Steadman Philippon Research Institute and Vail Health Renew Landmark Partnership with 5-Year Commitment
Five-year extension builds on a decade of groundbreaking discoveries in cancer, orthopaedics and behavioral health research, advancing the Mountain West as a hub for world-class medical research
Vail, Colorado, Jan. 28, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Steadman Philippon Research Institute (SPRI) and Vail Health have renewed their longstanding partnership with a new five-year agreement advancing medical research and innovation.
The extension builds on a highly successful 10-year collaboration launched in 2015, which fueled major breakthroughs in regenerative medicine, including collaborative studies in cancer and behavioral health. The previous agreement enabled significant scientific growth and discovery for both SPRI and Vail Health during the past decade.
“SPRI has experienced tremendous growth and our partnership with Vail Health has been critical to much of our success during the past 10 years,” said Marc J. Philippon, M.D., Chairman of SPRI and Managing Partner of The Steadman Clinic. “Together with Vail Health, we’ve not only advanced orthopaedic and cancer research but also contributed to global medical knowledge. Many of our shared research projects are ongoing. The next five years will allow us to deepen that impact and pursue new frontiers in regenerative medicine and longevity.”
“Vail Health greatly values our longstanding partnership with SPRI that, in conjunction with our orthopaedic partners, has solidified the Vail area as a world-renowned destination for research and orthopaedics,” said Will Cook, president and CEO of Vail Health. “Continuing this collaboration with SPRI and expanding it to new avenues of study is in perfect alignment with our mission of elevating health across our mountain communities. The research results that come out of SPRI are a true benefit to our community, and we are proud to support their efforts.”
The original partnership provided significant support for SPRI to establish vital laboratory infrastructure, launch its regenerative medicine program and provided seed funding for pilot studies and research programs. Several of these pilot studies went on to become multi-year clinical studies and trials funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Department of Defense (DoD), enrolling patients from across the Vail area. Since the original partnership between the organizations, clinicians and scientists have investigated innovative treatments for orthopaedic conditions, including the use of anti-fibrotic medications and senolytic supplements alongside biologic therapies and advanced surgical techniques.
The renewed partnership will include advancing two foundational collaborations already yielding significant breakthroughs—cancer and behavioral health research.
- Vail Health’s Shaw Cancer Center in Edwards, Colorado is applying SPRI’s anti-fibrotic orthopaedic research to breast cancer patients experiencing radiation-induced fibrosis. Early pilot studies show promising results, and continuing this work will remain a central priority, including the pursuit of federal grants and expanding to other cancer types.
- Vail Health’s clinical studies exploring innovative therapies for depression, including hot and cold therapy and the therapeutic use of psilocybin, are supported by SPRI’s regenerative medicine team. In the current collaboration, SPRI processes blood samples for these clinical studies, providing evidence for the efficacy of these techniques through biomarker assays.
Together, SPRI and Vail Health look to partner on research areas of which both organizations are aligned, including healthy aging, longevity and improving healthspan. Vail Health’s entities, including Howard Head Sports Medicine and the Vail Health Behavioral Health Innovation Center, have natural synergies with SPRI’s scientific departments (regenerative medicine, biomechanics, advanced imaging, outcomes and informatics).
Dan Drawbaugh, CEO of SPRI, also noted the partnership’s growing footprint: “Our collaboration now extends well beyond Vail, with research labs and clinical presence in Summit County and Basalt. Together, we are positioning the Mountain West as a center for world-class medical care backed by innovative scientific research. This partnership agreement enables a continuation and expansion of our impact, both as a destination for health and medicine and as global leaders in science and medicine.”
“Vail has earned an international reputation as a medical innovation hub thanks to the collaborative approach Vail Health and SPRI have taken during the past 10 years,” said Tom Gorrie, Vail Health Board Chairman. “The breakthroughs in the sports medicine and orthopaedics research are just the beginning, and we look forward to exploring how to improve cancer care and behavioral health care through research.”
For further information, contact Marianne Kipp, SPRI’s Director of Marketing & Communications, (mkipp@sprivail.org, 970/401-8734) and Sally Welsh, Vail Health’s Director of Public Relations, (sally.welsh@vailhealth.org, 503/314-1935).
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Marianne Kipp Steadman Philippon Research Institute 970-401-8734 mkipp@sprivail.org Sally Welsh Vail Health 503-314-1935 sally.welsh@vailhealth.org
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