Trojan Talks Ep. 12: President Kim with Paul Aisen and Steve Shapiro

How close are we to preventing Alzheimer’s disease—and what role can academic medicine play in changing the future of healthcare?

In this episode of Trojan Talks, USC President Beong-Soo Kim is joined by two leading USC physician-scientists: Dr. Paul Aisen, director of the USC Epstein Family Alzheimer’s Therapeutic Research Institute, and Dr. Steve Shapiro, USC’s executive vice president for health affairs and CEO of Keck Medicine of USC.

Recorded live at a Trojan Family reception in La Jolla, California, the conversation explores major advances in Alzheimer’s research, including new imaging technologies, blood tests, clinical trials, and treatments designed to target the disease earlier in its progression. Dr. Aisen discusses how decades of research have transformed scientists’ understanding of Alzheimer’s—from a disease identified primarily through symptoms to one that can increasingly be detected and studied years before those symptoms appear.

The episode also examines the broader promise of academic medicine. Dr. Shapiro discusses how patient care, scientific discovery, medical education, philanthropy, and clinical research work together at institutions like USC to accelerate innovation and improve outcomes for patients with complex conditions.

Together, the conversation looks at why researchers are increasingly optimistic about the next decade of medicine—and how collaboration across universities, health systems, industry, government agencies, and research participants can help turn scientific discoveries into better prevention and treatment.

Topics include:
• Alzheimer’s disease research and prevention
• Alzheimer’s clinical trials
• Blood-based biomarkers and early detection
• Amyloid and tau imaging
• New Alzheimer’s treatments
• Academic medicine and medical research
• Translational research and patient care
• Keck Medicine of USC
• The future of healthcare innovation


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