Daniel F. Kelly's Online Review Report Card

Staff terrible. Drs Terrible. Spent MAAYBE 15 mins standing talking down to me. Dismissed any concerns. Walked out while still asking questions.

Dr Daniel F. Kelly, MD, Neurological Surgeon, his staff and Fellows were all amazing and I feel grateful that he was my Surgeon in the removal of my (38x40x24MM) large brain tumor on July 20th. I selected him because of his impressive track record, experience and empathy towards his patents. He walked me each step of the surgery, recovery process and there were no surprises, thank god! Yes, I would highly recommend him to anyone that might need a great Neurosurgeon and I would give him 5 Stars across the board. I had very good results and I am recovered nicely.

Dr. Kelly operated on my mother this January to remove a cyst from her brain stem. From our nitial consultations with him via telephone we felt confident in his ability. We flew from all parts of the world as a family to be there in California for the surgery. The day prior to surgery we met Dr. Kelly in person and he surprised us by saying he wanted to go up my mother's nose to remove the cyst, rather from the side of her head, as he had suggested during the initial consultations. We had traveled so far, and this new news at the last moment stunned us, and there was not much time to contemplate the full consequences and risks, as the surgery would take place the following day. And so my mother agreed, as there seemed few options. Either Dr. Kelly's method of going through the nose to remove the cyst was reckless, or he neglected to fully consider all the variables of her case. A few weeks after surgery my mother flew home to Oklahoma, and a few days after the patch used the seal the surgical site came loose, causing a cerebral spinal fluid leak. This was the beginning of a nightmare that has lasted for several months. After the CSF leak she contracted bacterial meningitis, followed by fungal meningitis, followed by two more bouts of bacterial meningitis. She has undergone seven additional surgeries over a period of ten months, each time attempting to seal Dr. Kelly's original surgical site in her sinuses, unsuccessfully. She lost nearly all of her body weight during this prolonged hospitalization, as well as her ability to walk and take care of herself. She finally made it out of rehab two months ago, but continued vomiting several times a day, steadily becoming more and more malnourished until she is little more than skin and bones. Then, just when she was starting to regain her ability to take care of herself, somewhat, again, two weeks ago the patch over Dr. Kelly's surgical site failed again and she had to undergo yet another surgery to repair it. She now lies in a hospital bad day after day, just skin and bones, with totally vacant eyes, non responsive, food being pumped into her intestines in order to keep her alive. The source of this suffering, both her suffering and the suffering of us as a family, who have been by her side in the hospital for nearly a year now, lay in Dr. Kelly's decision at the final moment to go up her nose during surgery, despite the risks given her history of chemotherapy in that area. According to others he is a talented and knoledgable surgeon, and he may be, but he also makes grave mistakes, and unfortunately we have suffered as a result of one of those mistakes. I write this as a warning for those with a history of chemo in the upper sinuses - think very deeply before permitting Dr. Kelly to go into your brain through the nose...

Thank you, Dr. Kelly and Dr. Kahn. After 5 years of seeing many other doctors with more than 30 visits across the country because I needed to remove a large left frontal lobe Meningioma, I felt the most comfortable with Dr. Kelly because he only does operations on the brain. I feel if you need brain surgery you should only go to a doctor who specializing in brain surgery. Of all the doctors I saw, he was the only one to say long term use of drugs and a long hospital stay were not what he expected. Per the most recent report of 2023, the Providence Hospital system working with Dr. Kelly had the best results and outcomes for patients and the shortest hospital stays. My operation was on a Thursday morning and I was released on Friday afternoon. I actually walked to dinner on Friday night. I walked a total of 4 to 6 miles daily after the operation. I feel that Dr. Kelly, Dr. Khan and Amy Eisenberg gave me my life back. Thank you again for saving my life so I can enjoy the rest of it now.

I was privileged to have my operation with Neurosurgeon, Dr Daniel F. Kelly, Director of the Pacific Neuroscience Institute, Santa Monica, Los Angeles. Dr Kelly and the Ear, Nose and Throat Surgeon, Dr Chester Griffiths operated together, using their 30 years (each) of experience to achieve the best surgical outcome possible in a fully equipped operating theater. I am delighted with the outcome because they were able to completely remove my pituitary macro-adenoma (tumor) which means that I'll never need this operation again. Furthermore, their high level of skill, expertise and knowledge enabled the operation to be completed without inducing commonly associated side effects. It is an outstanding result for me, especially because I was not able to find this level of expertise in my own country (New Zealand) necessitating travel to the USA. I am forever grateful!

Dr Kelly and his team are amazingly expert at skull base tumors. I’m so grateful I found them to take care of me… it is a critical surgery that requires incredible skills. And they did everything perfectly. They told me what to expect after surgery. I followed their instructions exactly. And everything came along just as they described to me. I am back to work after three weeks. Amazing!! His bedside manner was great and he answered all my questions clearly and in a way that I could understand. I put my life in Dr Kelly’s hands, and I would recommend him to anyone who has a condition that he is expert in treating…

May he always be rewarded and blessed. Love you my Surgeon. Peace, love and happiness

In November of 2020 my son was diagnosed with Cushing's Syndrome in our home state of Alaska. We traveled to Sana Monica for treatment where he was seen by Dr. Daniel Kelly at the Pacific Neuroscience Institute. My first contact with PNI was when I submitted an inquiry on their website at 10pm. I heard back from Dr. Kelly personally by 7am the next morning and my son had an appointment with Dr. Kelly two days later. Dr. Kelly ordered a series of diagnostic tests at nearby Providence St. John’s Hospital and also referred my son to an excellent endocrinologist in the area, Dr. Pejman Cohan. It was determined my son had ectopic Cushing's Syndrome caused by a neuroendocrine tumor in his lung. He ultimately had surgery at the NIH hospital in Bethesda Maryland, but I credit our initial visits with Dr. Kelly as vital to my son’s successful treatment. At every turn I found Dr. Kelly and his staff to be outstanding in every way… dedicated, knowledgeable, compassionate, and incredibly accessible. I highly recommend Dr. Kelly and the Pacific Neuroscience Institute.

In November of 2020 my son was diagnosed with Cushing’s Syndrome in our home state of Alaska. We traveled to Sana Monica for treatment where he was seen by Dr. Daniel Kelly at the Pacific Neuroscience Institute. My first contact with PNI was when I submitted an inquiry on their website at 10pm. I heard back from Dr. Kelly personally by 7 the next morning and my son had an appointment with Dr. Kelly two days later. Dr. Kelly ordered a series of diagnostic tests at nearby Providence St. John’s Hospital and also referred my son to an excellent endocrinologist in the area, Dr. Pejman Cohan. It was determined my son had ectopic Cushing’s Syndrome caused by a neuroendocrine tumor in his lung. He ultimately had surgery at the NIH hospital in Bethesda Maryland, but I credit our initial visits with Dr. Kelly as vital to my son’s successful treatment. At every turn I found Dr. Kelly and his staff to be outstanding in every way… dedicated, knowledgeable, compassionate, and incredibly accessible.

Words cannot describe the level of gratitude my father and I feel towards Dr. Kelly – talented, kind, humble, one of a kind Surgeon. In most parts of the World, my 81-year-old father would be placed at the end of the long waiting list, considering his age. Dr. Kelly immediately took my father in, as he understood that 4cm tumor pressuring the brain was critical to remove. My father couldn’t walk or speak well anymore, it was progressing fast. Dr. Kelly listens attentively, kindly replies and explains every little detail. He explained to us that tumor was pushing the brain and it may not be possible to remove 100%. Well, turned out, Dr. Kelly is a Superman, as he did! He did the impossible, 100% of tumor was removed. Nurses at the hospital called the scar a piece of Art. Just 1.5 months later, 10 cm scar has completely disappeared and dad is bald. Unbelievable! My dad now takes walks 3 times a day, speaks very fast again and enjoys beautiful weather of LA : ) Dr. Kelly saved his life. Thanks to everyone at Dr. Kelly’s office, especially to Dr. Richard Garling, assisting during the surgery and monitoring dad daily at the hospital, Amy A. Eisenberg who was so attentive, that responded to every email and phone call even after hours. Everyone at Pacific Neuroscience Institute, from receptionists to the doctors, is extremely polite and professional. They are true Angels of Los Angeles, saving people’s lives every day. Bless their beautiful hearts <3