ST. LOUIS - Washington University School of Medicine and Barnes-Jewish Hospital have broken ground on the new Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center in south St. Louis County.
Located on the southeast corner of the intersection of I-55 and Butler Hill Road, the new facility will provide comprehensive outpatient cancer care that is more convenient for patients living in south St. Louis County and the surrounding area. Construction is expected to be complete by early 2013, with patient appointments beginning soon after.
“We are looking forward to providing more convenient care to our many patients in the South County area,” says Timothy J. Eberlein, MD, the Spencer T. and Ann W. Olin Distinguished Professor and director of the Siteman Cancer Center. “As the largest provider of cancer care in the region, we want patients from South County to be able to see their physicians and receive treatment closer to their homes and families.”
Patients will have access to initial consultations, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and clinical trials. Surgeons will also provide consultations at the new facility.
Bruce J. Roth, MD, professor of medicine, will be the director of medical oncology at the new location. Parag J. Parikh, MD, assistant professor of radiation oncology, will serve as director of radiation oncology.
Roth, a board-certified medical oncologist, specializes in providing established and novel treatments for prostate, testicular, bladder and kidney cancers. He earned a medical degree from Saint Louis University in 1980, and served on the medical faculty at Indiana University and Vanderbilt University before joining Washington University in 2010.
Roth has been appointed to his new role with the south county Siteman Cancer Center by John F. DiPersio, MD, PhD, the Virginia E. and Sam J. Golman Professor of Medicine and chief of the division of oncology at Washington University.
Parikh, board certified in radiation oncology, specializes in gastrointestinal, genitourinary and thoracic cancers. His research and clinical care also are focused on using new technologies to pinpoint tumor locations, including methods such as electromagnetic tracking and new uses of CT and MRI. He earned a medical degree in 2001 from Washington University School of Medicine, where he also did his residency.
Parikh was named to his position by Dennis E. Hallahan, MD, the Elizabeth H. and James S. McDonnell III Distinguished Professor of Medicine and chair of the Washington University department of radiation oncology.
At 37,000-square feet, the cost of the facility currently is estimated to be $27.5 million, including furniture and equipment. BSA LifeStructures is the architecture and engineering firm for the project. Paric Construction will manage construction.
Barnes-Jewish Hospital will place a linear accelerator in the new facility to provide the most advanced radiation therapy and Washington University will operate an infusion center for chemotherapy. The medical staff are all Washington University physicians who specialize in treating specific types of cancer.
Siteman is consistently ranked as one of the top cancer centers in the country, and the same physicians treating patients on the main campus will be treating patients at the South County location with the same innovative technology and state-of-the-art treatment devices as are utilized at the Washington University Medical Center and main Siteman Cancer Center location.
The cancer care will be multidisciplinary with physicians from radiation oncology, medical oncology and surgery all practicing together in the same location. The team approach will allow patients to see as many as three physicians in one trip and have their entire treatment plan determined in one visit.
The new site is convenient to I-55 and includes parking close to the building. At about 16 acres, the site also provides green space for patients and their families to enjoy, including land set aside for a future healing garden.
Putting the patients’ experience first, planners at Washington University and Barnes-Jewish Hospital developed several guiding values that the designers kept in mind for the new building include promoting trust, demonstrating caring, conveying respect, instilling calm, ensuring quality and offering inspiration.
Designated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), Siteman is one of only 40 Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the country. The designation means Siteman has demonstrated outstanding multidisciplinary cancer care, cancer prevention and control expertise, community engagement to reduce health disparities and depth and breadth in laboratory, clinical and population-based research. In addition, it also reflects Siteman’s leadership in public education about cancer prevention and treatment and outreach into the community. Siteman is the only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center within a 240-mile radius of St. Louis.
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Washington University School of Medicine’s 2,100 employed and volunteer faculty physicians also are the medical staff of Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children’s hospitals. The School of Medicine is one of the leading medical research, teaching and patient care institutions in the nation, currently ranked fourth in the nation by U.S. News & World Report. Through its affiliations with Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children’s hospitals, the School of Medicine is linked to BJC HealthCare.
Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center is the only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center within a 240-mile radius of St. Louis. Siteman Cancer Center is composed of the combined cancer research and treatment programs of Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine.
Barnes-Jewish Hospital, a 1,259-bed nonprofit academic hospital, is the largest hospital in Missouri and is consistently ranked among the Honor Roll of America's Best Hospitals by U.S.News & World Report. The adult teaching hospital of Washington University School of Medicine, Barnes-Jewish has a 1,817 member medical staff with many who are listed in America's Top Doctors. Barnes-Jewish Hospital was the first adult hospital in Missouri to be certified as a Magnet Hospital for its nursing excellence. Barnes-Jewish Hospital is a member of BJC HealthCare, one of the largest nonprofit health-care organizations in the United States.
Contact:
Julia Evangelou Strait
314-286-0141
[email protected]