Clinic Director: Meyeon Park, M.D., M.A.S. (Nephrology)

Meyeon Park’s research focuses on the impact of cardiovascular disease on patients with kidney disease of varying stages and in patients with polycystic kidney disease and recipients of kidney transplants. She is interested in biomarkers and imaging techniques to better predict kidney and cardiovascular disease. Park graduated magna cum laude with a biology degree from Harvard College and earned her medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. She completed her residency in internal medicine at Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, Connecticut, and her nephrology fellowship at UCSF, where she also earned a master of advanced studies degree in clinical research and epidemiology. She is a recipient of career development awards from both the National Institutes of Health and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation.

Marcelle I. Cedars, M.D. (Reproductive Endocrinology)

Dr. Marcelle Cedars is a specialist in caring for patients going through in vitro fertilization and perimenopause, as well as patients with polycystic ovarian syndrome. She is director of the UCSF Center for Reproductive Health.

Cedars also directs UCSF’s reproductive endocrinology division, coordinating the relationship between scientific research and personalized care for patients. In her own research, she focuses on ovarian aging and how it affects both fertility and women’s overall health.

Cedars received her medical training at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. She completed a residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Parkland Health & Hospital System, followed by a fellowship in reproductive endocrinology at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Allen Chao, MD, MS (Nephrology)

Allen Chao earned his medical degree and graduate degree in physiology and biophysics at Georgetown University School of Medicine. He completed a residency in internal medicine at Los Angeles County + University of Southern California where he served as Chief Resident. He then completed his fellowship in nephrology at UCSF. He cares for a broad range of patients with kidney disease and high blood pressure.

 

 

Thomas Chi, M.D. (Urology)

Dr. Thomas Chi, MD, graduated as a President's Scholar from Stanford University with a Bachelor of Arts in Human Biology as well as Masters degrees in both Sociology and Music. He went on to earn his medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine. After graduating, he completed two years of general surgery residency training and then a urology residency at UCSF. After completing his Chief Resident year in the Department of Urology, he continued on to finish a fellowship in Endourology and Laparoscopy under the mentorship of Dr. Marshall L. Stoller.

During his fellowship, Dr. Chi was awarded grant funding from the National Institutes of Health and the American Urological Association Urology Care Foundation to research the fundamental mechanisms underlying the formation of urinary stones. He developed a novel model for the study of kidney stones utilizing the common fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster.

Giuseppe Cullaro, MD (Gastroenterology)

I am a gastroenterologist and transplant hepatologist who cares for patients with general hepatology and transplant hepatology needs.

My academic interests lie at the intersection of hepatology and nephrology. Specifically, I focus on improving outcomes for patients with end-stage liver disease by identifying predictive markers of future kidney dysfunction—markers that may inform the mechanism of disease pathogenesis and allow for the implementation of preventative strategies.

I earned my undergraduate and medical degrees from Boston University. I completed a residency in Internal Medicine at New York Presbyterian—Columbia University, followed by a gastroenterology fellowship at UCSF, and a transplant hepatology fellowship at New York Presbyterian—Cornell and Columbia University in 2020. I obtained a Master of Advanced Studies in Clinical Research through the UCSF Graduate Division in 20

Sarah Doernberg, M.D. (Infectious Diseases Specialist)

Sarah Doernberg is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and the Medical Director of Adult Antimicrobial Stewardship at UCSF Medical Center. She has an active outpatient Infectious Diseases Clinic and sees inpatients on the Transplant Infectious Diseases service. Her clinical research focuses on healthcare-acquired infections and antimicrobial stewardship.

She received her BA from Harvard University in Biology with a focus in Neurobiology and received her MD from Yale University School of Medicine. She completed her Internal Medicine residency and Infectious Diseases fellowship at UCSF. She also received a Masters’ degree in advanced studies through the Training in Clinical Research Program at UCSF.

Chris Freise, M.D. (Transplant Surgery)

Dr. Christopher E. Freise is a member of the UCSF Transplant Service with particular interest in adult and pediatric liver and kidney transplants, surgery for liver tumors and kidney cysts, laparoscopic surgery for the liver and gall bladder, and surgery for dialysis access. In his research, he addresses immunosuppressive drugs used after transplantation and methods to prevent ischema-reperfusion injury or tissue damage after blood supply is restored. His research is recognized and funded by the National Institutes of Health and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons.

Dr. Freise earned a medical degree at the University of Minnesota, where he completed a residency in surgery. He completed a postdoctoral fellowship in transplant surgery at UCSF Medical Center. He is certified by the American Board of Surgery and is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons.

Stephen Gluck, M.D. (Nephrology)

Dr. Gluck is an eminent scientist and nephrologist, who earned his medical degree at the University of California, Los Angeles and completed his internal medicine residency and nephrology fellowship at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center. He is a Full Professor at the University of California, San Francisco and has been awarded the “Top Doctor” award from San Francisco Magazine on numerous occasions.  

 

 

Donald Grandis, M.D. (Cardiology)

Don Grandis graduated Virginia Commonwealth University/Medical College of Virginia in 1985. He received training in Internal Medicine and Cardiology at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He practiced cardiology in Pittsburgh, PA for over 20 years as an Interventional Cardiologist. He joined the faculty at UCSF in March 2015. Here, he is practicing General Cardiology with a focus on using digital technology to help manage hypertension. He also has an interest in the interaction between heart disease with both renal and liver disease.

 

 

Priya Kathpalia, M.D.  (Gastroenterology)

Dr. Priya Kathpalia is a gastroenterologist with a special interest in esophageal and other gastrointestinal motility disorders—digestive conditions related to the passage of food and secretions. She is also trained in performing upper endoscopies, colonoscopies, esophageal manometry, pH, and SmartPill studies.

Prior to concentrating on motility disorders, Kathpalia's research focused on inflammatory bowel disease and liver diseases.

After earning her medical degree at Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine, Kathpalia completed a residency in internal medicine at Loyola University Medical Center, where she also served as chief resident. Kathpalia then completed a fellowship in gastroenterology at UCSF, where she trained with international experts in esophagology.

Kathpalia belongs to the American College of Gastroenterology, American Gastroenterological Association, American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy and Northern California Society for Clinical Gastroenterology. She is an assistant professor of medicine at UCSF and also serves as an associate program director for the GI fellowship program.

Gabriel Loeb, MD, PhD (Nephrology)

Gabriel Loeb, MD, PhD is a physician-scientist investigating the mechanisms underlying kidney disease. His research focuses on two major areas: 1) using human common genetic variation to identify cellular and molecular drivers of chronic kidney disease and 2) identifying the molecular mediators of Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease. Findings from both projects demonstrate the central role of tubule epithelial cells in kidney disease pathogenesis. Gabriel’s research program integrates human genetics, novel kidney disease models, and single cell genomics to reveal essential regulators of tubule epithelial cell health and enable new therapies for people suffering from kidney disease.

 

George Pasvankas, M.D. (Pain Management)

Dr. George W. Pasvankas is an attending physician at the UCSF Pain Management Center, where he treats patients with chronic pain, including cancer pain, chronic neck and low-back pain, neuropathic pain syndromes and complex regional pain syndrome. He also cares for patients undergoing anesthesia for surgery, including preoperative assessment and management, intraoperative anesthetic management and postoperative management and recovery.

Pasvankas is a member of the American Society of Anesthesiologists and California Society of Anesthesiologists. He earned a medical degree at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York, followed by a residency in anesthesiology at Massachusetts General Hospital and a fellowship in pain medicine at UCSF. Pasvankas serves as director for the UCSF Pain Medicine Fellowship Program and is an associate professor of medicine at UCSF.

Annalisa Post, MD (Perinatologist)

Dr. Annalisa Post is a perinatologist, an obstetrician who cares for patients with high-risk or complicated pregnancies. Dr. Post cares for patients with complications including fetal conditions such as fetal anomalies and complex multiple gestations; and maternal conditions such as cardiovascular, renal, and autoimmune conditions. Dr. Post earned her medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry. She completed a residency in obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, followed by a fellowship in maternal-fetal medicine at Duke University. Dr. Post is a member of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine and International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.

 

Atif Qasim, M.D., M.S.C.E. (Cardiology)

Atif Qasim, M.D., MSCE is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Cardiology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He earned his M.S./B.S. in Biochemistry and Biophysics at Yale University and earned his M.D. degree at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He completed his medical internship, residency, chief residency and cardiology fellowship at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where he also served as chief resident. During his cardiology fellowship, Dr. Qasim received advanced training in multimodality imaging and earned a master’s degree in clinical epidemiology. While at Penn he worked in the labs of Drs. Muredach Reilly and Dan Rader in the Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics on projects related to the genetics of atherosclerosis and the use of non-invasive imaging in preventive cardiology. He joined the University of California, San Francisco cardiology faculty in 2012.

Laalasa Varanasi, M.D. (Nephrology)

Dr. Laalasa Varanasi is a nephrologist who cares for patients with a broad range of conditions affecting the kidneys, including high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease, autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (a genetic disorder in which cysts form in the kidneys), glomerular disorders (involving the capillary clusters that filter the blood) and kidney cancer. She also oversees nephrology consultations and dialysis for patients on the medical and surgical wards as well as in the intensive care units. 

Dr. Varanasi earned her medical degree at the University of Missouri – Kansas City School of Medicine. She completed a residency in internal medicine at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and a fellowship in nephrology at UCSF, serving as chief fellow. Having a special interest in medical education, she also participated in the Health Professions Education Pathway program while completing her fellowship.

Jane Wang, M.D. (Radiology)

Z. Jane Wang, MD, received her undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from Brown University, and her medical degree from Northwestern University Medical School. She completed her residency training in Diagnostic Radiology at the University of California, San Francisco, during which time she also served as a Chief Resident from 2006-2007. Dr. Wang subsequently completed a fellowship in Abdominal Imaging at the University of California, San Francisco.

Dr. Wang’s research interests primarily focus on identification of novel imaging techniques and their development into practical and clinically useful diagnostic tools, with a particular emphasis on renal tumors and diffuse renal disease. One of Dr. Wang’s current research endeavor is to use hyperpolarized 13C MR spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) to assess renal tumor aggressiveness. She has also been studying functional imaging using MR and CT of diffuse renal disease. She is the recipient of several grants, including Department of Defense Peer Reviewed Cancer Research Program Concept Award, Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Scholar Grant, and RSNA Fellow Grant.

Jennifer Ashby, DOAM (Acupuncturist)

Dr. Jennifer Ashby, DAOM has practiced Traditional Chinese Medicine since 1996. She earned her master’s degree in Traditional Chinese Medicine in 1995 from the American College of Traditional Chinese Medicine (ACTCM) and her Doctorate of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine from ACTCM in 2010. She has been in practice at The Lotus Center in San Francisco since 1996.

Dr. Ashby has taught Women’s Health at ACTCM since 2001. She has also worked as a research assessor for three years at Stanford University, on a study researching the effects of acupuncture on depression. She has been an addiction recovery and detoxification specialist since 1994, and has treated inmates in the San Francisco County Jails for addiction, using acupuncture treatments. She completed her doctoral residencies at Marin General Hospital and Shanghai University Hospital.

Jennifer has guest lectured at UC Berkeley and the San Francisco Doula Group, as well as ACTCM, where she was the keynote speaker for their 2012 graduation ceremony. She has been at the Osher Center since 2014.

Mary Ellen DiPaola, R.D., C.D.E. (Registered Dietitian)

Mary Ellen DiPaola is a dietitian, certified diabetes educator and board-certified lactation consultant. She provides nutrition therapy for chronic kidney disease, diabetes, weight management and bariatric surgery, cardiac and gastrointestinal disorders, as well as women's health, obstetrics, and childhood feeding issues.

At UCSF, DiPaola sees patients at the Nutrition Counseling Clinic, Pre-Kidney Transplant Clinic, the Bariatric Surgery Center, the Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome Clinic, The Young Women's Clinic and the adult diabetes practice. DiPaola received her Bachelor of Science degree in nutrition and dietetics from the University of Delaware and completed an internship at University of Indiana/Purdue University Medical Center.

Andrew Lui, PT, DPT (Physical Therapist)

Dr. Andrew Lui is currently a Clinical Professor in the Department of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science. His areas of expertise include workstation ergonomics and physical therapy for rheumatologic and spine disorders. He obtained his BS from the University of California, Berkeley, and his Masters and Doctorate in Physical Therapy from the joint program at the University of California, San Francisco and San Francisco State University. After working as an inpatient and outpatient staff physical therapist, he joined the UCSF Faculty Practice in 2000.