A headshot of Hender Rojas in a white coat

UK HealthCare Team Blue is welcoming a new provider to its primary care team. Hender Rojas, APRN, joined Team Blue on Dec. 29, 2025, and will begin accepting new patients starting the week of Jan. 12, 2026.

Denise Fabian - A blonde woman wearing her white coat - smiling, conveying positivity and professionalism.

University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Centerradiation oncologist Denise Fabian, MD, will lead a national symposium focused on theranostics, a rapidly advancing approach to precision cancer care that combines diagnostic imaging and therapeutic interventions. 

Riham El Khouli, MD, sits in a dark computer lab, examining brain scans that highlight in a range of vivid colors.

Imagine being able to see the invisible—amyloid plaques, tau tangles, and metabolic changes in the living brain. This is no longer science fiction; it’s reality at the University of Kentucky.

Fong with members of his lab, standing in front of their lab station. Conveying a unified presence.

A University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Centerstudy reveals how prostate cancer cells adapt their metabolism to thrive in bone tissue, offering a potential new treatment target for patients with advanced disease.

Dr. Yalniz, Blandford, and Safdar stand in front of their abstract posters

Sarah Sertich, MD, Cole Blandford, MD, and Rafeh Safdar, MBBS, of the division of hematology and cellular therapy, have each earned an Abstract Achievement Award from the American Society of Hematology (ASH).

Bernardo Aguzzoli in a lab coat holds a Wilson basketball in an indoor hallway, smiling confidently. The setting suggests a fusion of science and sports.

The University of Kentucky’s Sanders-Brown Center on Aging is home to researchers pushing the field of Alzheimer’s science forward — among them, soon-to-be graduate Bernardo Aguzzoli Herbele, who will earn his doctorate in neuroscience this month.

A group of individuals standing in front of a window, smiling

Elizabeth Schroder Stumpf, PhD, associate professor of pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine, Brian Delisle, PhD, professor of physiology, and their co-investigator Yuan Wen, PhD, assistant professor of physiology, were recently awarded a 4-year R01 grant, totaling $2,732,520, from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of National Institutes of Health (NIH) for their proj

UK University of Kentucky, Behind the Blue Podcast logo

Kentucky has one of the nation’s highest burdens of chronic lung disease, a challenge intensified by smoking prevalence, occupational exposures and limited access to specialized care in rural communities. As UK HealthCare looks to expand its services for those with advanced lung conditions, a new leader is helping to guide that effort.

Sara Police sits in an office chair, smiling, and holding a laptop. The background features a colorful painting and an anatomical poster, creating a scholarly atmosphere.

Two students at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine have had unique learning and training opportunities thanks to generous contributions to a new gift account.

Three medical students wearing white coats walk down long hallway, UK College of Medicine logo to the left

As the University of Kentucky College of Medicine continues expanding its clinical and educational reach, two new graduate medical education (GME) programs represent a major step toward the college’s goal of advancing health care across the Commonwealth.

Dr. James Wharton posts for a headshot in a white coat, blue shirt, and striped, yellow tie

James Wharton, MD, has been selected to serve as the chief of the new dermatology division in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine, effective Nov. 3, 2025. He joins the College of Medicine as an assistant professor of medicine and will support the establishment and growth of the dermatology service line.

Jay Avasarala leaning against a railing in front of a large, arched window.

For most of us, the phrase “stroke of the eye” sounds like a metaphor. But for UK HealthCare’s Jagannadha “Jay” Avasarala, MD, PhD, it’s a literal and urgent diagnosis — one that could mean the difference between sight and permanent blindness.

A man in a striped shirt, laying back and holding his arms over his head while receiving a CT scan.

The University of Kentucky Markey Cancer Center and the Department of Radiology will join cancer centers across the nation in observing National Lung Cancer Screening Day Nov.

Headshot of Dr. Anthony Gerber

Anthony Gerber, MD, PhD, has been selected to serve as the division chief for pulmonary, critical care, and sleep medicine in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine, effective Nov. 4, 2025.

The Moore lab members, standing in a row of five in front of a presentation

Justin Moore, PhD, primary faculty in Center for Health, Engagement, and Transformation (CHET), and members of his lab presented impactful research at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Conference held on Sept. 18 – 21, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland.

Dr. Griffith and Dr. Arnold pose for a photo in front of a blue background

The UK College of Medicine is excited to announce that Susanne Arnold, MD, professor of medicine, has been named recipient of the prestigious William R. Willard Dean’s Recognition Award. She was honored at the 2025 College of Medicine Awards Convocation.

A woman in a mask works with syringes, next to a headshot of Dr. Wem

A team of clinicians and scientists from the University of Kentucky College of Medicine and College of Health Sciences published new data that shows a potential link between circulating sIL2r, a T-cell receptor, and muscle mitochondrial function in individuals with post-viral fatigue, a.k.a. long COVID.

Eric Durbin headshot

Eric B. Durbin, DrPH, MS, has been selected to serve as interim division chief for biomedical informatics in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine, effective September 17, 2025.

An overhead shot of the 10th annual Neuroscience Symposium, showing individuals conducting poster presentations.

The Neuroscience Research Priority Area’s 10thannual Neuroscience Clinical-Translational Research Symposium will be Nov. 6-7 in the Healthy Kentucky Research Building. 

Register for the symposium online. 

Kshitij Thakur, MD

This story originally appeared on The Loop.