© 2010 Michiana Hematology Oncology, PC
All Rights Reserved
Mishawaka, Indiana (October 21, 2009) — More than a dozen cancer patients and their physicians gathered today with gold shovels to symbolically break ground on the new 50,000-square foot Regional Cancer Center being built at the corner of Douglas Road and Holy Cross Parkway in Mishawaka.
Mishawaka Mayor Jeff Rea and several other local dignitaries spoke at the ceremony, highlighting what the construction of the largest, most advanced and comprehensive cancer treatment center in the history of this region means to the future of the community. The conclusion of the ceremony included a blessing of the soil.
“We know cancer touches so many people in our region, and to have state-of-the-art facilities, world class physicians and outstanding research going on here, we couldn’t be prouder….” said Mayor Rea. “On behalf of the city, the 50,000 people who live here in Mishawaka, and also all the people of our entire region, we want to say welcome and congratulations….”
The new state-of-the art complex will support and complement five other Michiana Hematology Oncology cancer care centers located throughout the northern Indiana/southwestern lower Michigan region. The two-story complex will offer oncology services including PET / CT scans, patient and family education services, chemotherapy, infusion therapy, diagnostic radiology, radiation therapy and gynecological oncology services. Onsite radiation oncology services will be provided in partnership with Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center, and a full-service laboratory will be operated by the South Bend Medical Foundation.
In addition, the new complex will also provide massage therapy, financial counseling, clinical research via the Northern Indiana Cancer Research Consortium, a nurse navigator and a patient medical trainer. Genetic counseling will also be provided by Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center, and other counseling services through RiverBend Cancer Services. The Women’s Task Force of Saint Joseph Regional Medical Center will also relocate their offices to the new Regional Cancer Center.
“It just seemed appropriate that our own cancer patients do the honors,’’ commented Michael Method, M.D. MPH, FACS, FACOG of Michiana Hematology Oncology. “This is more than a building. It represents a whole new way of treating and working with cancer patients and their families. It will be a center of excellence that improves coordination between the regional medical community while dramatically reducing the amount of time and energy that cancer patients and their families spend traveling back-and-forth between locations for screenings, consultations, treatments and the collection of personal medical records. Michiana Hematology Oncology will now be located near or adjacent to every major hospital in the region. And this particular complex will house every major medical oncology service under one roof and on one convenient campus.”
Michiana Hematology Oncology’s new cancer care center in Mishawaka will continue to offer patient access to enrollment in nationally recognized clinical research trials through the Northern Indiana Cancer Research Consortium (NICRC). In 2000, Michiana Hematology Oncology was instrumental in forming the NICRC, which is supported by six regional hospital systems. “Clinical trials allow our staff of fifteen oncologists the ability to bring local patients the latest treatments and drug therapy options available,” added Method. “This community is fortunate to have access to the NICRC and Michiana Hematology Oncology is the primary active participant in the studies conducted here.”
Michiana Hematology Oncology, P.C., established in 1968, is the region’s largest oncology group providing medical oncology, radiation oncology, gynecologic oncology and adult hematology services through six regional offices in north-central Indiana and southwestern lower Michigan. For more information, visit www.TheHeartOfCancerCare.com.
© 2010 Michiana Hematology Oncology, PC
All Rights Reserved