In The News
Alex Trebek Reminds us to go Beyond Fear of Pancreatic Cancer
The news that beloved game show host Alex Trebek has advanced stage pancreatic cancer hit his millions of fans hard this week. His illness has elicited heartbreak and support. As a clinician who treats pancreatic cancer, I anticipated the reaction that would follow next. Fear. While it is a rare form of cancer, pancreatic cancer … Read More
Medicare for All and the Problem of Health Care on Demand
The evolving politics of single-payer health care conflate the concepts of universal coverage, health care on demand and free health care. To the indiscriminate progressive mind, all three are part of the holy grail. The fly in the ointment is that highly attractive and altruistic politics runs into the brick wall of reality. As Thomas … Read More
First-ever Water Safety Summit has one Purpose – Spreading the Message About the Dangers of Water
The people who gathered at Marina Park in Newport Beach, Wednesday, March 6, had a common goal — to stop people from drowning. About 140 people – a mix of lifeguards, firefighters, hospital workers, swim instructors and others — came together at the first-ever Southern California Water Safety Summit to exchange ideas on how to … Read More
8 Little Ways You Can Actually Help Someone Dealing With Cancer
A cancer diagnosis can be devastating, regardless of the outlook. The news can also be hard on friends and family, as they struggle to figure out what they can do to help a loved one after the diagnosis. Beth Pauvlinch, who wrote about caring for her mother who lived with cancer in her book Two … Read More
How Do Fitness Trackers Fit in the Future of Health Care
I view medicine as a team effort. Doctors, nurses, technicians, and patients work together to promote and improve health. Recently some new members have joined the team: My patients’ Fitbits, phones, and watches. For years, the pessimists out there have predicted that wearable technology would lead to mass hysteria. Patients would misdiagnose themselves as having … Read More
After Luke Perry: A Greater Awareness of Stroke Symptoms
When your grandmother suffers a devastating stroke, it is a family tragedy, but it does not necessarily make the headlines. When Luke Perry has a massive stroke at age 52, it does. Stroke remains a surprisingly common occurrence, striking someone in the United States every 40 seconds, and killing someone every 3 minutes and 45 … Read More
Laguna Hills Mayor Honored for his Service in the Army at age 59
By all measures, Dore Gilbert was living a blessed life in 2010. Gilbert, a dermatologist, owned a successful practice in Newport Beach and treated patients at Hoag Hospital. He and his wife, Gloria, married 26 years at the time, had raised five children, including a son who was serving in the Marines. Gilbert had served … Read More
Rebuilding A Golf Classic's Swing
After 40 years spent golfing and running professional tournaments, Jeff Purser can track the trajectory of a title sponsor as well as any golf ball. Purser could see the mounting problems at Toshiba Corp. signaled trouble for the longtime title sponsor of the Newport Beach tournament. “It’d been a … roller coaster,” Purser said, noting … Read More
Healthgrades names 'America's Best Hospitals' 2019
Healthgrades released its annual “America's Best Hospitals” list on Feb. 12. Hoag was recognized for the eighth consecutive year (2012-2019). For the first time, Healthgrades opted to release one consolidated list instead of two awards. In years past, the company released the Healthgrades Distinguished Hospital Award for Clinical Excellence, representing the top 250 hospitals in … Read More
Is Gaming Disorder a Real Addiction, and How Can I Tell if it's Affecting my Child?
Studies have shown that video games and other addictions, such as alcohol and nicotine, affect neural pathways in similar ways: They all lead to an increase in dopamine levels in specific pleasure centers of the brain. While drugs increase dopamine levels far more than video games, gaming can have a similar deleterious effect of “taking … Read More