Tom Rico Pamukcu | South SF, CA
Summary
Clinical research leader with almost two decades of
experience accelerating medical discovery through
patient-centered and technology-enabled research.
Experienced entrepreneur and start-up executive leading product development, operational strategy, system and
data architecture, and early-stage team growth.
Expertise in clinical trial operations, risk mitigation, and management of projects, people, and vendors.
Subject-matter specialization in oncology, pediatrics, pain, sleep, and rare diseases.
Track record of building collaborative partnerships with investigators, vendors, and patient communities.
Work Experience
Health Wallet Jul 2019 - Present
Founder and CEO
• Founded and led development of a patient-centered clinical trial platform, shaping product vision and design based on patient and researcher input; directed engineering team on platform build and refinement. • Awarded 2022 Roddenberry Fellowship for social entrepreneurship and selected as founding member of CancerX.
UC Santa Cruz – Silicon Valley Extension Jul 2019 - Present Instructor, Clinical Trials Design & Management
• Teach courses on Data Practices and Study Designs for Clinical Research Certificate Program.
Revolution Medicines Dec 2026 – Feb 2026
Contractor, Clinical Trial Operations
• Provide on-demand operational support for study start-up of two global Ph 3 trials with novel cancer therapy. • Designed and built feasibility process and system to inform strategic site-selection across competing studies.
Stanford University
Assoc. Director of Clinical Research Operations, Stanford Center for Clinical Research Jul 2023 - Nov 2023 • Provided short-term leadership coverage for multi-site and digital health research portfolios, ensuring continuity of operations and strategic oversight.
Genentech Feb 2016 - May 2019
Global Studies Manager, Product Development Global (PDG) Oncology • Managed ops for $300M+ global portfolio of outsourced phase 1b–3 oncology trials, overseeing budgets, vendors, and cross-functional collaboration; executed innovative models, including rolling-six enrollment and pediatric basket trials. • Served as escalation lead for CRO-site challenges, enabling study recovery and restored timelines globally. • Led operations for Avastin portfolio and Tissue Data Quality initiative, supporting international filings and process standardization across whole late-stage portfolio.
• Partnered with IBM Watson to develop department’s first chatbot, improving international operational support. • Appointed as Clinical Operations representative in PDG’s organizational redesign process. • Promoted from Global Studies Associate after one year, recognized for rescuing underperforming operations and authoring the first “GSA Playbook” to train GSAs worldwide.
Stanford University
Division Clinical Research Manager & Data Manager, Division of Pain Medicine Oct 2014 - Feb 2016 • Managed 20+ person clinical research team of Systems Neuroscience and Pain Lab, overseeing design, launch, and execution of over 40 clinical trials.
• Oversaw data and biospecimen infrastructure, including neuroimaging database development and large-scale biobanking. • Built software that increased screening capacity by 1,000% and enrollment by 400% in first month of deployment. • Managed grants, sponsor communications, and NIH reporting; oversaw multi-site Stanford Center for Back Pain.
Senior Clinical Research Coordinator, Opioid and Physiology Lab May 2013 - Oct 2014 • Managed the lab’s team of five and oversaw compliance, data, operations, and trial enrollment. • Doubled enrollment and trial progress rates through process optimization and adoption of new research technology.
Applied Isotope Technologies
Strategic Partnerships Lead Jul 2012 – Sep 2014
• Established collaborations with academic institutions to use novel quantification technology to advance clinical research.
Tom Rico Pamukcu South SF, CA
Work Experience (continued)
Stanford University
Clinical Research Coordinator, Stanford Center for Sleep and Circadian Sciences Sep 2009 - Jul 2012 • Managed multiple clinical trials, IRB submissions, and biospecimen workflows from collection to processing. • Recognized globally for expertise in Kleine-Levin Syndrome (KLS); co-founded first-ever international KLS conference, contributed to DSM-V diagnostic criteria, and consulted with doctors on KLS identification.
Volunteering
Association of Clinical Research Professionals, Northern California Chapter Vice President Jan 2018 - Feb 2021
• Provided leadership training, network building, and educational programming for clinical research professionals.
Selected Publications (under “Pamukcu T” & “Rico TJ”)
• Pamukcu T. COVID keeps evolving. Clinical drug trials need to evolve along with it. San Francisco Chronicle. 2022. • Ambati A et al. Kleine-Levin syndrome is associated with birth difficulties and genetic variants in the TRANK1 gene loci. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2021. PMID: 33737391.
• Sturgeon JA et al. Predictors of Daily Pain Medication Use in Individuals with Recurrent Back Pain. Int J Behav Med. 2018. PMID: 28875436.
• Chu LF et al. Ondansetron does not prevent physical dependence in patients taking opioid medications chronically for pain control. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2018. PMID: 29278818. • Chu LF et al. Ondansetron Does Not Reduce Withdrawal in Patients With Physical Dependence on Chronic Opioid Therapy. J Addict Med. 2017. PMID: 28514235.
• Sharifzadeh Y et al. Pain Catastrophizing Moderates Relationships between Pain Intensity and Opioid Prescription:
Nonlinear Sex Differences Revealed Using a Learning Health System. Anesthesiology. 2017. PMID: 28614083. • Feinstein AB et al. The Effect of Pain Catastrophizing on Outcomes: A Developmental Perspective Across Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults With Chronic Pain. J Pain. 2017. PMID: 27825857. • Goldberg S et al. Analysis of Hypoxic and Hypercapnic Ventilatory Response in Healthy Volunteers. PLoS One. 2017. PMID: 28045995.
• Sturgeon JA et al. Social Disruption Mediates the Relationship Between Perceived Injustice and Anger in Chronic Pain: a Collaborative Health Outcomes Information Registry Study. Ann Behav Med. 2016. PMID: 27325314. • Nguyen QT et al. Familial Kleine-Levin Syndrome: A Specific Entity? Sleep. 2016. PMID: 27253765. • Kornum BR et al. Serum cytokine levels in Kleine-Levin syndrome. Sleep Med. 2015. PMID: 26116465. • Khor SS et al. Genome-wide association study of HLA-DQB106:02 negative essential hypersomnia.* PeerJ. 2013.
PMID: 23646285.
• Faraco J et al. ImmunoChip study implicates antigen presentation to T cells in narcolepsy. PLoS Genet. 2013.
PMID: 23459209.
• Arnulf I, Rico TJ, Mignot E. Diagnosis, disease course, and management of patients with Kleine-Levin syndrome.
Lancet Neurol. 2012. PMID: 22995695.
• Andlauer O et al. Predictors of hypocretin (orexin) deficiency in narcolepsy without cataplexy. Sleep. 2012. PMID:
22942503.
• Weiner K et al. DQB106:02 allele-specific expression varies by allelic dosage, not narcolepsy status.* Hum Immunol. 2012. PMID: 22326585.
• Kornum BR et al. Common variants in P2RY11 are associated with narcolepsy. Nat Genet. 2011. PMID: 21170044.
Education, Certifications, & Honors
UCSB: BS, Cellular & Developmental Biology, 2009
Stanford Graduate School of Business: Management
Academy & Supervisory Academy Certificates, 2014
Certified Clinical Research Coordinator, 2013-2017
Certified Phlebotomy Technician I (CPT I), 2009-2017
Roddenberry Fellowship, 2022