DaVita clinical research opens research center at St. Anthony Hospital: 80-bed facility will be used for early phase clinical studies.

• Position: Bioscience Colorado: ELEVATED THINKING - Clinical report

White DaVita's headquarters project at Denver's Union Station may be the Fortune 500 company's boldest statement of its commitment to Colorado, the early phase clinical research center it opened this summer at St. Anthony Hospital underscores DaVita's dedication to advancing medicine.

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The 35,000-square-foot unit, which is attached to the St. Anthony hospital in Medical Plaza 1, includes 80 beds, increasing the capacity of DaVita Clinical Research from 42 to 122 beds in North America. St. Anthony Hospital, a full-service hospital and Level I Trauma Center, opened in Lakewood in June 2011 after 119 years in its central Denver location.

"We approached a number of different hospitals and universities about collaboration." said Chad Jaeger, senior director of clinical operations for DaVita Clinical Research, a wholly owned subsidiary of DaVita Inc. "There were a number of business drivers that helped us make the final selection. From a culture and an operational perspective, it was a really good fit. We will have a top-tier research unit there that will he both comfortable and very safe for patients. It will be one of the premier sites to conduct early clinical research."

Between 20-25 teammates will comprise the core staff team, which will grow to 60 Or 70 by the end of 2013, Jaeger said. Clinical trials, which began in July, primarily consist of early phase (Phase I) studies in healthy normal patients, patients with chronic kidney disease--which afflicts more than 20 million people in the U.S.--and patients with liver disease.

"In addition to healthy normal populations, our focus will be on renal and hepatic impairment pharmacokineric studies. There are additional therapeutic indications such as oncology and cardiovascular disease, that we anticipate developing local partnerships and performing research in," said Jaeger, who also oversees DaVita's early phase research facility in Minneapolis.

The studies range from one to two days to sometimes multiple weeks, with five to 50 patients in any given study. Jaeger said. Patients who participate come from physician referrals and from DaVita's database, though the company also advertises in the local community through TV and print advertisements, social media and other means, he said.

"In most early phase studies, the patients are not necessarily getting any therapeutic benefit. They're...