Speakers
Health Matters has a long history of bringing engaging and inspiring speakers to our community. Here’s a look at our stellar lineup of presenters for Health Matters 2025.
Dr. Kado is co-director of the Stanford Center on Longevity and a professor of medicine–primary care and population health at Stanford Medicine, where she serves as chief of research in the Section of Geriatric Medicine. A geriatrician and longevity specialist, she also serves as director of the Geriatric Research Education and Clinical Center at the Veterans Health Administration in Palo Alto, California.
With a special interest in bone health, Dr. Kado conducts extensive research focused on osteoporosis, musculoskeletal aging, and the related disorder hyperkyphosis, commonly known as the “dowager’s hump.” Her discoveries have helped define the causes and consequences of this condition, with her work published in Annals of Internal Medicine and UpToDate, a clinical decision support resource for physicians worldwide. As a practicing physician and clinician-scientist, Dr. Kado is nationally recognized for her ability to interpret scientific discoveries as they relate to aging, increasing not only people’s health span, but also their quality of life.
A popular speaker and an expert source for numerous health publications nationwide, Dr. Kado is a member of multiple professional organizations, including the American Geriatrics Society, the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, the Gerontological Society of America, and the Endocrine Society. She co-chairs the National Institute on Aging workshop for the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
World-renowned for his contributions to the field of medical genomics, Dr. Ashley is chair of the Department of Medicine at Stanford, the Arthur L. Bloomfield Professor of Medicine, and the Roger and Joelle Burnell Professor of Genomics and Precision Health. He is also the founding director of the Clinical Genomics Program, the Center for Inherited Cardiovascular Disease, and the Stanford Medicine Catalyst program for biomedical innovation.
A professor of genetics, of biomedical data science and, by courtesy, of pathology, Dr. Ashley is the recipient of many awards, including the Council on Genomic and Precision Medicine Medal of Honor from the American Heart Association. He was also recognized by the Obama administration for his contributions to the field of personalized medicine. Dr. Ashley has co-founded five biotechnology companies and is the author of the 2021 book The Genome Odyssey: Medical Mysteries and the Incredible Quest to Solve Them, which explores the application of genomic medicine to rare diseases. He is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, and the European Society of Cardiology.
Hailing from Scotland, Dr. Ashley is the father of three Americans. In his spare time, he continues his quest to understand American football, plays jazz saxophone, pilots small planes, and conducts research on the health benefits of single malt Scotch whisky.
Dr. Deisseroth is the founder and director of the Human Neural Circuitry (HNC) program at Stanford Medicine, a research program and laboratory aimed at better understanding neuropsychiatric disorders and investigating the deepest mysteries of brain function and dysfunction. With its first-in-the-world technology network and real-time data-collection capabilities, workflows, and dedicated research space, the HNC program allows for the highest level of research science to be conducted with patients at Stanford Health Care, Stanford Medicine Children’s Health, and beyond.
Dr. Deisseroth is also the D.H. Chen Professor, and a professor of bioengineering and of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford. A Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator and board-certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, he is a practicing psychiatrist at Stanford, specializing in major depression and autism-spectrum disease.
Dr. Deisseroth’s laboratory has pioneered several groundbreaking techniques that allow scientists to precisely control and observe individual cells in living organisms. These methods include optogenetics, which uses light to activate or deactivate specific neurons, and hydrogel-tissue chemistry, which makes biological tissues transparent for better imaging. His team has also made significant discoveries about how certain proteins respond to light to control the flow of ions across cell membranes. All of this work allows researchers to investigate how specific neurons contribute to behavior, emotions, and cognitive processes, potentially leading to new treatments for neurological and psychiatric disorders.
Dr. Deisseroth received his undergraduate degree from Harvard and his MD and PhD from Stanford. He also completed his postdoctoral training, medical internship, and adult psychiatry residency at Stanford.
