Stanford Prevention Research Center

What Stanford Prevention Research Center does

The Stanford Prevention Research Center (SPRC) is an academic research center at Stanford University that operates the Women's Health Initiative Strong and Healthy (WHISH) clinical trial, a federally funded study launched in 2015 to test whether increased physical activity reduces heart disease and stroke in older women. The program targets women aged 65 and older who are enrolled in the broader Women's Health Initiative (WHI) Extension Study, reaching nearly 22,000 participants nationwide across the United States. SPRC is co-led by Dr. Marcia Stefanick at Stanford, Dr. Andrea LaCroix at UC San Diego, and Dr. Charles Kooperberg at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, with primary funding from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).

The WHISH intervention includes seasonal newsletters, the National Institute on Aging's Go4Life Exercise & Physical Activity Everyday Guide, pedometers, resistance bands, activity logs and calendars, a website-based tracking program, and an interactive voice response system for self-monitoring. The trial was closed to recruitment in 2018 and the program is now in a follow-up and participant-engagement phase, with continued dissemination of research findings through the study website and ancillary publications. The stated program has no commercial revenue, no pricing model, and no paying customers; participation is limited to enrolled WHI Extension Study participants, and the study is operated as an academic research program rather than a commercial enterprise. Ancillary research results cited include a 12% lower mortality risk per 30 additional minutes of light physical activity per day and a 39% lower mortality risk per 30 additional minutes of moderate activity in women ages 65–99.

Name

Stanford Prevention Research Center

Legal name

Stanford Prevention Research Center

Website

https://whish.stanford.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Stanford Prevention Research Center runs the WHISH clinical trial, an NHLBI-funded study testing whether increased physical activity reduces heart disease and stroke in older women enrolled in the Women's Health Initiative Extension Study across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Clinical Research Services

NAICS

Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Senior & Active Aging Personal Training (HSADAAAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Women's Health & Life-Stage Wellness Education (Fertility, Pregnancy, Menopause) (EDAAAHAI), Functional Fitness & Mobility Training (HSADAAAD), Fitness & Exercise Training Education (Strength, Cardio, Mobility) (EDAAAHAB)

Keywords

• Clinical research services
• Preventive medicine research
• Women's health trials
• Cardiovascular prevention studies
• Physical activity interventions

Headquarters

HQ city

Palo Alto

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

The Stanford Prevention Research Center delivers the WHISH (Women's Health Initiative Strong and Healthy) clinical trial — a federally funded randomized controlled trial testing whether increasing physical activity reduces major cardiovascular events in older women. It enrolls approximately 22,000 postmenopausal women from the WHI Extension Study and provides them with motivational materials, exercise guides (NIA Go4Life), activity tracking tools (accelerometers, pedometers), and exercise equipment (resistance bands) over the course of the study.

Product overview

WHISH is not a technology product company but a clinical trial/research program. The WHISH (Women's Health Initiative Strong and Healthy) study provides a unified physical activity intervention program for older women, consisting of: seasonal newsletters, the NIA Go4Life guide, pedometers, resistance bands, and multiple tracking tools (activity logs/calendars, website tracking program, and interactive voice system). The Resources section also aggregates state-level physical activity resources across the U.S.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WHISH Physical Activity Program A federally funded randomized controlled trial intervention delivering physical activity materials — including newsletters, exercise guides (NIA Go4Life), accelerometers, pedometers, resistance bands, IVR-based motivation calls, and a web-based tracking platform — to approximately 22,000 postmenopausal women enrolled in the WHI Extension Study. Designed for women aged 50-79 to reduce cardiovascular events through increased physical activity.
• State Health Resources Directory A reference directory distributed to WHISH trial participants to help them locate local physical activity programs and health resources in their state, supporting the intervention's goal of sustained physical activity beyond the trial materials.

Quantifiable outcome

• 30 additional minutes/day of light physical activity associated with 12% lower mortality risk in women ages 65-99
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of California, San Diego (UCSD)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWHISH is co-led by Dr. Andrea LaCroix from UC San Diego, who serves as a principal investigator alongside Dr. Marcia Stefanick from Stanford.
• Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWHISH is co-led by Dr. Charles Kooperberg from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (WHI Coordinating Center) in Seattle, which serves as the WHI study's coordinating center.
• National Institutes on Aging (NIA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWHISH distributes the NIA Go4Life Exercise & Physical Activity Everyday Guide — a physical activity resource designed for adults aged 65 and older — as part of the study materials provided to participants.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Market position

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stanford-prevention-research-center

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Stanford Prevention Research Center