Clinical Trial Helps Young Athlete Return to the Field, Highlighting Research at Locally-Based Kaiser Permanente

A Southern California college athlete forced to step away from baseball after a serious kidney disease diagnosis returned for a standout senior season, an outcome made possible, he says, by a clinical trial at Pasadena-based Kaiser Permanente Southern California.

Diagnosed with IgA nephropathy, a chronic kidney disease that can lead to kidney failure, Chance Shipley, 24, had exhausted available treatments and left the game in his freshman year of college as his health declined. But then he enrolled in a phase 3 clinical trial led by physicians at Kaiser Permanente in Southern California, gaining access to an investigational therapy and close monitoring.

Within months, his kidney markers improved, his strength returned, and soon he rejoined his university’s baseball team, ultimately earning a starting role and delivering one of his strongest seasons.

His experience reflects rapid advances in kidney disease research and expanding access to clinical trials for patients across Southern California.

“For a long time, IgA nephropathy was seen as a mild or even benign disease, but we now know that many patients progress to kidney failure,” said Dr. John Sim, a nephrologist at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center, which serves members in Pasadena. “Clinical trials are changing that outlook by giving patients access to promising new therapies for diseases that previously had no targeted treatments.”

In 2025, Kaiser Permanente Southern California’s clinical trials program supported 430 protocols across 39 therapeutic areas, offering patients access to emerging treatments while helping to shape future standards of care.

Today, Chance continues to manage his condition while working full time and pursuing graduate studies. He said he joined the clinical trial hoping for a chance to get better and believing that, even if it did not help him, his participation could help improve the lives of other patients facing the same disease. He’s grateful he pitched again.

For physicians and researchers at Kaiser Permanente Southern California, his story underscores the importance of making advanced care accessible within the integrated health system.

“Patients don’t have to look outside the Kaiser Permanente health system for innovative treatment options,” said Dr. William Towner, Kaiser Permanente Southern California’s Physician Director “We can offer those opportunities here.”