Karen Tsai, M.D.

800-826-4673
Karen Tsai, M.D.
Endocrinologist
Clinical Expertise
  • Thyroid Disorders/Thyroid Cancer
  • Thyroid Tumors
  • Immunotherapy Related Endocrinopathies
Research Area
  • Thyroid Cancer
  • Cancer Immunotherapy
  • Immunotherapy Related Endocrinopathies
Other Languages Spoken
Mandarin
Academic Appointments
  • Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Diabetes, Endocrinology & Metabolism
Clinical Teams
Diabetes, Endocrinology & Metabolism
Thyroid Cancer
Research Teams
Diabetes, Endocrinology & Metabolism

Karen Tsai, M.D., enjoys collaborating with comprehensive teams of specialists to formulate personalized care plans tailored to her patient’s needs. She is passionate about City of Hope’s mission and appreciates how its community of interdisciplinary health care providers work together to face the challenges of treating rare and unusual cases. Her clinical and research interests are related to endocrine diseases resulting from cancer immunotherapy (onco-endocrinology).

Dr. Tsai earned her medical degree at the Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University in New York. She completed her internal medicine residency at the University of Southern California and endocrinology fellowship at University of California Los Angeles. Hailing from Arcadia, California, she also graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from University of Southern California with a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences.

Dr. Tsai specializes in treating thyroid disorders. She is especially interested in thyroid diseases, thyroid cancers, endocrine disorders from cancer immunotherapy and targeted therapy treatments, bone disorders, and diabetes.

Location

Education & Experience

Board Certifications

  • 2022, American Board of Internal Medicine- Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism Certification
  • 2020, American Board of Internal Medicine- Internal Medicine Certification

Degrees

  • 2017, Doctor of Medicine, Renaissance School of Medicine at Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY
  • 2013, Bachelor of Arts, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

Fellowships

  • 2022, Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA

Residencies

  • 2020, Internal Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA

Professional Experience

  • 2022-present, Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Diabetes, Endocrinology & Metabolism, City of Hope, Duarte, CA
  • 2022-present, Co-Chair of Inpatient Hyperglycemia Committee

Awards & Memberships

Awards

  • 2022, Stony Brook Alumni 40 under Forty
  • 2020, Mazda Hero (Community Service Award)
  • 2020, Presenter at the 72nd Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
  • 2020, USC Internal Medicine Resident of the Year Award
  • 2017, Gold Humanism Honor Society
  • 2012, Phi Beta Kappa

Memberships

  • American Thyroid Association
  • Endocrine Society
  • American Association of Clinical Endocrinology

Publications

  • Tsai K, Arca K, Ituarte PHG, Gernon T, Salehian B, Bell D, Maghami E. Worse survival and higher rates of relapse in U.S. Armenians with papillary thyroid cancer. Laryngoscope Investig Otolaryngol. 2024 Dec 20;9(6):e70052. doi: 10.1002/lio2.70052. PMID: 39713734; PMCID: PMC11659813.
  • Tsai K, Leung AM. (2024, Sept 25). Abnormal TSH: Forget it or Fret it?
  • Moffatt C, Lechner MG, Angell TE, Shen J, Drakaki A, Acosta GJ, Liang TZ, Tsai K. The Effect of Apalutamide on Thyroid Function in Prostate Cancer Patients. J Endocr Soc. 2024 May 27;8(7):bvae105. doi: 10.1210/jendso/bvae105. PMID: 38854906; PMCID: PMC11156616.
  • Tsai K, Ma H, Liang TZ, Xing Y, Chung S, Dorff T, Bell D, Lechner MG. The Combined Effect of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors and Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors on Thyroid Function. Thyroid. 2024 Feb;34(2):158-166. doi: 10.1089/thy.2023.0542. Epub 2024 Jan 8. PMID: 38069567; PMCID: PMC10884548.
  • Hilder R, Tsai K, Quandt Z, Isaacs D, Drakaki A, Xing Y, In GK, Angell TE, Lechner MG. Safety and efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitor cancer therapy in patients with preexisting type 1 diabetes mellitus. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne). 2023 Oct 31;14:1242830. doi: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1242830. PMID: 38027216; PMCID: PMC10643762.
  • Tsai K, Inoue K, McClean M, Kaunitz JD, Akiba Y, Lee ML, Neverova NV, Currier JW, Ebrahimi R, Bashir MT, Leung AM. Iodine contrast exposure and incident COVID-19 infection. Front Med (Lausanne). 2022 Dec 1;9:1033601. doi: 10.3389/fmed.2022.1033601. PMID: 36530869; PMCID: PMC9751341.
  • Long C, Tsai K, Napolitano JD, Khawaja RA, Leung AM. The Current Status of Preclinical Endocrine Education in U.S. Medical Schools. Endocr Pract. 2022 Aug;28(8):744-748. doi: 10.1016/j.eprac.2022.04.008. Epub 2022 Apr 20. PMID: 35452814.
  • Mosaferi T, Tsai K, Sovich S, Wilhalme H, Kathuria-Prakash N, Praw SS, Drakaki A, Angell TE, Lechner MG. Optimal Thyroid Hormone Replacement Dose in Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor-Associated Hypothyroidism Is Distinct from Hashimoto's Thyroiditis. Thyroid. 2022 May;32(5):496-504. doi: 10.1089/thy.2021.0685. Epub 2022 Mar 31. PMID: 35199588; PMCID: PMC9145255.
  • Tsai K, Long C, Liang TZ, Napolitano J, Khawaja R, Leung AM. Driving Factors to Pursue Endocrinology Training Fellowship: Empirical Survey Data and Future Strategies. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 2022 May 17;107(6):e2459-e2463. doi: 10.1210/clinem/dgac087. PMID: 35165741.
  • Tsai K, Leung AM. (2022) Subclinical Hyperthyroidism: Case Report and Review of the Literature. In: Davies T.F. (eds) A Case-Based Guide to Clinical Endocrinology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84367-0_7
  • Tsai K, Angell TE, Lechner MG. (2021, Nov 15). A Thyroid Antibody Primer in Five Quick Cases. Medscape. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/962626
  • Tsai K, Yu AC, Livhits MJ, Sajed D, Leung AM, Cheung DS. Systemic light-chain amyloidosis incidentally diagnosed after subtotal parathyroidectomy and thyroid lobectomy. BMJ Case Rep. 2021 Apr 19;14(4):e241282. doi: 10.1136/bcr-2020-241282. PMID: 33875506; PMCID: PMC8057551.
  • Tsai K, Leung AM. Subclinical Hyperthyroidism: A Review of the Clinical Literature. Endocr Pract. 2021 Mar;27(3):254-260. doi: 10.1016/j.eprac.2021.02.002. Epub 2021 Feb 13. PMID: 33588063.
  • Pham CH, Vrouwe SQ, Tsai K, Ding L, Collier ZJ, Grote AC, Angell TE, Garner WL, Gillenwater TJ, Yenikomshian HA. Hypoglycemic episodes predict length of stay in patients with acute burns. J Crit Care. 2021 Aug;64:68-73. doi: 10.1016/j.jcrc.2021.03.005. Epub 2021 Mar 24. PMID: 33794469; PMCID: PMC8527897.
  • Chen CH, Grollman AP, Huang CY, Shun CT, Sidorenko VS, Hashimoto K, Moriya M, Turesky RJ, Yun BH, Tsai K, Wu S, Chuang PY, Tang CH, Yang WH, Tzai TS, Tsai YS, Dickman KG, Pu YS. Additive Effects of Arsenic and Aristolochic Acid in Chemical Carcinogenesis of Upper Urinary Tract Urothelium. Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev. 2021 Feb;30(2):317-325. doi: 10.1158/1055-9965.EPI-20-1090. Epub 2020 Dec 4. PMID: 33277322; PMCID: PMC8083126.
  • Tsai, K, Liang, TZ, Grant, EG, Swanson, MS, Barnett, B, Optimal imaging for diagnosis of parathyroid adenoma: Case report and review of the literature. Journal of Clinical and Translational Endocrinology: Case Reports, (2020), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecr.2020.100065