Ching-Fei Chang, MD

Dr. Ching-Fei Chang began her academic career by graduating magna cum laude from the University of California-Berkeley in the field of Molecular and Cellular Biology. She subsequently studied medicine at the University of California-San Diego and completed her residency in internal medicine at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles where she also served as chief resident in her final year. She then matched into a pulmonary and critical care medicine fellowship at Harbor-UCLA, and, after graduation, continued her interest in medical education by joining the faculty at the University of Southern California, Keck School of Medicine.

In 2007, Dr. Chang was made Director of Bronchoscopy at the LAC+USC Medical Center. Over the next 17 years, she transformed this county hospital into one of the most cutting-edge centers of advanced bronchoscopy and interventional pulmonology on the west coast. In 2024, after transitioning from the county hospital to the Keck Medical Center (University Hospital), she was appointed the new Program Director of the USC Interventional Pulmonary Fellowship Training Program. 

Complementing her interest in pulmonary procedures, Dr. Chang also has a professional focus and interest in lung cancer. She is an integral member of the USC Lung Cancer Program and provides oncopulmonary expertise in lung cancer screening, nodule workup, and treatment of pulmonary complications stemming from aggressive oncologic therapy. As part of the American Cancer Society's Taskforce on Lung Cancer in Women, Dr. Chang co-authored a sentinel review paper regarding the need for a different approach to the diagnosis and treatment of lung cancer in females.  As part of the American Thoracic Society TOA committee, she is currently spearheading a new initiative formalized oncopulmonary training of future physicians.  Dr. Chang also has a special interest in lung cancer in Asians and health care disparities in lung cancer screening, which has resulted in multiple research presentations at national meetings on these emerging hot topics.

Dr. Chang's other interests include simulation training and medical education. Recently, she completed her 16th year as an Assistant Program Director of the USC Pulmonary and Critical Care Fellowship, one of the largest training programs in the nation with a total of 21 fellows.  She has now transitioned into a new leadership role as the Program Director of the USC Interventional Pulmonary Fellowship, which recently achieved ACGME certification status this past year.  Partnering her procedural background with her love of medical education, Dr. Chang has had a long track-record of organizing and running the annual first year fellows' procedural boot-camp skills sessions.  As one of the main research mentors,  Dr. Chang supervises many trainee research projects and quality improvement projects for the Division.  In addition, she also provides ambulatory didactic teaching for the USC Internal Medicine Residency program and helps teach the Year Two pulmonary curriculum for the Keck School of Medicine. Dr. Chang has also been active in educating community physicians by organizing, chairing, and lecturing at several regional pulmonary conferences throughout her career.  In recognition of her teaching skills, she has won Teacher-of-Year  on several occasions, and has been awarded the Distinguished CHEST Educator designation for her efforts in teaching bronchoscopy and endobronchial ultrasound on a national level with the American College of Chest Physicians. She has also been nominated as a top doctor on multiple occasions for the Pasadena Magazine, LA Magazine, and Castle Connolly annual polls.