Honolulu-based University of Hawaii Cancer Center has opened the first early-phase clinical trial center in the Hawaiian Islands.
The Ho’ōla Early Phase Clinical Research Center is located within the UH Cancer Center in Honolulu’s Kaka’ako neighborhood, according to a July 6 news release.
University Health Partners, the faculty practice of University of Hawaii Health Sciences, will oversee staffing and operations of the new facility, and clinical trials will be conducted in collaboration with members of the Hawaii Cancer Consortium: Queen’s Health Systems, Hawaii Pacific Health, Kuakini Medical Center, Hawaii Medical Service Association and the John A. Burns School of Medicine, all based in Honolulu; Kailua-based Adventist Health Castle; and the Hilo Benioff Medical Center.
The center currently has a pilot phase 1 clinical trial underway and plans to have 30 active early-phase trials by 2031, the release said.
“For the first time in state history, qualifying cancer patients will have the opportunity to access promising investigational therapies here in Hawaii, without traveling thousands of miles to medical centers on the U.S. mainland,” UH Cancer Center Director Naoto Ueno, MD, PhD, said in the release.
A study led by researchers from the University of Hawaii Cancer Center found that Hawaiian residents spent at least $230 million on cancer care outside of the state between 2021 and 2023.
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