Manitoba is committing over $6 million toward a specialized cancer therapy program, Health Minister Audrey Gordon announced Monday.
It will provide personalized options for people with blood or lymphatic cancers like lymphoma that did not respond well to other treatments.
“This is a relatively new area of life-saving cancer therapy and we are pleased to support CancerCare to bring it to Manitoba,” said Gordon.
“The ability to receive this specialized care close to home, as well as a person’s health-care team and other support systems are incredibly important.
“Strengthening how we care for patients right here in Manitoba is a significant priority for our government.”
This specialized therapy harnesses the patient’s immune system to find and attack cancer cells.
“This is a very exciting day for Manitobans. CancerCare Manitoba is committed to bringing high-quality evidence-based treatment to Manitobans,” said Dr. Sri Navaratnam, president and CEO of CancerCare Manitoba.
“We will now be able to provide life-saving CAR-T therapy to patients closer to home, close to their families and support systems, which is very important for their recovery and a priority for CancerCare Manitoba.”
The minister noted that this approach will help attract and retain highly skilled technicians and researchers working in this field of cancer therapy.
Manitoba currently sends a few people every year with these types of cancers for this therapy to health-care facilities outside of the province.