Ontario is increasing access to stem cell transplants for people who have complex blood cancers, with new state-of-the-art hospital units in Toronto and London.
The new and modern inpatient units will address an increasing demand for stem cell transplants and will be located in the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre and London Health Sciences Centre.
Vice-president of Cancer Care at the London Health Sciences Centre, Neil Johnson, spoke with AM980. He says what the investment will help London with specifically.
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“This announcement means that we will be doubling the size of our stem cells transplant program, and that signals a major investment in renovating parts of our hospital, parts of our cancer centre, parts of our supports services area, as well as the funding to hire more staff to vastly improve services for cancer patients,” he said.
The London Health Sciences Centre will have seven new inpatient beds, a renovated and larger outpatient treatment clinic, and a new outpatient and chemotherapy pharmacy. The Princess Margaret Cancer Centre will have 15 new inpatient beds and a new outpatient clinic that will support up to eight new stem cell therapy physicians.
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“We are certainly thankful for the investment, but really though, while this is great news for London today, this is about a team effort to improve the system across the province. However, we are very pleased that London will be playing a major part in this,” said Johnson.
Johnson adds that the exact dollar amount on funding has not yet been determined, but estimates the total cost for construction will be around $25 to $30 million.
When complete, patients in Ontario that need stem cell transplants will benefit from 22 new beds, which will allow for a total of 440 stem cell transplants per year, according to the media release.
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