The holidays are typically a joyful time of year, but UCSF police remind us not to forget that crime can occur any time or day.

Dave Robb began working at UCSF 13 years ago, in 1999, when he was hired as science coordinator for both the Center for AIDS Prevention Studies (CAPS) and the AIDS Research Institute (ARI), working half time for each.

Shinya Yamanaka, MD, PhD, and John Gurdon, PhD, are in Stockholm this week to receive the 2012 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries that led to the development of induced pluripotent stem cells.

Precision medicine and cancer genetics were among the topics discussed during 11 breakout sessions guided by 30 UCSF faculty members at the Nov. 7 showcase for the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Robert A. Fishman, MD, former chair of the Department of Neurology at UCSF, died on Dec. 4, 2012 from complications of Alzheimer’s disease. He was 88.

The rate of cancer survival is expected to keep climbing in coming years largely thanks to research discoveries that are translating into new cancer drugs, which currently account for roughly 30 percent of the pharmaceutical dollar, the chief scientific officer at Bristol-Myers Squib recently said at a showcase event for the UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes, which is affiliated with UCSF, are recommending a shift in efforts to treat Alzheimer’s disease by developing drugs that target the apoE4 protein, which has long been associated with an increased risk for the disease.