Care Team

Dr. Damrose graduated from Yale University in 1991 cum laude, earning a bachelor's of science degree in biology. He attended the UCLA School of Medicine, earning his MD in 1995 and completing a thesis on laryngeal biomechanics. He remained at UCLA for training in general surgery from 1995 to 1997, was nominated "Physician of the Year" by the UCLA staff, and completed his residency in Otolaryngology — Head & Neck surgery in 2001. He remained with UCLA from 2001 to 2003, serving as Clinical Instructor in Laryngeal Surgery and completing a two-year clinical and research fellowship in laryngology/bronchoesophagology. Dr. Damrose joined the Stanford faculty in 2003 and currently serves as Professor of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery and, by courtesy, of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine; Chief of the Division of Laryngology; Director of the Stanford Voice & Swallowing Center and the Fellowship Program in Laryngology; Immediate Past Chief of Staff/Stanford Health Care and Medical Director for Professionalism/Stanford Health Care. He also serves as Chair of the Department Quality Assurance/Quality Improvement Program and leads the Improvement Capability Development Program. Dr. Damrose proudly serves as a Captain in the United States Navy Reserve. He has held numerous leadership positions in the Navy, including that of Otolaryngology Specialty Leader in which he serves in an advisory capacity to the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery on otolaryngologic matters. In 2020 he mobilized to Guam to support the 7th Fleet during the Navy's response to the COVID 19 pandemic. He is the recipient of the Meritorious Service Medal, the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal (with Gold Star), the Meritorious Unit Commendation, and various other service medals. His clinical interests include complex airway reconstruction; surgical treatment of spasmodic dysphonia; surgical treatment of laryngeal and hypopharyngeal cancer; laryngeal framework surgery; and the surgical treatment of hypopharyngeal and esophageal diverticula. He has pioneered novel approaches in the treatment of laryngeal chondrosarcoma and endoscopic resection of Zenker’s diverticula. His research interests include elucidating the pathogenesis of idiopathic subglottic stenosis and the development of technologies to restore voice in patients with vocal cord paralysis and laryngeal cancer.

Dr. Elizabeth DiRenzo is a clinician scientist with a subspecialty interest in the behavioral assessment and treatment of laryngological disorders. She completed her undergraduate and clinical graduate degrees at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana specializing in speech-language pathology. Following her clinical degrees, she remained at Purdue and earned a PhD in laryngeal physiology. She then completed postdoctoral training in the Department of Surgery, Division of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery at the University of Wisconsin-Madison studying vocal fold biology. Clinically, Dr. DiRenzo is a practicing speech-language pathologist in the Stanford Voice and Swallowing Center. Her specific interests include the behavioral evaluation and treatment of patients with voice, resonance, upper airway, and swallowing disorders. In conjunction with her physician colleagues, Dr. DiRenzo has has implemented a team-based patient assessment approach between laryngologists and speech-language pathologists and standardized multidimensional evaluation procedures to characterize normal and pathological voices for clinical and research purposes. Dr. DiRenzo's research goal is to advance patient care and improve treatment outcomes through study of both normal laryngeal function and the pathophysiology of voice disorders. To achieve this overarching objective, Dr. DiRenzo’s laboratory utilizes a highly collaborative, multifaceted approach consisting of basic science and clinical research techniques. Outside of work, she prioritizes spending time outdoors enjoying the beautiful California terrain with her husband Dan and their children Lucas and Clara.

Ann Kearney, CScD, CCC-SLP, BCS-S has her Clinical Science Doctorate degree in speech pathology. She received her Master's degree from the University of Iowa. She completed her Clinical Fellowship Year (CFY) at North Coast Rehab Center in Santa Rosa, CA. After her CFY, she moved to San Francisco and became the Director of the Speech Pathology Department at San Francisco General Hospital, an affiliate of UCSF. It was during this time that she became interested in post laryngectomy speech rehabilitation and trained with Mark Singer, MD. From there, she moved to Boston and spent time at the Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH), a training hospital for Harvard Medical School.

She was a member of the Voice and Swallowing department and worked with Kitty Verdolini, PhD and Marvin Freed, MD. After several years at the BWH, she moved to Tufts/New England Medical Center where she was the voice specialist for the Department of Otolaryngology and worked directly with the Chair of the Dept., Stanley Shapshay, MD.

Ann has been with the Department of Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery since 2003. She has presented at numerous national meetings. She is the program coordinator for CEU courses offered through the Department, such as Stanford's TEP course and Advanced FEES courses. Additionally, she is the co-founder for the head and neck cancer support group at the Cancer Center. Her interests include post laryngectomy rehabilitation, voice therapy in the professional voice user, swallowing disorders, exercise induced paradoxical vocal fold movement disorder (EI-PVFM), chronic cough, and obstructive sleep apnea. She is Board Certified in Swallowing Disorders, has been on the faculty for the IAL/Voice Institute, trained in Buteyko Breathing (level 1) and is Myofascial Release certified for the head and neck. Ann works in the Laryngology and Sleep Surgery divisions within the Department.

Xueying Cao, MS, BSN, PA-C, graduated with Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing in 2016 from Emory University in Atlanta, GA, USA, where she was a member of Sigma Theta Tau, Honors Society of Nursing. After working as an RN for 2 years in cardiothoracic surgery, Xueying went to Stanford University in Stanford, CA, USA, earned her Master of Science degree in Physician Assistant Studies and became a Board-Certified Physician Assistant (PA-C) in 2022.

Xueying joined Stanford Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery Department in 2022 after graduating from her PA program. Clinically, she specializes in laryngology, rhinology, and sleep surgery divisions. Xueying is passionate about providing high-quality evidence-based care to her patients. She is competent in performing ENT related procedures and seeing patients with complaints of nose, throat and sleep issues.

In addition to patient care, Xueying is interested in teaching, medical innovation, clinical research, and leadership focusing on healthcare administration.