From Dean Lloyd Minor
I was determined to write this book to provide an overview of the Precision Health vision. But I also wanted to help reorient how health and medicine are viewed in the United States, and even throughout the world. While you’ll see that Stanford professors feature prominently, as do several companies operating near Stanford, the vision I’m putting forward is universally applicable. My inclusion of the companies is intended to provide an overview of the wide‐ranging approaches and technologies that have the goal of improving health and health care. This overview of commercial activity is not intended to be comprehensive, nor does the inclusion of a company in any way reflect an endorsement of its approach or likelihood of success.
Virtually any institution, or any individual, can embrace the tenets of Precision Health and begin working toward achieving better health outcomes. And all communities—regardless of income levels and ethnic, racial, or religious composition—can benefit from Precision Health. Indeed, while Silicon Valley is seen as a cradle of wealth, it’s also home to several jurisdictions where incomes are well below the national average, and where public health indicators paint a picture of distress. We are working in these communities with as much or more determination as we are in other communities with wealthier and healthier profiles.
For anyone with an interest in issues related to health and medicine, this is an exciting moment. We are learning more and more about what contributes to human health, and the different ways in which individuals can empower themselves to lead healthier lives. We are on the brink of an amazing transformation in the practice of medicine.
I hope this book will help you understand the dynamic future that lies ahead. I also hope it will inspire you to work with others—whether family, friends, or your broader community—to help ensure that the Precision Health vision can become a reality for people in the United States and throughout the world.
Lloyd Minor, MD
Dean, Stanford University School of Medicine