Dr. Heinz- Josef Lenz

Scientific Director, USC/Norris Cancer Genetics Unit
Associate Director, USC/Norris Gastrointestinal Oncology Program
Associate Professor of Medicine, Keck School of Medicine of USC

Dr. Lenz earned his medical degree at the
Johannes-Gutenberg UniversitŠt in Mainz, Germany.
In 1991, he completed his internship, residency and fellowship
training at the Eberhardt Karls UniversitŠt TŸbingen, Germany.
He had special fellowship training at UniversitŠt Wien (Austria), George Washington University and Harvard Medical School.
In 1991, he received the prestigious Research Fellowship Award from the "Deutsche Krebshilfe" (Bonn, Germany). He completed his research
fellowship in biochemistry and molecular biology at the
USC/Norris Cancer Center before joining the faculty of USC in 1994. He was
awarded a Career Development Award from STOP CANCER (1994-1997).

Based on his research, he also received in 1994 a Young Investigator
Award from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO).
In 1995, Dr. Lenz was selected for the prestigious ASCO
Career Development Award and in 2000 a Midcareer Development Award
from the National Cancer Institute. Dr. Lenz has used his NCI
funded laboratory in the identification and determination of
molecular markers in pre-cancerous and cancerous tissues
that might predict for cancer risk and clinical outcome in gastrointestinal
and breast cancer. Dr. Lenz is also the Institutional PI on the
U01/NIH contract (California Cancer Consortium) in collaboration
with City of Hope and UC Davis which allows him to design innovative
clinical trials with novel promising anti-cancer drugs.

For more detailed information about Dr. Lenz, please see his
curriculum vitae. For appointment information,
please see contact information area.

 

 

 

Dr. Robert W. Beart

Costello Professor of Surgery

Dr. Robert W. Beart graduated from Harvard Medical School and
had his surgical training at the University of Colorado and the
Mayo Clinic. He is Board certified and re-certified in General
and Colorectal Surgery. He worked at the Mayo Clinic from 1
976 to 1992 and has been at the University of Southern
California since 1992.

His special areas of interest include the management of
colon and rectal cancer and recurrent colon and rectal cancer as well as inflammatory bowel disease and preservation of intestinal continence.

For more detailed information about Dr. Beart,
please see his curriculum vitae. For appointment information,
please see contact information area.

 

 

Dr. Syma Iqbal

Assistant professor of medicine

Dr. Iqbal recently joined the medical oncology faculty at the
USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center.
She specializes in gastrointestinal cancers: an array of malignancies
spanning from the esophagus to the rectum.
A 1995 graduate of the Keck School of Medicine,
Iqbal returned to USC for a fellowship in 2000 and began
writing clinical trials with Heinz-Josef Lenz, M.D., associate professor
of medicine and USC/Norris gastrointestinal oncology director.

For more detailed information about Dr. Iqbal,
please see her curriculum vitae. For appointment information,
please see contact information area.

 

 

Yolanda Casagrande, R.N.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Talin Khoukane, N.P.

Nurse Practitioner

Taline Khoukaz, is a Nurse Practitioner, at USC/Norris
Comprehensive Cancer Center. Taline works with Dr. Heinz-Josef Lenz
in the Gastrointestinal Oncology Program. She received her
Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing at USC. She worked as a
Registered Nurse on medical-surgical floors for two years.
She later transferred to the Intensive Care Unit at
USC University Hospital.
Concurrently, Taline began her Master’s of Science Program as
an Acute Care Nurse Practitioner at UCLA. She graduated in 2000
and soon after received her certification.
Her particular interests include new drug developments,
patients and education.

 

 

Charité Ricke

Genetic Counselor

Charité Ricker, MS, CGC is a board certified genetic counselor with specialization in hereditary cancer risk assessment. She has a Bachelors of Science in genetics from Texas A&M University and received her Masters of Science in genetic counseling at California State University, Northridge. She is a member of the American Society of Human Genetics, the National Society of Genetic Counselors, the American Association for Cancer Educators, and the Intercultural Cancer Council.