Kevork K. Kazanjian, MD
Accepting new patients

Kevork K. Kazanjian, MD

  • Colon and Rectal Surgery
General Surgery | 100 Medical Plaza, Suite 700, Los Angeles, CA 90095
310-794-7788
+3 more locations

About

Dr. Kazanjian is a Health Sciences Clinical Professor in the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. 

Dr. Kazanjian was raised in Los Angeles and received both his medical and undergraduate degrees from UCLA. He completed his General Surgery residency at the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, during which time he spent two years as a fellow in cancer research. He then completed Colorectal Surgery subspecialty training at the University of Minnesota—the oldest and largest Colon and Rectal Surgery training program in the country. He is board certified in General Surgery and Colon and Rectal Surgery.  He began his career as a faculty surgeon in 2009 as Assistant Professor at Loma Linda University Medical Center, where he established a high volume colorectal surgery unit and later served as Chief of Colorectal Surgery. In 2014, Dr. Kazanjian was recruited to join the UCLA Department of Surgery as Chief of Colorectal Surgery and led the program to significant clinical growth and advancement. 

A highly regarded clinician educator, Dr. Kazanjian emphasizes multidisciplinary care and minimally invasive surgical approaches. He has one of the most extensive experiences with robotic colorectal surgery in the Los Angeles area. His clinical interests and expertise include Colon and Rectal Cancer, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis), and anorectal disorders (hemorrhoids, anal fistula, pilonidal cyst, rectal prolapse).  Over the course of the first decade of his practice, Dr. Kazanjian performed over 4000 operations, half of which were major abdominal colon/rectal operations, and the others were outpatient anorectal surgeries.  Over 85% of abdominal operations are performed using minimally invasive laparoscopic or robotic techniques to promote quicker recovery and discharge home from the hospital. This includes an extensive experience with minimally invasive sphincter-preserving surgery for rectal cancer and J-pouch surgery for ulcerative colitis.  Traditional open surgery is reserved for the most complex, usually reoperative cases.

In 2015, Dr. Kazanjian established a satellite office for UCLA Colorectal Surgery in Santa Clarita to help facilitate easier access to consultations, outpatient surgery, and follow-up care for patients in northern Los Angeles and beyond.  All major inpatient abdominal surgeries however are performed at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.

Dr. Kazanjian is the recipient of several awards for teaching, research and clinical excellence, including "Top Doctor" by Castle Connolly and Los Angeles Magazine.

Academic Appointments

  • Professor of Surgery

Memberships

  • American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons
  • American College of Surgeons
  • Society of Surgical Oncology
  • Pacific Coast Surgical Association

Languages

English, Armenian

Education

Medical Board Certifications

Colon and Rectal Surgery, American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery, 2011
Surgery, American Board of Surgery, 2009

Fellowship

Colon & Rectal Surgery, University of Minnesota GME, 2009

Residency

General Surgery, UCLA School of Medicine, 2008

Internship

General Surgery, UCLA School of Medicine, 2002

Degree

MD, UCLA School of Medicine, 2001

Recognitions

Locations

West Los Angeles

General Surgery

General Surgery| Gastrointestinal Surgical Oncology| Trauma Surgery +2 more specialties
310-794-7788
Fax:310-794-1039
Location Details
Santa Monica

Santa Monica Surgery

General Surgery| Surgical Oncology| Colon and Rectal Surgery +4 more specialties
310-319-4080
Fax:310-394-5215
Location Details

Hospital Affiliations

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center

UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center

Videos

Colorectal Surgery Program
Colorectal Cancer Update
Dr. Kevork Kazanjian - Chief, Colorectal Surgery | UCLA Health Careers
Minimally Invasive Management of Colorectal Cancer 

Research

Publications

Dr. Kazanjian's PubMed publications(Link is external) (Link opens in new window)

  1. Marjun Duldulao, Cassie Booth, Laura Denham, Audrey Choi, Garrett Friedman, and Kevork Kazanjian. Alcohol Fat Clearance Increases Lymph Node Yield after Surgery for Colorectal Cancer. American Surgeon, 2014 Oct..
  2. Ted C. Ling, Jason M. Slater, Maheswari Senthil, Kevork Kazanjian, Frank Howard, Carlos A. Garberoglio, Jerry D. Slater, and Gary Y. Yang. Surgical and radiation therapy management of recurrent anal melanoma. J Gastrointest Oncol 2014. doi: 10.3978/ j.issn.2078-6891.2013.050
  3. Myung Mi Cho, John W. Morgan, Raymond Knutsen, Keiji Oda, David Shavlik, Synnove Knutsen, and Kevork Kazanjian. Outcomes of multimodality therapies for stage II and III rectal cancer patients in California, 1994-2009. Diseases of the Colon & Rectum, 2013 Dec;56(12):1357-65. PMID: 24201389
  4. Windy Olaya, Jan H. Wong , Jasmine Wong, John W. Morgan, Kevork Kazanjian, and Sharon S. Lum. When is a Lymph Node Dissection a Lymph Node Dissection? The Number of Lymph Nodes Resected in Sentinel and Axillary Lymph Node Dissections. Ann Surg Oncol 2012 Sep 7. PMID: 22956069
  5. John W. Morgan, Myung Mi Cho, Christine D. Guenzi, Christian Jackson, Arvind Mathur, Zuhair Natto, Kevork Kazanjian, Hoan Tran, David Shavlik, and Sharon S. Lum. Predictors of Delayed-Stage Colorectal Cancer: Are We Neglecting Critical Demographic Information? Annals of Epidemiology 2011 Dec;21(12):914-921. PMID: 22000327
  6. Matthew Roos, Jan H. Wong, Sharmilla Roy-Chowdhury, Sharon S. Lum, John W. Morgan, and Kevork Kazanjian. The Impact of Multidisciplinary Care in Node-Positive Rectal Cancer. American Surgeon, 2010 Oct;76(10): 1163-1166(4). PMID: 21105635
  7. Isabella Kuo, Jan H. Wong, Sharmilla Roy-Chowdhury, John W. Morgan, and Kevork Kazanjian. The Utilization of Pelvic Radiation in Stage II Rectal Cancer: A Population Based Analysis. American Surgeon, 2010 Oct;76(10): 1092-1095(4). PMID: 21105617
  8. Windy Olaya, Won Bae, Jan H. Wong, Jasmine Wong, Sharmilla Roy-Chowdhury, Kevork Kazanjian, and Sharon S. Lum. Are percutaneous biopsy rates a reasonable quality measure in breast cancer management? Ann Surg Oncol. 2010 Oct;17(Suppl 3):268-72. PMID: 20853045
  9. Windy Olaya, Jan H. Wong, John W Morgan, Caitlyn Truong, Sharmilla Roy-Chowdhury, Kevork Kazanjian, and Sharon S. Lum. Factors associated with variance in compliance with a sentinel lymph node dissection quality measure in early-stage breast cancer. Ann Surg Oncol. 2010 Oct;17(Suppl 3):297-302. PMID: 20853050
  10. Windy Olaya, Won Bae, Jan H. Wong, Jasmine Wong, Sharmilla Roy-Chowdhury, Kevork Kazanjian, and Sharon S. Lum. Accuracy and Upgrade Rates of Percutaneous Breast Biopsy: the surgeon’s role. American Surgeon, 2010 Oct;76(10):1084-7. PMID: 21105615
  11. G. Paul Wright, Jan H. Wong, John Morgan, Sharmilla Roy-Chowdhury, Kevork Kazanjian, and Sharon S. Lum. Time from Diagnosis to Surgical Treatment of Breast Cancer: factors influencing delays in initiating treatment. American Surgeon, 2010 Oct;76(10):1119-22. PMID: 21105624
  12. Timothy R. Donahue, Kevork K. Kazanjian, William H. Isacoff, Howard A. Reber, and O. Joe Hines. Impact of Splenectomy on Thrombocytopenia, Chemotherapy, and Survival in Patients with Unresectable Pancreatic Cancer, Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery, 2010 Jun;14(6):1012-8. PMID: 20309646
  13. Kevork K. Kazanjian, Oscar J. Hines, John P. Duffy, Diana Y. Yoon, Galen Cortina, and Howard A. Reber. Improved Survival Following Pancreaticoduodenectomy to Treat Adenocarcinoma of the Pancreas: The Influence of Operative Blood Loss, Archives of Surgery, 2008 Dec;143(12):1166-71. PMID: 19075167
  14. Jonathan King, Kevork K. Kazanjian, Joe Matsumoto, Howard A Reber, Michael W. Yeh, and O. Joe Hines. Distal Pancreatectomy: Incidence of Postoperative Diabetes, Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery, 2008 Sep;12(9):1548-53. PMID: 18543045
  15. Kevork K. Kazanjian, Howard A. Reber, and Oscar J. Hines. Resection of Pancreatic Neuroendocrine Tumors, Archives of Surgery, 2006 Aug;141:765-770. PMID: 16924083
  16. Joseph Kim, Howard A. Reber, Sarah M. Dry, David Elashoff, Steven L. Chen, Naoyuki Umetani, Minoru Kitago, Oscar J. Hines, Kevork K. Kazanjian, Suzanne H. Hiramatsu, Anton J. Bilchik, Sherri Yong, Margo Shoup, and Dave S.B. Hoon. Unfavourable prognosis associated with K-ras gene mutation in pancreatic cancer surgical margins, Gut, 2006 May;55:1598-1605. PMID: 16682430
  17. Hirozumi Sawai, Yuji Okada, Kevork K. Kazanjian, Joseph Kim, Sascha Hasan, Oscar J. Hines, Howard A. Reber, Dave S.B. Hoon, and Guido Eibl. The G691S RET Polymorphism Increases Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor-Induced Pancreatic Cancer Cell Invasion by Amplifying Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Signaling, Cancer Research, 2005 Dec 15;65(24):11536-11544. PMID: 16357163
  18. Joseph Kim, Howard A. Reber, Oscar J. Hines, Kevork K. Kazanjian, Andy Tran, Xing Ye, Farin F. Amersi, Steve R. Martinez, Sarah M. Dry, Anton J. Bilchik, and Dave S.B. Hoon. The clinical significance of MAGEA3 expression in pancreatic cancer, International Journal of Cancer, 2005 Dec;5;118(9):2269-2275. PMID: 16331618
  19. Kevork K. Kazanjian, Oscar J. Hines, Guido Eibl, and Howard A. Reber. Management of Pancreatic Fistulas after Pancreaticoduodenectomy, Archives of Surgery, 2005 Sep;140:849-855. PMID: 16172293
  20. Kevork K. Kazanjian and Oscar J. Hines. Nonvariceal Upper Gastrointestinal Bleeding: When Endoscopic Therapy Fails – A Surgeon’s Perspective, Techniques in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, 2005 Jul;7:156-9.
  21. Kevork K. Kazanjian, Howard A. Reber, and Oscar J. Hines. Laparoscopic Gastrojejunostomy for Gastric Outlet Obstruction in Pancreatic Cancer, American Surgeon, 2004 Oct;70(10):910-3. PMID: 15529849
  22. Kevork K. Kazanjian, Shirin Towfigh, David W. McFadden. Peptide YY Exhibits a Mitogenic Effect on Pancreatic Cells While Improving Acute Pancreatitis in Vitro, Journal of Surgical Research, 2003 Sep;114(1):95-9. PMID: 13678704
  23. David A. Rigberg, Jeff L. Sebastian, Kevork K. Kazanjian, David W. McFadden. Hypophosphorylated Retinoblastoma Protein is Associated with G2 Arrest in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma, Journal of Surgical Research, 1999 Jun 1;84(1):101-5. PMID: 10334897

Insurance

  • Aetna
  • Anthem Blue Cross
  • Blue Shield of California
  • Centivo
  • Cigna
  • First Health
  • Health Net of California
  • Interplan (part of HealthSmart)
  • L.A. Care
  • Medicare Advantage
  • MultiPlan
  • UFCM Health System
  • Prime Health Services
  • Private Healthcare Systems (PHCS)
  • TRICARE
  • UnitedHealthcare

The list of health care plans above may not be comprehensive and could change. 
Please contact your benefits coordinator or health insurance company directly to verify coverage.

Visit our health insurance information page for more details.

Recognitions

  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2024
  • Super Doctors® Southern California, 2023, 2024
  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2023
  • Top Doctors, Castle Connolly, Colon & Rectal Surgery, 2017-2021
  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, Colon & Rectal Surgery, 2019-2021
  • Super Doctors® Southern California, Colon & Rectal Surgery, 2017-2021
  • The Golden Scalpel Award, UCLA Department of Surgery, 2018
  • The Golden Scalpel Award, Loma Linda University Department of Surgery, 2014
  • Fellow, American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons, 2013
  • Fellow, American College of Surgeons, 2011
  • The Golden Scalpel Award, UCLA Department of Surgery – Awarded to the outstanding graduating Chief Resident, 2008
  • Golden Apple/Ronald K. Tompkins Award, UCLA School of Medicine – Awarded to the Chief Resident demonstrating excellence in teaching, 2008

Links