedars-Sinai Experts Available to Discuss New Mammogram Guidelines

Physician-scientists from Cedars-Sinai Cancer are available for interviews to discuss the new draft recommendation by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force that women at average risk for breast cancer should have a mammogram every other year beginning at age 40.

Study: Vitamin D May Play a Role in Prostate Cancer Disparities

Vitamin D deficiency could be the reason African American men experience more aggressive prostate cancer at a younger age compared with European American men, new research from Cedars-Sinai Cancer suggests.

Hitting Stem Cell and CAR T Targets

The Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Transplant Program at Cedars-Sinai Cancer was recently recognized with two important hallmarks of quality: official accreditation for CAR T-cell therapy, and a third year in a row ranking among the top adult bone marrow transplant programs in the U.S.

A Leading-Edge Lymphoma Program

Less than three years after joining the Cedars-Sinai Cancer faculty, hematologist-oncologists Justin Darrah, MD, and Akil Merchant, MD, are pioneering new research and bringing a new, comprehensive set of treatment options to patients in the recently established Lymphoma Program.

MEDIA ADVISORY: Cedars-Sinai Experts Available During San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium

Physician-scientists from Cedars-Sinai Cancer are available for comment on research being presented throughout the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, taking place Dec. 6-10.

Cedars-Sinai Surgeon to Lead Breast Program at Huntington Hospital

Jeannie Shen, MD, a fellowship-trained breast surgeon who is board-certified in general surgery, has been appointed medical director of the Breast Program at Huntington Hospital, an affiliate of Cedars-Sinai, and medical director of the International Health Program at Cedars-Sinai Cancer at Huntington Hospital.

Breast Cancer Awareness Is for Men, Too

Although breast cancer is more common in women, during October, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, experts from Cedars-Sinai Cancer are reminding men that they are at risk as well. One in every 100 breast cancers in the U.S. is diagnosed in a man, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Physician Scientist to Lead Breast Oncology Program

Yuan Yuan, MD, PhD, a breast medical oncologist and physician scientist who specializes in triple-negative breast cancer and breast cancer immunotherapy, has joined Cedars-Sinai Cancer as director of Breast Oncology. Yuan will treat patients at Cedars-Sinai and at Huntington Cancer Center, an affiliate of Cedars-Sinai Cancer.

Cedars-Sinai Cancer Welcomes Nine Oncologists to Its Affiliate, Huntington Cancer Center

Cedars-Sinai Cancer is welcoming nine oncology specialists to its affiliate, Huntington Cancer Center. The cancer specialists will be based at Huntington’s Pasadena campus, making it easier for San Gabriel Valley residents to access Cedars-Sinai Cancer clinical trials and innovative treatment options.

August Research Highlights

A Roundup of the Latest Medical Discoveries and Faculty News at Cedars-Sinai

How Tumors Make Immune Cells ‘Go Bad’

Investigators from Cedars-Sinai Cancer have discovered that cancerous tumors called soft-tissue sarcomas produce a protein that switches immune cells from tumor-attacking to tumor-promoting. The study, published today in the peer-reviewed journal Cell Reports, could lead to improved treatments for soft-tissue sarcomas.

Radiation Oncology Expert Joins Cedars-Sinai Cancer

Marc Botnick, MD, a board-certified radiation oncologist with more than 20 years of experience managing all cancer types, has been named regional medical director for Radiation Oncology at Cedars-Sinai Cancer. His primary clinical practice site will be at Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Radiation Oncology, but he will work closely with physicians throughout the enterprise.

Standing Up to Stage 4 Breast Cancer

Holly Hammond faced one of the toughest-imaginable breast cancer scenarios. Her cancer was already advanced and had spread to her liver and lymph nodes when she discovered a tumor on her right breast. The tumor was negative for all of the markers that respond to targeted therapies for cancer treatment. She was also positive for the genes that mark her as especially prone to breast cancer.

Cedars-Sinai’s Howard Sandler, MD, Elected President of ASTRO

Howard Sandler, MD, chair of the Department of Radiation Oncology at Cedars-Sinai Cancer, has been named president-elect of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO). Sandler will begin his term as president-elect in October, followed by single-year terms as president, chair and then immediate past chair of the ASTRO Board.

Cedars-Sinai Cancer Experts Available to Comment on AACR Cancer Disparities Progress Report

Experts from Cedars-Sinai Cancer are available to comment on the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Cancer Disparities Progress Report 2022, which will be released Wednesday, June 8, in a virtual congressional briefing. The report highlights the need to increase diversity in clinical trials and the cancer workforce, and it provides policy recommendations for addressing cancer disparities—all areas Cedars-Sinai Cancer is working to address.

Path to Remission for a Brain Cancer That Is Usually Fatal

Recently, Michael Wulfe, who is 61 and lives in West Hollywood, was on the phone with his sister, Stephanie Wulfe, in Dallas. They talk at least once a day, but that day, something wasn’t right. “I was talking, and then I didn’t have the words,” Wulfe said. “My sister immediately said, ‘Call Cedars-Sinai!’”

ASCO22: Lung Cancer Therapy Could Help Patients Live Longer

Results of a Phase II clinical trial led by Cedars-Sinai Cancer investigators indicate that an immunotherapy drug combination could extend the lives of those diagnosed with advanced non-small cell lung cancer, one of the most common forms of lung cancer. The research was presented today during the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) annual meeting in Chicago, with simultaneous publication in the peer-reviewed Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Cedars-Sinai Cancer Experts Present Breakthroughs at 2022 ASCO Annual Meeting

Experts from Cedars-Sinai Cancer, ranked among the top 10 in the nation for cancer care, will present novel research and clinical advances throughout the 2022 annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), taking place in person and virtually June 3-7 in Chicago.

New Combined Therapy Helps Extend Lives of Men With Prostate Cancer

Practice-changing research from Cedars-Sinai Cancer shows that a combination of androgen deprivation therapy—a commonly used hormone injection—plus pelvic lymph node radiation, kept nearly 90% of clinical trial patients’ prostate cancer at bay for five years. The findings were published in the peer-reviewed journal The Lancet.

April Research Highlights

This tipsheet highlights the latest medical discoveries and faculty news at Cedars-Sinai. Links to full news releases are included with each item.

Investigators Uncover Cellular Pathway Involved in Cancer Growth

A hallmark of cancer is its ability to replicate, a process commonly driven by the reactivation of the telomerase enzyme complex, which helps prevent the aging and death of healthy cells and keeps stem cells in bone marrow and the intestines from producing normal cells in those organs. When telomerase is activated in cancer cells, it helps them survive and duplicate in the body.