Stanford Cancer Institute

What Stanford Cancer Institute does

Stanford Cancer Institute is the National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center embedded within Stanford Medicine at Stanford University. It serves cancer patients, referring physicians, and the broader research community through a portfolio of more than 250 actively recruiting clinical trials spanning diagnostic, prevention, and treatment strategies. The institute organizes its research around three core programs: Cancer Cell Biology, Cancer Imaging and Early Detection, and Cancer Immunotherapy, and is expanding into an early detection and interception vertical under newly appointed associate director Pamela Munster.

The institute's technology base combines structural biology (notably cryo-electron microscopy that produced an electrostatic two-step model of mTOR substrate selectivity), cell engineering for solid-tumor CAR-T therapies, and engineered recombinant cytokines aimed at reducing immunotherapy toxicity. Its research enterprise is operationally powered by a Clinical Trials Office of more than 200 staff that runs patient enrollment, protocol compliance, and contracts; a redesign of pre-screening to evaluate all referred patients drove clinic volume growth above 200% and new patient visits up approximately 150% over a few years.

As a nonprofit academic center, SCI does not sell a product in the commercial sense. Revenue is generated through a combination of clinical care delivered via Stanford Health Care, federal and private research grants (including NCI core grants tied to its Comprehensive Cancer Center status), and industry-funded clinical trials. Marketing and patient access run through the Stanford Medicine website, a public clinical trial search portal, social channels, events such as the Breakthroughs in Cancer speaker series and Comprehensive Cancer Research Training Program, physician referral networks, and earned media. In 2025 the institute launched the Weill Cancer Hub West, a $200M, ten-year partnership with UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center targeting precision nutrition, AI-driven personalized treatment, cellular therapies, and immune cell engineering.

Name

Stanford Cancer Institute

Legal name

Stanford Cancer Institute

Website

https://cancer.stanford.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1891

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Stanford Cancer Institute is Stanford Medicine's NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, running 250+ cancer clinical trials across cell biology, imaging, immunotherapy, and early detection for patients and referring providers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Cancer Center / Cancer Research and Clinical Trial Services

NAICS

Specialty (except Psychiatric and Substance Abuse) Hospitals (622310)

SIC

Services-Hospitals (8060)

akta.pro primary industry

Oncology & Cancer Specialty Hospitals (HLAFAHAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Hospital-Integrated Cancer Centers (Acute Oncology Programs) (HLAFAAAM), Academic Medical Centers & Teaching Hospitals (University-Affiliated) (EDAHAGAA)

Keywords

• Cancer research programs
• Clinical trial services
• Precision oncology
• Cancer immunotherapy research
• NCI comprehensive cancer center

Headquarters

HQ city

Stanford

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Clinical Research and Patient Care Services: As an academic cancer center within Stanford Medicine, the institute generates revenue through clinical care services, government and private research grants, and clinical trial funding from pharmaceutical partners and federal agencies.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Stanford Cancer Institute is an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center that conducts translational cancer research and provides patient care through more than 250 actively recruiting clinical trials. It operates three core research programs—Cancer Cell Biology, Cancer Imaging and Early Detection, and Cancer Immunotherapy—and delivers cancer diagnosis, prevention, and treatment services at its Stanford, California campus in partnership with Stanford Health Care.

Product overview

Stanford Cancer Institute is a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center offering a portfolio of cancer clinical trials and research programs. The institute operates over 250 actively recruiting clinical trials and manages three primary research programs: Cancer Cell Biology, Cancer Imaging and Early Detection, and Cancer Immunotherapy. The institute also participates in the Weill Cancer Hub West, a collaborative initiative with UCSF supporting advanced cancer research areas including AI-driven personalized treatment, cellular therapies, and radiopharmaceuticals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cancer Clinical Trials Investigational diagnostic, prevention, and treatment clinical trials for cancer patients, with over 250 trials actively recruiting, including adult, pediatric, and healthy-volunteer studies. Designed for cancer patients seeking access to cutting-edge experimental therapies and for referring physicians and trial sponsors seeking investigative sites.
• Cancer Cell Biology Research Program Research program investigating the molecules, mechanisms, and pathways involved in cancer pathogenesis, including structural biology and stem cell studies underlying cancer initiation and progression. Targets researchers, scientific collaborators, and translational programs developing new cancer therapeutics.
• Cancer Imaging and Early Detection Research Program Research program advancing cancer research, early detection, management, and outcomes through novel anatomical and molecular imaging strategies, including early-phase imaging-based diagnostic and interception research led by the associate director for early detection and interception.
• Cancer Immunotherapy Research Program Research program linking basic science and clinical translational strengths in cancer immunotherapy, including work on CAR-T cell therapy for solid tumors and engineered recombinant cytokines designed to reduce toxicity while improving patient outcomes.

Quantifiable outcome

• Clinic volume growth exceeding 200%
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer CenterflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025The Weill Cancer Hub West is a $200 million initiative partnership between Stanford Cancer Institute and UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. The two institutions committed to raise $50 million each in matching gifts over 10 years. The hub supports multidisciplinary research projects including precision nutrition, AI-driven personalized cancer treatment, cellular therapies for solid tumors, and in-body immune cell engineering. The initiative launched in 2025 with over $25 million already in place, focusing on pilot projects in MYC-driven cancers, colorectal cancer immunotherapy, and next-generation radiopharmaceuticals.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Dana-Farber Cancer Institute: Harvard-affiliated NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center with comparable depth in immunotherapy, early-phase trials, and translational research. Competes directly with Stanford for federal funding, top researchers, and pharma trial partnerships.
• Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center: The leading NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center on the East Coast, with comparable scale of clinical trials, research programs, and translational pipeline. MSKCC is the closest analog in terms of prestige, research output, and patient volume.
• Mayo Clinic Comprehensive Cancer Center: Multi-site NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center with comparable breadth across oncology subspecialties. Competitor for patient referrals, clinical trial enrollment, and precision oncology partnerships.
• Johns Hopkins Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center: Johns Hopkins-affiliated NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center with comparable research depth across oncology subspecialties and a similarly university-affiliated operating model. Competes for top-tier talent and federal grant dollars.
• UCSF Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center: UCSF's NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center is Stanford's flagship strategic partner via the Weill Cancer Hub West, with directly comparable mission, structure, and patient population in Northern California. The two centers operate overlapping oncology research and clinical trial programs.
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center: Seattle-based NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center with strong overlap in immunotherapy, cell therapy, and translational research. Direct competitor for NIH funding and biotech/pharma clinical trial collaborations.
• MD Anderson Cancer Center: The largest NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in the US, with comparable translational research programs, clinical trial volume, and oncology subspecialty depth. Direct competitor for talent, federal grants, and pharma-sponsored trials.

Others

• Weill Cornell Medicine / Meyer Cancer Center: Related to Stanford through the Weill family's philanthropic network, Weill Cornell has a parallel cancer center mission and overlapping funding sources. While not a direct geographic competitor, it represents a peer institution within the broader Weill-funded cancer research ecosystem.

Regional players

• UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center: Another California-based NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center with overlapping research strengths in immunotherapy and translational science. Direct regional competitor for California patient referrals and biotech partnerships.

Broad incumbents

• Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT: MIT-based cancer research institute with comparable translational science and engineering-driven oncology focus, particularly in nanotechnology and immunoengineering. Overlaps with Stanford in cancer imaging and bioengineering approaches.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@stanfordcancerinstitute
• Facebookfacebook.com/StanfordCancer
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stanford-cancer
• Instagraminstagram.com/stanford.cancer
• Xx.com/stanfordcancer

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Stanford Cancer Institute