School of Medicine
Showing 1-100 of 104 Results
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Timur Absalyamov
Affiliate, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioTimur Absalyamov holds a Doctorate in Economics and a Master’s degree in Sports Ethics and Integrity. He has conducted academic research at multiple universities and has gained professional experience working in Russian soccer, as well as an independent sports management consultant.
Throughout his career, he has received several prestigious scholarships and awards, including the Erasmus Mundus Scholarship, Fulbright Scholarship, Sverker Åström Foundation Scholarship, 4x British Petroleum Scholarship, and the Oxford Russia Fund Scholarship. Timur’s areas of expertise include sports ethics, sports and geopolitics, public funding of professional sports, and issues of sports and sustainability. -
Lucia Aronica
Casual - Non-Exempt, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioFor over seventeen years, my research has focused on the field of epigenetics, examining how environmental factors influence gene expression and health outcomes. Unlike fixed genetic sequences, epigenetic modifications exhibit remarkable flexibility, serving as cellular memory systems that respond to dietary patterns, stress levels, and environmental exposures. This dynamic characteristic creates significant potential for personalized medicine approaches, as epigenetic markers can indicate susceptibility to lifestyle-associated conditions including metabolic disorders, cardiovascular disease, and cancer.
I currently lead the epigenetic analysis component of the DIETFITS study directed by Dr. Christopher Gardner, a landmark clinical trial comparing low-carbohydrate versus low-fat dietary interventions for weight management. My research aims to characterize how sustained weight loss modifies gene activity through epigenetic mechanisms, and whether these molecular signatures might inform individualized nutritional recommendations.
At Stanford, I teach courses in Nutritional Genomics and Epigenetics through Stanford Continuing Studies, Stanford Sports Medicine, and the Stanford Center for Professional Development. My educational approach integrates rigorous scientific evidence with clear explanations of complex biological concepts, making epigenetic science accessible to interdisciplinary audiences.
My scientific contributions include publications in peer-reviewed journals examining the relationship between nutrition, epigenetic modifications, and health outcomes. I also collaborate with academic and industry partners to advance precision health initiatives, serving as a scientific advisor to genomics researchers and technology innovators working at the intersection of epigenetics and personalized health.
My research is guided by the principle that understanding the molecular dialogue between our environment and our genes can transform how we approach health optimization and disease prevention through evidence-based lifestyle interventions. -
Michael Baiocchi
Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health and, by courtesy, of Statistics and of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
BioProfessor Baiocchi is a PhD statistician in Stanford University's Epidemiology and Population Health Department. He thinks a lot about behavioral interventions and how to rigorously evaluate if and how they work. Methodologically, his work focuses on creating statistically rigorous methods for causal inference that are transparent and easy to critique. He designed -- and was the principle investigator for -- two large randomized studies of interventions to prevent sexual assault in the settlements of Nairobi, Kenya.
Professor Baiocchi is an interventional statistician (i.e., grounded in both the creation and evaluation of interventions). The unifying idea in his research is that he brings rigorous, quantitative approaches to bear upon messy, real-world questions to better people's lives. -
Colette DeJong
Clinical Instructor (Affiliated), Medicine - Med/Cardiovascular Medicine
Staff, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research CenterBioDr. Colette DeJong is general cardiologist and health services researcher at the VA Palo Alto. A graduate of Brown University and the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine, Dr. DeJong completed an internal medicine residency, chief residency, and fellowship in cardiovascular medicine at UCSF, as well as a two-year editorial fellowship at JAMA Internal Medicine and a research fellowship at the UCSF Center for Healthcare Value. Dr. DeJong’s research focuses on improving access to effective cardiovascular therapies. She is interested in developing and evaluating novel strategies to improve care delivery, such as cardiovascular combination pills (“polypills”). Dr. DeJong served as the principal investigator of a pilot clinical trial of heart failure polypills at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital.
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Priya Fielding-Singh
Postdoctoral Scholar, SCRDP/ Heart Disease Prevention
BioI am a Sociologist and Postdoctoral Fellow in Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at the Stanford Prevention Research Center. My research examines health, gender, and social inequality.
My primary research agenda investigates health disparities across class, race, and gender in the United States. I draw on both qualitative and quantitative methods to understand how neighborhoods, schools, and families shape our health behaviors and outcomes. My work has been published in journals such as Social Science & Medicine, Obesity, Sociological Science, and the Journal of Adolescent Health.
I hold a Ph.D. in Sociology from Stanford University, a M.A. in Anthropology from the University of Bremen, and a B.S. in Education and Social Policy from Northwestern University. -
Annesa Flentje
Professor (Research) of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
BioAnnesa Flentje, PhD, is a clinical psychologist who focuses on reducing health disparities among sexual and gender minority individuals. Her research has targeted multiple ways to reduce these disparities including prevention, increasing visibility of sexual and gender minority people in research, and improving mental health and substance use services for sexual and gender minority people. Her current research is identifying the relationship between minority stress, substance use, and biological functioning at the molecular level (i.e., gene expression and DNA methylation). She has developed an individually delivered intervention to reduce minority stress and has investigated this as a means to reduce substance use and improve both the physical and mental health of sexual minority people. Dr. Flentje has also initiated and led several mentorship programs for scholars in sexual and gender minority health. Dr. Flentje is also Co-Director of The PRIDE Study, a prospective national longitudinal study of the health of sexual and gender minority individuals within the United States that has enrolled over 30,000 sexual and gender minority people to date.
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Stephen P. Fortmann, MD
C.F. Rehnborg Professor in Disease Prevention, Emeritus
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Fortmann's interests include population-level (community) prevention of cardiovascular disease, the epidemiology and prevention of chronic diseases, and the effects of the built environment on health. He has conducted research projects addressing tobacco use cessation, tobacco control policy, the role of retail marketing on youth tobacco use, nutrition education, blood pressure control, and lipid disorders.
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Michael Fredericson, MD
Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and, by courtesy, of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research focuses on the etiology, prevention, and treatment of overuse sports injuries in athletes and lifestyle medicine practices for improved health and longevity.
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Christopher Gardner
Rehnborg Farquhar Professor
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe role of nutrition in individual and societal health, with particular interests in: plant-based diets, differential response to low-carb vs. low-fat weight loss diets by insulin resistance status, chronic disease prevention, randomized controlled trials, human nutrition, community based studies, Community Based Participatory Research, sustainable food movement (animal rights and welfare, global warming, human labor practices), stealth health, nutrition policy, nutrition guidelines
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Todd Harple, PhD
Affiliate, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioTodd Harple is the Director of Innovation and Sports Equity Strategy at the Sports Equity Lab and Stanford University School of Medicine. He is visionary leader at the intersection of technology, design, and human performance. With a career spanning pioneering AI-driven coaching tools, wearable technology for athletes, and innovations in orthotics, his work has transformed how people engage with sports, fitness, and health on a global scale.
As a cultural anthropologist, Todd brings a unique perspective on the interaction between people, communities, and systems—an essential lens for advancing equity in sports as a foundation for broader societal equity. In his role, he leads strategic initiatives that challenge systemic barriers, harness emerging technologies, and develop scalable solutions that make the values of sport more accessible to all.
Todd's expertise in research, innovation strategy, and cross-disciplinary collaboration—along with his extensive experience with the Olympic movement through his work at Intel, a Top Sponsor—positions him to shape the future of the Lab and drive meaningful impact in the field of sports innovation. -
Catherine Heaney
Associate Professor (Teaching) of Psychology and of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsEnhancing our understanding of psychosocial factors at work (occupational stress, social support at work, organizational justice, organizational empowerment) that are associated with health and disease.
Developing effective strategies for enhancing employee resiliency and reducing exposure to psychological and behavioral risk factors at work. -
Lisa Henriksen
Associate Professor (Research) of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Sr Research Engineer, Medicine - Stanford Prevention Research CenterCurrent Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research aims to improve our understanding of the health risks associated with exposure to tobacco marketing and provide a scientific rationale for new policies to reduce it. I also study use of media to promote and discourage adolescent tobacco use, and the impact of tobacco advertising on urge and craving to smoke.
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John P.A. Ioannidis
Professor of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center), of Epidemiology and Population Health and, by courtesy, of Biomedical Data Science
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMeta-research
Evidence-based medicine
Clinical and molecular epidemiology
Human genome epidemiology
Research design
Reporting of research
Empirical evaluation of bias in research
Randomized trials
Statistical methods and modeling
Meta-analysis and large-scale evidence
Prognosis, predictive, personalized, precision medicine and health
Sociology of science -
Michaela Kiernan
Sr Research Scholar, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsResearch interests include the design and experimental testing of innovative strategies to improve recruitment and retention of randomized clinical trials.
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Abby C. King
David and Susan Heckerman Professor and Professor of Epidemiology & Population Health and of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy interests include applications of behavioral theory and social ecological approaches to achieve large scale changes impacting chronic disease prevention and control; expanding the reach and translation of evidence-based interventions through state-of-the-art technologies; exploring social and physical environmental influences on health; applying community participatory research perspectives to address health disparities; and policy-level approaches to health promotion/disease prevention.
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David J. Maron
C. F. Rehnborg Professor and Professor of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Maron is the Co-Chair and Principal Investigator of the ISCHEMIA trial, and Co-Chair of the ISCHEMIA-CKD trial. These large, international, NIH-funded studies will determine whether an initial invasive strategy of cardiac catheterization and revascularization plus optimal medical therapy will reduce cardiovascular events in patients with and without chronic kidney disease and at least moderate ischemia compared to an initial conservative strategy of optimal medical therapy alone.
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Minh Nguyen
Casual Employee, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioPrevious bio as a PhD student:
@DARE fellow (Diversifying Academia, Recruiting Excellence) https://vpge.stanford.edu/people/minh-nguyen
@Data Science Scholar https://datascience.stanford.edu/people/minh-nguyen -
Marily Oppezzo
Instructor, Medicine - Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioDr. Oppezzo is an Instructor of Medicine at the Stanford Prevention Research Center and head of the nutrition pillar at Stanford Lifestyle Medicine. She is a behavioral and learning scientist, dietitian, and exercise science interventionist. She earned her PhD in Educational Psychology from Stanford University, and holds a Master’s degree in Nutritional Science, and is board certified Lifestyle Medicine Professional.
Dr. Oppezzo's work combines her extensive training in nutrition, exercise science, and behavioral science to develop innovative interventions that empower individuals to adopt sustainable, healthy habits - integrating them into their already busy lives. With a focus on "minimal dose, maximal gains" she explores the best ways for people to adopt small, actionable changes for significant improvements in health and well-being. She is particularly interested in the impact of "exercise snacks"—short, accessible bouts of physical activity—on productivity, mood, and overall health. One of her key interventions, "Stronger," is designed to provide peri- and post-menopausal women with effective strength training that maximizes benefits while minimizing time commitment. -
Sarah Ann Paglini
Graduate Student Researcher, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioSarah is a 3rd-year Doctoral Student at PAU, completing an emphasis in Neuropsychology. Her current clinical practicum rotation is at the VA Medical Center in Palo Alto, CA, where she conducts neuropsychological evaluation of diagnostic and treatment planning for patients presenting with complex neurobehavioral and psychiatric disorders. Additionally, she is a neuropsychological assessor at the University of California, San Francisco. She is currently a graduate student researcher in the Department of Medicine with the Stanford Prevention Research Center at Stanford University.
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Michele Lanpher Patel
Instructor, Medicine - Stanford Prevention Research Center
BioMichele L. Patel, PhD is an Instructor in the Stanford Prevention Research Center, which is part of the Stanford University School of Medicine. Trained as a clinical health psychology, Dr. Patel conducts clinical trials to optimize digital health interventions for treating & preventing obesity. Digital interventions have potential for serving as first-line obesity treatments given their scalability, yet engagement is subpar. Dr. Patel is interested in testing innovative strategies to enhance engagement in these digital interventions, while also reducing patient burden and promoting greater weight loss.
Dr. Patel is funded by a career development award from NIH (K23; 2022-2027). This work investigates the most potent combination of self-monitoring strategies in a behavioral weight loss intervention for 176 adults with overweight or obesity. To carry out this work, she leverages an 'intervention optimization' framework called the Multiphase Optimization Strategy.
Dr. Patel received her bachelor's degree, master's degree, and PhD (clinical psychology) from Duke University. She completed her clinical internship at the VA Palo Alto, specializing in behavioral medicine, and her postdoctoral fellowship at the Stanford Prevention Research Center.
Primary Research Interests:
-- Conducting clinical trials to optimize & evaluate digital health interventions for obesity
-- Improving engagement in self-monitoring and other behavioral intervention strategies
-- Identifying psychosocial factors (e.g., health literacy, stress) that impact treatment success
Methods:
-- RCTs, including factorial designs
-- embedded trials (study-within-a-trial)
-- systematic reviews
-- signal detection analysis
-- mixed methods & qualitative methods -
Ankita Patil
Masters Student in Community Health and Prevention Research, admitted Autumn 2024
BioAnkita Patil is a public health researcher who passionately addresses health disparities through a social justice framework. With a BA in Social Psychology from The College of New Jersey, her research at Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Johns Hopkins tackles the health impacts of incarceration, trauma-informed care, and reproductive health challenges for incarcerated individuals. Her scholarly work contributed to policy reforms, including the co-authorship of an American Public Health Association policy statement which calls for the cessation of shackling incarcerated patients seeking medical care. Additionally, she has peer-reviewed a book focused on the impact of COVID-19 on Massachusetts’ prisons.
Beyond academia, Ankita has engaged deeply with community initiatives, working with organizations such as the Transformational Prison Project to bolster restorative justice and the Pandemic Response Network to meet the needs of communities most impacted by the pandemic. As a fervent advocate for health equity, Ankita’s career is characterized by a steadfast dedication to developing practical, empathetic solutions to increasingly complex public health challenges. This dedication will continue to evolve as she pursues an M.S. in Community Health and Prevention Research at Stanford, where she aims to further her impact on public health practices and policies. -
Dalia Perelman
Dietitian 2, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
Current Role at StanfordResearch Dietitian:
•Implements the nutritional component of research protocols, counsels participants, collects and enters food records, develops nutrition education materials, and develops specialized diets for metabolic studies.
•Develops protocols and informed consent forms for IRB submission.
•Collects, compiles, documents, and analyzes clinical research data.
•Recruits and consents subjects.
Health Educator:
•Develops and presents curriculum to educate subjects on study diets.
•Implements new techniques to increase adherence to study diets.
•Acts as a liaison between investigators, collaborators, and study participants. -
Judith Prochaska
Senior Associate Vice Provost, Clinical Research Governance and Professor of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Prochaska's research expertise centers on technology-mediated health behavior change interventions including targets of tobacco, physical activity, and dietary change. Working with Alaska Native and Latino communities, people with serious mental illness, alcohol and drug problems, or heart disease, and jobseekers and the unhoused, Dr. Prochaska’s research combines stage-tailored interventions with pharmacotherapy and utilizes interactive expert system interventions and social media.
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Tom C Quach
Masters Student in Community Health and Prevention Research, admitted Spring 2022
Stanford Student Employee, Primary Care and Population HealthBioCoterminal Master's student at Stanford University, studying Community Health and Prevention Research.
I'm passionate about healthcare innovation, patient advocacy, and public health research. During my time at Stanford, I have collaborated closely with the Stanford Long COVID Clinic, working on clinical research surrounding the conditions pathophysiology and associations with ME/CFS, as well as national clinical trials for therapeutics. I have also conducted basic science research in the Helms Lab, examining healing trajectories for post-cleft surgical procedures. -
Jennifer Robinson
Associate Director, Medicine - Med/Stanford Prevention Research Center
Current Role at StanfordAssociate Director, Nutrition Studies Group
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Thomas Robinson
The Irving Schulman, M.D. Professor of Child Health, Professor of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center) and, by courtesy, of Epidemiology and Population Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Robinson originated the solution-oriented research paradigm and directs the Stanford Solutions Science Lab. He is known for his pioneering obesity prevention and treatment research, including the concept of stealth interventions. His research applies social cognitive models of behavior change to behavioral, social, environmental and policy interventions for children and families in real world settings, making the results relevant for informing clinical and public health practice and policy.
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Corey Rovzar
Postdoctoral Scholar, SCRDP/ Heart Disease Prevention
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsEnhancing human movement through scalable, remotely delivered physical activity interventions, remote assessment and monitoring of human movement, health technology development, fall prevention, aging, digital balance assessment, improving access to health and healthcare, increasing healthspan, lifestyle medicine
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Michael Royer
Postdoctoral Scholar, SCRDP/ Heart Disease Prevention
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. Royer's research interests include food insecurity, eating behaviors, and physical activity. His research primarily aims to remove barriers hindering individuals from accessing healthy food. Dr. Royer seeks to advance public health by sustainably promoting healthy eating and food security through innovative and evidence-based research approaches. Through his research, he is motivated to promote food security, healthy eating, and physical activity toward the prevention of chronic disease.
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Randall Stafford
Professor of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center)
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsAs Director of the SPRC Program on Prevention Outcomes and Practices, my work focuses on cardiovascular disease treatment and prevention, the adoption of new technology and practices, and patterns of physician practice, particularly medication prescribing. Specific interests include measuring and improving the quality of outpatient care, disparities in health care by race, gender, age and socioeconomic status, and interventions to improve prevention outcomes.
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Marcia L. Stefanick, Ph.D.
Professor (Research) of Medicine (Stanford Prevention Research Center), of Obstetrics and Gynecology and, by courtesy, of Epidemiology and Population Health
Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMarcia L. Stefanick, Ph.D is a Professor of Medicine Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and by courtesy, Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health at Stanford University School of Medicine. Dr. Stefanick’s research focuses on chronic disease prevention (particularly, heart disease, breast cancer, osteoporosis, and dementia) in both women and men. She is currently the Principal Investigator the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) Extension Study, having been the PI of the Stanford Clinical Center of the landmark WHI Clinical Trials and Observational Study since 1994 and Chair of the WHI Steering and Executive Committees from 1998-2011, as well as PI of the WHI Strong and Healthy (WHISH) Trial which is testing the hypothesis that a DHHS-based physical activity intervention, being delivered to a multi-ethnic cohort of about 24,000 WHI participants across the U.S., aged 68-99 when the trial started in 2015, will reduce major cardiovascular events over 8 years, compared to an equal number of “usual activity” controls. Dr. Stefanick is also PI of the Osteoporotic Study of Men (MrOS) which is continuing to conduct clinical assessments of bone and body composition in survivors of an original cohort of nearly 6000 men aged 65 and over in 2001. As founding Director of the Stanford Women’s Health and Sex Differences in Medicine (WHSDM, “wisdom”) Center, she plays a major role in promoting research and teaching on Sex and Gender in Human Physiology and Disease, Women’s Health and Queer Health and Medicine. Dr. Stefanick also plays major leadership roles at the Stanford School of Medicine, including as co-leader of the Population Sciences Program of the Stanford Cancer Institute, Stanford’s NCI-funded comprehensive cancer center.
Dr. Stefanick obtained her B.A. in biology from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA (1974), then pursued her interest in hormone and sex difference research at the Oregon Regional Primate Research Center, after which she obtained her PhD in Physiology at Stanford University, focusing on reproductive physiology and neuroendocrinology, with exercise physiology as a secondary focus. Her commitment to human research led to a post-doctoral fellowship in Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, which has been her academic home for nearly 40 years. -
Stefan Thottunkal
Masters Student in Community Health and Prevention Research, admitted Winter 2025
SU Student Employee, Med/Quantitative Sciences UnitBioMasters Student in Community Health and Prevention Research, admitted Winter 2025
Stefan Thottunkal is an Australian medical student, early career researcher and civil servant. His research interests include chronic disease, Native health, and pharmacogenomics. He is particularly interested in pioneering deployment of innovative technologies in clinical settings, utilizing approaches grounded in implementation science. Stefan received an IIE QUAD Fellowship in 2024 to study a Masters of Community Health and Prevention Research at Stanford.
His current work focuses on precision medicine, advancing implementation of pharmacogenomic testing into clinical practice through leveraging machine learning and large language models to enhance clinical decision-making. He is actively seeking collaboration with those specialised in knowledge-grounded natural language processing and retrieval augmented generation.
Stefan has worked on high impact initiatives conducted in collaboration with the WHO Global Outbreak and Response Network, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners and National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organization. He is passionate about bridging the gap between research, policy, and practice to drive meaningful change.
