BREMERTON — Olympic Peninsula Kidney Center wants to move four of its 19 dialysis stations from its Wheaton Way facility to its former location on Clare Avenue for a new dialysis patient-training facility.

The center has a proposal pending with the state Department of Health. A decision is expected in late August, and the small training facility could be running next year.

"The plan is that all new patients will start dialysis there," Executive Director Jeff Lehman said.

Dialysis is a process in which patients with nonfunctioning kidneys are hooked up to machines that perform the blood-cleansing function of kidneys. The process is tedious. Patients typically must stay hooked up for several hours several times a week.

If given the go-ahead, Olympic Peninsula Kidney Center also will use the new facility for overnight dialysis. That's something that's never been available in Kitsap County, though Harrison Medical Center provides dialysis for its inpatients.

"It gives us the opportunity to set up a nocturnal dialysis program," Lehman said.

The cost to the nonprofit to retrofit the Clare Avenue building and move the four dialysis stations is estimated at between $500,000 and $600,000.

Olympic Peninsula Kidney Center has satellite facilities in Port Orchard, Poulsbo and Port Townsend. Altogether, it has 220 names on its patient roster. The number of patients grows about 2 percent to 3 percent a year.

Olympic Peninsula Kidney Center moved from Clare Avenue to Wheaton Way in 2009. Since then, the Clare Avenue building has been for sale, with no nibbles.

Since it hasn't sold, center leaders believe moving patient training to the Clare Avenue location and starting a night program there would be better than just using the building for storage. And it would offer more flexibility on how to use space at the Wheaton Way facility, which runs full much of the time.

The Clare Avenue building remains for sale, and if it attracts a buyer before the state makes its decision, another home for a dedicated training facility will be found.

"We'll pull it off the market once it's approved," Lehman said.

Olympic Peninsula Kidney Center came to life in 1980 after a two-year fundraising effort, largely from service clubs. Dr. Kenneth Cogen was a big force in getting it started and became its medical director. He's now retired and lives in Sun Valley, Idaho.

Before 1980, dialysis patients had to travel to Tacoma or Seattle for treatment, if they weren't doing it at home.

The first location was in the "glass building" at Fourth Street and Warren Avenue in downtown Bremerton. It moved to Clare Avenue in 1986.

...

A toddler suffering from kidney failure will get to live a normal life thanks to a teen's sacrifice, ABC 15 News reports.

Briana Delcampo, an 18-year-old from Tucson, Ariz., will be donating one of her kidneys to 18-month-old Isaiah Hernandez at the end of the month.

Isaiah was born with end-stage kidney failure. The toddler has been in and out of the hospital for all of his young life.

In March, KGUN9-TV reported that Isaiah's parents had begun a desperate search for a live kidney donor, with their son only months away from requiring dialysis.

"He needs a kidney transplant because being on dialysis is very hard on the body, especially for a baby," his mother, Terri Hernandez, said at the time.

According to the toddler's transplant surgeon, University of Arizona Medical Center's Dr. Tun Jei, dialysis at a young age could alter normal growth and have devastating long-term affects.

When Delcampo, a long-time friend of the Hernandez family, heard that Isaiah needed a new kidney, she immediately came forward.

"The first thing that came to mind was: I would love to be tested," she said.

The teenager turned out to be a perfect match.

According to KGUN9-TV,family and friends expressed concern about her going forward with the transplant surgery. However, Delcampo refused to be swayed.

"I told them that I wanted to do it. Nobody was going to change my mind," Delcampo said.

Isaiah's mother told ABC 15 News that she was relieved when doctors told her the news.

"I'm very excited, happy. I love her. She's really part of the family now, forever," she said.

Though Delcampo admits that she is nervous for the upcoming surgery, which is scheduled for May 29, she is excited to be able to share a part of herself with little Isaiah.

"I've lived 18 years and I've got to do things. I've got to travel and do things that people wish they could do and I just want him to grow up and be able to do the things I did. You know, live a normal life," she said.

Related on HuffPost:

...

Cruise Deals - All New: Last Minute Cruises • Alaska Cruise Deals • Bahamas Cruise Deals • Carnival Cruise Deals • Caribbean Cruise Deals • Holiday Cruise Deals • Mexico Cruise Deals • Norwegian (NCL) Cruise Deals • Royal Caribbean Cruise Deals

Cruise Reviews: Carnival Cruise • Celebrity • Costa • Cruise West • Crystal • Cunard • Disney Cruise • French Country Waterways • Holland America • MSC Cruises • NCL • Hurtigruten • Oasis of the Seas • Oceania • Princess • Regent • Royal Caribbean • Seabourn • SeaDream • Viking River • Windstar

Community: Community Guidelines • Best Cruises • Group Cruises • Meet & Mingle • Member Registration • Member Reviews • Message Boards • Photo Gallery • RSS Feeds • Store

Cruising Regions: Alaska Cruises • Asia Cruises • Australia & New Zealand Cruises • Bahamas Cruises • Bermuda Cruises • Canada & New England Cruises • Caribbean Cruises • Europe Cruises • Hawaii Cruises • Mexican Riviera Cruises • Middle East Cruises • Panama Canal Cruises • South America Cruises • South Pacific Cruises

Cruise Styles: Family Cruises • Holiday Cruises • Luxury Cruises • Singles Cruises • Theme Cruises • All Cruise Styles

US Homeports: Boston • Ft. Lauderdale • Honolulu • Miami Port • New York • Philadelphia • San Diego • Seattle • Tampa

...

WIXOM, MI--(Marketwire - May 21, 2012) - Rockwell Medical (NASDAQ: RMTI), a fully-integrated biopharmaceutical company targeting end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) with innovative products and services for the treatment of iron deficiency, secondary hyperparathyroidism and hemodialysis, announced today that it has received notice from the European Patent Office that it has obtained patent issuance on its proprietary GMP formulation for Soluble Ferric Pyrophosphate (SFP), the Company's lead investigational drug that provides iron replacement to hemodialysis patients with CKD.

Mr. Robert L. Chioini, Chairman and CEO, stated, "We are pleased to receive this patent protection for the European Union. This is another important patent issuance for SFP and our proprietary formulation, and it gives us additional protection in one of the largest dialysis markets in the world, where we intend to market SFP. Also, this patent further strengthens our overall IP portfolio for our SFP technology."

SFP is protected by a number of issued patents in numerous countries, including the U.S., Europe and Japan.

About Rockwell Medical:

Rockwell Medical is a fully-integrated biopharmaceutical company targeting end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) with innovative products and services for the treatment of iron deficiency, secondary hyperparathyroidism and hemodialysis. Rockwell's lead, late-stage investigational drug for iron therapy treatment is called SFP. SFP delivers iron in a non-invasive, physiologic manner to dialysis patients via dialysate during their regular dialysis treatment. SFP is currently in ongoing Phase III clinical trials (CRUISE-1 and CRUISE-2) and addresses a $600M U.S. and $1B global market. Rockwell's Calcitriol (Active Vitamin D) injection for treating secondary hyperparathyroidism addresses a $350M U.S. market. 

Rockwell is also an established manufacturer and leader in delivering high-quality hemodialysis concentrates/dialysates to dialysis providers and distributors in the U.S. and abroad. These products are used to maintain human life by removing toxins and replacing critical nutrients in the dialysis patient's bloodstream. Rockwell's operating business is designed as a ready-made sales and distribution channel to provide seamless integration into the commercial market for its drug products, Calcitriol and SFP upon FDA market approval. 

Rockwell's exclusive renal drug therapies support disease management initiatives to improve the quality of life and care of dialysis patients and are intended to deliver safe and effective therapy, while decreasing drug administration costs and improving patient convenience. Rockwell Medical is developing a pipeline of drug therapies, including extensions of SFP for indications outside of hemodialysis. Please visit www.rockwellmed.com for more information. For a demonstration of SFP's unique mechanism of action in delivering iron via dialysate, please view the animation video at http://www.rockwellmed.com/collateral/documents/english-us/mode-of-action.html.

Certain statements in this press release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including, but not limited to, Rockwell's intention to launch Calcitriol and SFP following FDA approval. Words such as "may," "might," "will," "should," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "continue," "predict," "forecast," "project," "plan," "intend" or similar expressions, or statements regarding intent, belief, or current expectations, are forward-looking statements. While Rockwell Medical believes these forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on any such forward-looking statements, which are based on information available to us on the date of this release. These forward-looking statements are based upon current estimates and assumptions and are subject to various risks and uncertainties, including without limitation those set forth in Rockwell Medical's SEC filings. Thus, actual results could be materially different. Rockwell Medical expressly disclaims any obligation to update or alter statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

...