UT Health San Antonio has officially opened a new Center for Excellence in Diabetes, a project university leaders say is meant to strengthen research, expand clinical trials and improve treatment for one of South Texas’ most persistent health problems.
The center, housed within the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine, was celebrated at a public opening in March after being established in 2025.
The new center arrives as diabetes continues to weigh heavily on San Antonio and Bexar County. UT Health officials say the disease affects about one in six San Antonio residents, while a 2025 local health report found nearly 17% of Bexar County adults have been diagnosed with diabetes, above the Texas average.
At the opening, UT Health leaders described the center as an effort to bring multiple specialties together around a complicated disease that often overlaps with heart, kidney and metabolic disorders.
Dr. Carolina Solis-Herrera, the center’s founding director, said the goal is to connect research more directly to patient care. The center is designed as a collaborative hub for clinicians and researchers working on prevention, treatment and innovation.
Solis-Herrera said the program is already running 12 clinical trials, including studies involving prediabetes, diabetes-related kidney disease and heart failure. She has also said prevention will be a major focus, including research aimed at stopping prediabetes from progressing into full diabetes.
Guest:
Dr. Carolina Solis-Herrera is the founding director of the Center for Excellence in Diabetes at UT Health San Antonio. She is also an associate professor of medicine and the Ed and Linda Whitacre Distinguished Endowed University Chair for Endocrinology, Diabetes Care and Research. Dr. Solis-Herrera’s work focuses on diabetes therapeutics, cardiometabolic disease, and obesity. She has authored more than 70 peer-reviewed publications, leads multiple clinical trials,
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