City of Hope Orange County expands through partnership with Pacific Shores

IRVINE — City of Hope only moved into Orange County less than two years ago, with the opening of the Newport Beach location in January 2020.

But the cancer treatment and research center has quickly expanded its footprint.

On Tuesday morning, City of Hope announced a partnership with Pacific Shores Medical Group, one of the country’s largest oncology/hematology medical groups and infusion programs.

This means that Pacific Shores’ three Orange County locations, including Huntington Beach, Irvine (Sand Canyon) and Newport Beach (Lido Island), are now officially part of the City of Hope network.

City of Hope Orange County physician-in-chief Dr. Edward Kim said at a news conference in Irvine that the expansion is one of the largest in the organization’s history.

“This is really great news, not only for us and the community, but for our patients,” Kim said. “In welcoming Pacific Shores patients, physicians and staff, we’re furthering our mission of bringing advanced, world-class care and research closer to home for more people in Southern California.”

Kim said that more than 20% of people in Orange County leave the county to seek care, and he finds that number to be too high.

“You should be treated closer to where you live, closer to your family, your friends, your support network,” he said. “We’re honored to welcome our friends and colleagues. They are like-minded healthcare professionals whose compassionate approach to research, science and breakthrough treatments have made a profound difference in the lives of patients and their families across Southern California.”

Dr. Edward Kim, physician-in-chief of City of Hope Orange County, makes comments during a press conference Tuesday in Irvine.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Pacific Shores founder and chief executive Dr. Simon Tchekmedyian agreed that the partnership made sense. The group was established in 1986 and also has four Los Angeles County locations — two in Long Beach, one in Glendale and one in Torrance — that will now be under the City of Hope umbrella.

The group has a total of 14 physicians, 11 nurse practitioners and physician assistants and more than 200 staff members.

“As healthcare providers, we are in the profession of offering hope when it’s needed most,” Tchekmedyian said. “Our patients will retain the Pacific Shores doctors they trust, while having unprecedented access to everything City of Hope has to offer … We can decisively say that hope is growing in Southern California.”

One of Tchekmedyian’s patients also spoke Tuesday. Elizabeth Lucas of Long Beach, 84, was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1998. She survived that, then a bout with kidney cancer that spread to her lung.

At one point, Lucas said she was told she faced a survival rate of 1%, but she said today she is considered cancer-free after undergoing chemotherapy.

“A long time ago ‘Dr. T’ told me that he had a dream, and that dream was to cure cancer,” Lucas said. “Now he has expanded his expertise to join the world-renowned City of Hope … this is care that is the best of all possible combinations. I’m getting world-renowned care close to my home.”

Kim said that City of Hope’s partnership with Pacific Shores is part of ongoing expansion plans in Orange County. The Lennar Foundation Cancer Center, which cost an estimated $1 billion, is scheduled to open in Irvine next year.

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