Cancer unit expansion as City of Surrey grows
Posted March 27, 2017 3:01 pm.
Last Updated March 28, 2017 9:08 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
SURREY (NEWS 1130) – The cancer unit at Surrey Memorial Hospital is getting a much needed expansion, as the city’s population continues to boom.
The BC Cancer Agency (BCCA) predicts that by 2027, one in three new cancers diagnosed within the province will be in the Fraser Valley area.
BCCA’s Fraser Valley Centre currently uses a temporary facility across the street from the hospital, meaning patients have to bounce between the two buildings.
The chemotherapy unit expansion will add nine new treatment chairs for a total of 33, meaning an average extra 4,300 patient visits per year.
Fraser Valley Cancer Centre regional medical director Dr. Gary Pansegrau says the expansion is very exciting.
“Surrey is one of the fastest-growing cities in Canada. With more people coming into the area, the number of cancer of diagnoses will go up due in large part to the increase in population,” he says. “We need to be able to plan to deal with the challenges these patients are facing and to do that we need to expand our campus, expand what we can do in terms of seeing patients and treatment…This (project) will allow us to consolidate our campus on one site to be able to provide patient care in a timely manner.”
The cost of the project is estimated to be around $7.4 million. The BC Cancer Foundation has committed to raising $1 million for the expansion, with the BC Government to cover the rest.
The unit is expected to open August 2018.
