Edwards center opened Monday, saves time and drive for patients
By Sarah Zopfi
The Herald-Dispatch
HUNTINGTON -- At the time many people enjoyed a quick lunch on Monday, Mark Justice was busy fighting his second bout with colon cancer as he received a chemotherapy treatment.
During the next few weeks Justice and his wife Tammie will spend an hour, three days a week driving to the new Edwards Comprehensive Cancer Center, which opened Monday.
Justice said the hour drive to the cancer center is a comfort compared with the idea of traveling more than three hours or more for care.
"It makes me feel more comfortable having this here," Justice said. "I was referred here, but at first they tried to send us to Cleveland, Ohio, which would have taken more time."
Doug Lawson, senior vice president and chief operating officer with Cabell Huntington Hospital, said the new cancer center is geared at providing a comfortable and relaxing atmosphere to patients close to home.
"Our patients will now be able to access all the information they need in one area," Lawson said. "It is really comparable to anything you would see in Cincinnati."
The center, which Lawson said cost an estimated $30 million, was made possible by a gift from philanthropist Joan C. Edwards and the estate of her late husband, James Edwards. It is one of several medical expansions this year that continue to build the Tri-State's reputation as a medical center.
The Edwards' contribution totaled $47 million for the cancer center -- $30 million for initial construction and equipment, and $17 million for future operational costs and recruiting new medical staff.
The center will offer advanced methods of cancer-detection and cancer-fighting technology for patients.
One of the more exciting technologies available is in radiation therapy. Lawson said respiratory gating is a new technique in radiation therapy that allows the therapist to more accurately treat targets that move when the patient breathes, minimizing the volume of healthy tissue damaged.
"The new equipment has the ability to identify and more accurately define and treat the area of disease," Lawson said. "The patients are getting treated only what needs to be treated in radiation therapy."
The three-story, 70,000-square-foot center also includes an adult oncology center, consultation rooms, minor procedure rooms, a diagnostic breast center and physician offices, and the Joan C. Edward's Children's Cancer Clinic. The children's clinic includes the children's oncology/hematology treatment center with infusion stations, pediatric oncology clinics and physician offices.
Lawson said one of the major goals of the center is to continue to add new physicians to the community as the center progresses.
"We are able to see integration between practices of surgery, medical oncology and radiation oncology," Lawson said.
Lawson knows the center will allow several different types of doctors to work together.
"It is our intention to bring new physicians into the community with training and new techniques."
For patients like Justice, an all-electronic medical record is something to look forward to.
"We will eventually be paperless," Lawson said. "Each patient will have an electronic demographic card, and doctors will have access to all patients' information in one area."
Minimizing patient waiting time and work is part of the center's new approach, but creating a feeling of ease also is important.
Atmosphere was strongly considered when the rooms were planned, and the children's oncology department is a prime example of how areas were designed to affect the way a patient feels when receiving treatment.
The entrance reveals a pastel rainbow of furniture in light yellows and pinks with plenty of books and toys to keep the busiest little ones occupied. The room is bright with sunlight, and no wall is without color.
Dr. Gerard Oakley, a gynecological oncologist within the center, said developing the right mood is essential to cancer patient progress. He looks forward to seeing the center grow.
"The building has been designed to have a calming and soothing atmosphere," Oakley said. "The cancer center will help solidify in patients' minds that they are getting the best treatment locally."
