Within a few years of its opening, the Huntsman Cancer Hospital had no free beds available. To handle the increasing number of cancer patients, the Huntsman Cancer Foundation and the U broke ground Oct. 31 on an extension to the hospital that will double the number of beds and open updated centers and technology for cancer care.
“There are 4,000 new cancer patients every year,” said David Entwistle, CEO of U Hospitals and Clinics. “Today’s groundbreaking does not come a day too soon.”
Construction on the project will begin in spring and should be completed in mid-2011, said Mary Beckerle, executive director of the Huntsman Cancer Institute.
The $110 million expansion project has long been a goal of Jon M. Huntsman Sr., co-founder of the Huntsman Cancer Institute. The additional 120,000 to 156,000 square feet designed to connect to the northeast lobby entrance of the existing hospital will allow physicians to treat patients with various types of cancer more efficiently.
Besides four additional operating rooms and 25 outpatient exam rooms, the expansion includes new centers to bring researchers together for screening and diagnoses and a new MRI machine to monitor tumor surgery.
Entwistle said the expansion will also include new surgical rooms and an expanded cafeteria.
The Utah State Legislature has approved $80 million to $90 million in bonds to the hospital, which would be repaid through revenue, Beckerle said.
The remaining $30 million will be funded through private donations, which the hospital plans to raise during the next year.
Beckerle said that despite the Legislative budget cuts, she doesn’t believe the hospital will have problems with bonds.
“Everyone is concerned about the financial climate, but we’re optimistic that we’ll be able to move forward,” she said.
On Friday, the Lincy Foundation headed by Kirk Kerkorian of Beverly Hills, Calif., announced a $5 million gift for cancer research. Kerkorian worked with Huntsman on service work in Armenia.
Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., whose family has also donated millions of dollars to cancer research at the U, said he remembers in 1991 when his father, Jon M. Huntsman Sr., sat the family down to announce his prostate cancer.
“In 1999, my dad stood up and said something that was pretty profound,” Huntsman said. “He said, “This is the beginning of cancer research on campus, one that will exist right here on the Circle of Hope.'”
Beckerle said the hospital will be able to increase treatment with advanced technologies and help patients receive help for not only cancer, but also their overall health.
Sarah Chambers Collins of Ogden was diagnosed with breast cancer a few years ago and sat in the audience waiting for a chance to speak with Jon M. Huntsman Sr. to thank him.
“When I first heard that I had cancer, I was worried about it8212;I still am for that matter,” said Collins, who receives treatment at the hospital. “(But the hospital) is a wonderful facility. They offer yoga, an information library8212;they just have a whole-person approach to cancer.”
Huntsman Cancer InstituteWith over 4000 new cancer patients every year beds at the Huntsman Cancer Hospital are hard to come by. Ground breaking took place on Friday to expand the Hospital and double the amount of beds it currently has.