School of Medicine

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  • Jenny Lymary Veliz-Urzua, DNP, FNP-BC

    Jenny Lymary Veliz-Urzua, DNP, FNP-BC

    Affiliate, Surgery - General Surgery

    BioJenny L. Veliz-Urzua, DNP, MBA, FNP‑BC, RNFA is a Nurse Practitioner specializing in GI Surgical Oncology at Stanford Health Care. She holds a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) from Purdue Global University, an Executive MBA from the Yale School of Management, Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) degree from Yale University School of Nursing in 2006, and earned her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Southern California in 2004.

    Her clinical expertise spans hepatobiliary, pancreatic, gastrointestinal, and peritoneal malignancies. She has played a key role in advancing complex regional cancer therapies, working closely with Dr. Byrne Lee, Program Director for Regional Cancer Therapies, to optimize the HIPEC patient-care experience. She has also contributed to the implementation of the Hepatic Arterial Infusion Pump (HAIP) program, supporting its clinical integration and multidisciplinary workflows.

    In addition to her GI oncology work, Jenny has served in multiple leadership roles across institutions and cancer services, currently as interim lead for the Breast Surgery and Reconstruction program and Radiation Oncology. In 2020, Jenny was recognized as the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) California State Award for Nurse Practitioner Advocate recipient, honoring her leadership and contributions to advancing NP practice in the state.

  • Banita Verma

    Banita Verma

    Postdoctoral Scholar, General and Vascular Surgery

    BioI am Banita Verma, a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University, currently working with Dr. Fredrick M. Dirbas at the Department of Surgery. Our research focus is to understand the type of cell death and the nature of immune responses triggered by FLASH versus conventional radiotherapy in various murine breast cancer models. Additionally, we aim to explore the role of DAMPs released by dying cells in generating immune responses after both FLASH and conventional radiotherapy. Furthermore, we are interested in studying the mechanism behind the low toxicity of the FLASH compared to conventional radiotherapy to the adjacent non-cancerous tissue. To accomplish this goal, our laboratory is actively collaborating with Dr. Bill Loo, who holds great expertise in the field of radiation oncology.
    Before joining Stanford University, I served as a postdoctoral researcher at Karolinska Institutet, Sweden from 2021-2023. My research aimed to study the activation mechanism of Cholineacetyltransferase (ChAT), a pivotal enzyme in acetylcholine synthesis. This enzyme is known to be hypoactive in neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Our group successfully synthesized novel compounds capable of enhancing ChAT activity.
    I completed my doctoral research in cancer biology at the Department of Experimental Medicine and Biotechnology, PGIMER Chandigarh, India, in 2021. My work was the evaluation of role of TNF-α mediated Necroptosis in breast cancer cells. My primary research interests are cancer biology and cell death pathways.

  • Brendan C. Visser, MD

    Brendan C. Visser, MD

    Professor of Surgery (General Surgery)

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Visser's research interests span the breath of his clinical practice. Areas of active research include the multidisciplinary treatment of pancreatic neuroendocrine cancers, technical aspects of minimally invasive pancreatic and liver surgery, and trends in the management of hepatobiliary cancers in California, focusing on socioeconomic and instituional barriers to appropriate care.