DaVita Clinical Research, which handles outsourced trials for the kidney care giant ($DVA), is expanding its European presence, bringing in global experts to extend its network of R&D sites.
The CRO has added outposts in Germany, Poland and Portugal to its group of recognized sites, allowing it to conduct worldwide, late-stage clinical trials on a once-impossible scale, the company said.
DaVita Clinical Research, or DCR, has played a role in the development of every FDA-approved treatment for end-stage renal disease over the past 15 years, according to the company, and now the CRO wants to play a similarly integral role in European R&D for kidney disorders.
"Together our American and European teams provide unique expertise in clinical research," Vice President Amy Young said in a statement. "Combining extensive nephrology and clinical trial experience with knowledge of local differences in the practice of nephrology positions us as a valuable resource in drug development for chronic kidney disease management."
DCR has been working to elevate its profile since December, when its parent company merged it with the clinical research business of recent acquisition HealthCare Partners. Now, the combined entity can blend data from DaVita's more than 170,000 dialysis patients with HealthCare Partners' roughly 836,000 customers into an anonymized pool of information, creating a sizable resource that drug and device developers can use to design better trials and treatments, according to the company.
Founded in 1985, DCR has grown from a single pharmacology site to a sizable specialty CRO. Through expansion and acquisition, the outfit became full-service in 2012.
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