Speaker Profile
M.D., Ph.D., President & CEO, Vanderbilt U Medical Ctr
Biography
As CEO and medical school dean since 2009, Dr. Balser has led VUMCs health system expansion from two to five regional campuses housing seven hospitals and nearly 2000 licensed beds. With over 40,000 employees, annual operating income has grown from $2 to over $9 billion, supported by 3.5 million patient visits at over 200 locations. VUMC houses the nations largest heart transplant center and the Mid-Souths largest NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center. The School of Medicine is the nations 5th largest recipient of NIH grants and is the nations academic leader in health information technology and precision medicine, hosting the Data and Research Support Center for NIHs All of Us precision medicine program. He led a $1.2B public debt issuance and historic restructuring with Vanderbilt University in 2016, launching VUMC as an independent 501C3. A member of the National Academy of Medicine, he is a director of VUMC and CVS Health.
Session Abstract – PMWC 2026 Silicon Valley
Track Chair: Burns Blaxall
PMWC Award Ceremony
• Euan Ashley, Stanford
• Jeff Balser, VUMC
• Howard J. Jacob, Abbvie
Precision Medicine at Scale – Lessons from Vanderbilt
• Jeffrey R. Balser, Vanderbilt
From First Patient to a Million Genomes
• Chair: Howard J. Jacob, Abbvie
• Jeffrey Balser, Vanderbilt
• Euan Ashley, Stanford
Keynote: AI and Data-Driven Individual Health
• Lee Hood, Phenome Health
Keys to Successful Implementation of a Precision Medicine Program
• Chair: Howard McLeod, GeneDx
• Kevan Simms, Ochsner Health
Key Players in Successful Implementation – Beyond Oncology
• Chair: Damon Hostin, Illumina
• Shaista Malik, UC Irvine
• David E. Lanfear, Henry Ford Health
Precision Medicine at Scale: Lessons from a Statewide Genomic Initiative
• Chair: Premal Shah, MyOme
• Niall Lennon, Broad Clinical Labs
Integrating Multi-Modal Biology into Precision Care Pathways: A Systems Framework for Scalable Implementation
• K V Venkatesh, IIT Mumbai
From $/Gb to Outcomes – Simplifying Genomics for Health Systems
• Fireside Chat: Jacob Thaysen, CEO, Illumina
Achieving Comprehensive Precision Medicine
• Chair: Burns Blaxall
• Trish Brown, GeneDx
• Sarah Hersey, BMS
• Euan Ashley, Stanford
