May 12, 2008
New Wilmot Cancer Center offers expanded care,
research for cures
Leslie_White@urmc.rochester.edu
The Trilogy image-guided radiation therapy system for delivering high-dose radiation to tiny tumors is one of the new treatments offered at the Wilmot Cancer Center.
The University and the Medical Center will celebrate
the expansion of cancer care and research as it dedicates the new James P.
Wilmot Cancer Center on Thursday, May 15. The Center introduces
leading-edge technology, greater access to multidisciplinary care, a new
model for breast care, and more opportunities to receive tomorrow’s
therapies today.
The new facility, which will welcome patients starting
Monday, May 19, consolidates all outpatient cancer care and translational
research programs into a single location.
“We stand firmly in our dedication to providing
the best cancer care and advancing the understanding of this disease
through novel research,” says President Seligman.
The opening is a major step in the Wilmot Cancer
Center’s aggressive, $65 million plan for expansion and
recruitment and is one of the cornerstones of the Medical Center’s
strategic plan.
“Cancer is a common condition—so much so
that each of us has been impacted in some way. The expertise
available at the Cancer Center and the Medical Center makes them a
destination for people seeking specialized care,” says Bradford Berk,
senior vice president for health sciences and CEO of the Medical Center.
Wilmot doctors see 10,000 patients each year,
delivering more than 19,000 infusions and 40,000 radiation treatments. The
center has seen double-digit increases in volume annually, emphasizing the
need for expanded facilities.
“Patient care is our number one priority and
addressing the space shortage was critical,” says Richard Fisher,
director of the Wilmot Cancer Center. “In addition to expanding
patient care, we’re building strong programs in research to take a
leadership role at the national level.”
The new center is designed to provide patients with a
high degree of comfort and convenience in a healing environment surrounded
by natural light, beautiful artwork, and compassionate caregivers.
Its three-story, glass-enclosed atrium, named for the family of James
P. Wilmot, serves as a focal point of the center, inside and out.
The new facility nearly doubles the center’s
clinical space for medical oncology and infusion/chemotherapy treatments
and affords patients greater opportunities for privacy with individual
televisions and wireless access during sometimes lengthy infusions.
The Radiation Oncology Department has added two linear
accelerators—for a total of five—expanding access to the
various forms of therapeutic radiation treatments and bringing
next-generation technology to the community. The center has invested more
than $10 million to bring the latest equipment to Rochester, including the
new Trilogy, a powerful image-guided system that delivers high-dose
radiation to even the smallest tumors.
For people with breast problems, the new Comprehensive
Breast Care Center brings a multidisciplinary team together to provide
imaging tests, biopsies, pathology readings, and a final diagnosis within
24 hours. The shortened time span is possible because the Wilmot Center can
offer a group approach to every step from diagnosis to treatment, with
specialists in a single location.
The new center’s second floor houses
administrative and clinical research offices and also features the
state-of-the-art conference and education center for grand rounds and
teleconferences. This area, the Excellus BlueCross BlueShield Clinical
Translational Research Floor, was named in recognition of a $6 million
gift to the center’s comprehensive campaign.
The John W. Rowe, M.D., Translational Research Floor,
located on the Center’s third floor, is home to translational
research scientists and clinicians who will collaborate in a
40,000-square-foot laboratory to bring discoveries from the bench to the
bedside quickly. Rowe, a 1970 alumnus of the School of Medicine and
Dentistry, donated $5 million to the effort.
The center’s leaders have raised more than $38
million toward a $42.5 million comprehensive campaign goal. Generous
donations have been received from the Wilmot family, Henry and Dorothy
Hansen, Harold and Joan Feinbloom, and the Davenport-Hatch Foundation, in
addition to the gifts from Rowe and Excellus BlueCross BlueShield.
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