Stanford Health Care history

1960 – First kidney transplant in California.

1967 – First synthesis of biologically active DNA in test tube

1968 – Norman E. Shumway, MD, PhD, and his surgical team perform the first successful adult human heart transplant in the United States

1971 – First multicenter trial to demonstrate that lowering cholesterol levels prevents heart disease

1972 – Discovery of a new class of immune response genes, suggesting for the first time that people may have predictable susceptibility to certain diseases

1981 – Bruce Reitz, MD, leads team to complete first successful human combined heart/lung transplant in the world (fourth attempted worldwide)

1989 – New hospital wing opens as part of modernization project

1993 – First demonstration that lifestyle changes and drug therapy decrease heart attack rates and slows progression of atherosclerosis in coronary arteries

1995 – First optical imaging of infection in vivo

1996 – Discovery that mutations in a single gene are responsible for the most common form of skin cancer in humans

1999 – First clinical trial of bupropion, the antidepressant known as Wellbutrin, as a nicotine replacement for smoking cessation in adolescents

2000 – Participation in the successful international effort to complete the human genome sequencing project (Needs resolution of discrepancy)

2004 – Stanford Cancer Center opens

2007 – Application and expansion of optogenetics, a technique to control brain cell activity with light

2008 – Development of new imaging to illuminate tumors in vivo with precision of one-trillionth of a meter

2009 – Stanford Medicine Outpatient Center opens in Redwood City

2010 – For the first time, researchers use a healthy person's genome sequence to predict his disease risk

2011 – First use of aggregate patient data from electronic medical records to select a patient's treatment

2012 – On-site clinic opens for employees of Dreamworks' Redwood City site

2013 – A hydrogel process developed at Stanford creates a transparent brain