Summer Han

Dr. Summer Han serves as Associate Professor of Medicine, Neurosurgery, and Epidemiology at Stanford University School of Medicine. She leads research through the Quantitative Sciences Unit (QSU) in the Biomedical Informatics Research Division of the Department of Medicine and maintains joint appointments in the Department of Neurosurgery. Her work bridges statistical methodology development with clinical applications in cancer screening and neuroscience.

Her research program focuses on statistical genetics, molecular epidemiology, and risk prediction modeling for complex diseases. Key areas include developing novel methods for analyzing high-dimensional genomic data, creating dynamic risk prediction models under competing risks, and establishing evidence-based cancer screening strategies. Her team integrates genetic, environmental, and clinical factors to improve early detection of lung cancer and second primary malignancies, with particular attention to reducing racial disparities in screening outcomes.

Dr. Han's scientific contributions have been recognized through prestigious awards including the NCI R37 MERIT Award for Early-Stage Investigators and the Department of Medicine Teaching Award in Biomedical Informatics Research. Her team has developed impactful tools such as the SPLC-RAT for second primary lung cancer risk assessment and RAMBO for brain metastasis prediction in lung cancer patients.

She actively mentors PhD students and postdoctoral fellows, with several former trainees securing faculty positions at institutions including Cornell University and IIT Roorkee. Current research initiatives include the Oncoshare-Lung database integrating EHRs from Stanford Health Care and 23+ Sutter Health sites across Northern California, and the Cancer Data Science Shared Resources Core which she co-directs at the Stanford Cancer Institute.

• NCI R37 MERIT Award (Early-Stage Investigator)
• 2022 Department of Medicine Teaching Award in Biomedical Informatics
• 2024 SCI Equity Impact Research Grant
• 2024 Neurosurgery Research Seed Grant Award
• Multiple NCI R01 grants (CA226081, CA282793)

Her laboratory collaborates extensively across Stanford Medicine, working with thoracic oncologists, neurosurgeons, and epidemiologists to translate statistical innovations into clinical practice. Current projects address socioeconomic factors in cancer risk stratification, real-time physical activity monitoring in spine surgery recovery, and machine learning approaches for genomic data analysis.