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About
Nam Tran holds a patent on a procedure that did not exist before it — a technique using sperm stem cells to treat male infertility, described in his profile as a first of its kind. It came out of the same research program that made him the first investigator to generate primordial germ cells from patients with premature germ cell failure, an attempt to find a route to gametes for people whose supply has run out early. Those two lines of work define his clinical practice: ovarian insufficiency, premature ovarian failure, azoospermia, and the endocrine biology of gamete production.
He came to private practice out of the academic side of the field. After UCSF residency in obstetrics and gynecology and an REI fellowship at the same institution, he joined UCSF’s faculty as Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and served as Principal Investigator at the Center for Regenerative Medicine, where he became a leading clinical researcher in ovarian insufficiency, endometriosis and stem-cell work. He holds both an MD and a PhD — University of Iowa and University of Nevada-Reno respectively, after an honors undergraduate degree at the University of Irvine — and graduated at the top of his medical school class.
The awards track the dual career rather than one half of it. Prize papers from PCRS, SMRU and ASRM in 2011, 2014 and 2015; ASRM Scientific Prize Paper winner in 2015; a Society for Male Reproduction and Urology Scholar Award attached to the sperm stem-cell work; Castle Connolly Top Doctor since 2017. Also, from his training years, the Gold Humanism Award in medical school and the administrative chief resident role at UCSF — the job that consists of running a department rather than publishing in one. He is board-certified in both Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility and in Obstetrics and Gynecology, and practices out of Spring’s San Francisco and Silicon Valley offices.
Clinical Expertise
- Premature ovarian failure and ovarian insufficiency: his principal research and clinical area, including patients with no or very few recruitable eggs
- Diminished ovarian reserve: protocols for patients whose window has narrowed
- Male infertility and azoospermia: sperm stem-cell work, SMRU Scholar Award recognition, and a male-factor practice focus
- Endometriosis: clinical interest carried from his UCSF research program
- Embryo implantation: implantation biology and failure as a stated research and clinical interest
- IVF cycle management: with an investigator’s read on the reproductive biology underneath
Why Choose Dr. Tran
A patent and a research-first result. Most fertility specialists can list publications. Few can point to a patented procedure and to being first in the literature to generate primordial germ cells from patients with germ cell failure — both directly about rescuing reproductive capacity.
He ran an academic department. UCSF assistant professor, principal investigator at the Center for Regenerative Medicine, and administrative chief resident — the management track as well as the bench.
Recognized by the societies that judge the science. Prize papers from PCRS, SMRU and ASRM (2011, 2014, 2015) plus a 2015 ASRM Scientific Prize Paper and Castle Connolly Top Doctor listing since 2017.
Double board certification with a physician-scientist CV. Board-certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology and in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, with an MD and a PhD, grants and publications. Also the Gold Humanism Award, which is a voting recognition by students and colleagues about bedside conduct.
Professional Affiliations
Board-certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology and in Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility. Former UCSF Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Principal Investigator at the UCSF Center for Regenerative Medicine. Prize paper recipient from the Pacific Coast Reproductive Society, the Society for Male Reproduction and Urology and the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (2011, 2014, 2015), ASRM Scientific Prize Paper winner 2015, SMRU Scholar Award recipient, Castle Connolly Top Doctor since 2017. Practices within Spring Fertility’s SART-registered reporting unit (ClinicPKID 2000045), whose laboratory is recorded as CAP-accredited.
Suitable For
- Patients with premature ovarian insufficiency or failure, including those told they have no realistic egg supply
- Severely diminished ovarian reserve where protocol choices are the whole game
- Azoospermia and non-obstructive male factor cases, where the conversation reaches past standard IVF
- Endometriosis-related infertility
- Repeated implantation failure patients who want a physician comfortable with the biology of implantation
- Patients who read their own literature and want a physician-scientist on the other side of the desk