Boon Lead Tee, MD, MA, is an assistant professor of neurology at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center, a behavioral neurologist, and a clinician-scientist. Her work focuses on improving dementia diagnosis and assessment, as well as advancing health equity for culturally and linguistically diverse populations. Originally from Taiwan and Malaysia, Dr. Tee joined UCSF as an Atlantic Fellow for Equity in Brain Health at the Global Brain Health Institute (GBHI) and now serves as faculty at GBHI.
Dr. Tee directs the Chinese Outreach Program at the Fein Memory and Aging Center, where she bridges clinical care, community engagement, and research participation for Chinese-speaking communities affected by neurodegenerative diseases. Her research integrates neurolinguistics, cognitive neuroscience, and cross-cultural assessment to improve the early and equitable detection of dementia across populations.
She leads several multinational initiatives, including the LINGHUA-Multiverse Study, which examines bilingualism, social determinants of health, and cognitive reserve, as well as the CLAP and ENHANCE projects, which develop culturally and linguistically appropriate cognitive assessment tools for Mandarin- and Cantonese-speaking individuals. Dr. Tee also plays a leadership role in the Asian Cohort for Alzheimer’s Disease (ACAD), where she leads the Training & Quality Assurance Core. Her cross-linguistic projects span Turkey, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Italy, China, and other international sites.
To further support global language-inclusive research, Dr. Tee co-founded the INCLUDE Network, which aims to streamline, amplify, and connect cross-linguistic research efforts worldwide. Through her interdisciplinary work, Dr. Tee aims to promote linguistic diversity in cognitive research and develop diagnostic approaches that are valid, inclusive, and globally applicable.