Headlands Research to open El Paso site, citing study diversity
Clinical trial site network Headlands Research says its planned facility in El Paso, Texas, will increase its ability to recruit Hispanic people into drug research.
The San Francisco-based organization made the comments last week, explaining that the new site would be operational in the fourth quarter and will focus on metabolic/endocrine, healthy volunteer/vaccine, and pain trials.
The El Paso unit will be led by Ryan Casey, a board-certified family physician whose clinical experience includes practicing in rural, underserved communities in the US southern border region.
Casey’s experience was highlighted by CEO Kyle Burtnett, who said, “I am confident that our new site, under Ryan Casey’s superb leadership, will help support this goal, getting innovative treatments to a population historically left out of clinical research.”
Burtnett cited recent US FDA calls to make drug research more diverse as a driver for the investment, commenting, “The opening of our El Paso site comes at a time when regulatory bodies are urging pharmaceutical companies to prioritize representativeness.”
According to recent US census data, the El Paso metropolitan area is home to nearly 680,000 residents, 83% of whom identify as Hispanic.
Network expansion
At present, Headlands’ network comprises 19 sites across the US and Canada. In addition, the organization has a team of more than 50 physicians and 550 clinical research professionals.
Headlands’ network has been built through acquisitions. In May 2023, for example, the firm acquired Springfield, Missouri-based Clinvest Research, a site specializing in testing therapies for chronic diseases, migraine, arthritis, chronic pain, diabetes, and weight loss.
More recently, Headlands bought Baltimore, Maryland-based Pharmasite Research, a research site that provides services for trials focused on mental illness and disorders of the central nervous system.
Five of Headlands’ sites are being used in a collaboration with Pfizer that is also focused on improving diversity in clinical research.
Unsplash/Pete Alexopoulos