The 12-story expansion of the Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute was unveiled Friday in a dedication ceremony at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.
On hand for the ceremony were former U.S. Sen. David Pryor, Gov. Mike Beebe, and UAMS Chancellor Dan Rahn, as well has 40 cancer survivors, who tossed a ceremonial token in the Seed of Hope sculpture at the institute.
“A tremendous amount of thought and planning went into the design of the Cancer Institute expansion,” said Peter Emanuel, M.D., Cancer Institute director. “A cancer diagnosis is one of the most difficult and challenging things a person can experience. We want this building to provide as much comfort and convenience as possible while also helping to ease our patients’ burden, lift their spirits and promote their healing process.”
The addition cost $130 million and was funded in part by $36 million in state general improvement funds that provided a dollar-for-dollar match of private donations.Beebe granted UAMS an additional $1.5 million from general improvement funds that had to be matched by private donations. An additional $12.3 million was donated by the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation to honor the late Lt. Gov. Winthrop P. Rockefeller, who died in 2006 at age 57 from myeloproliferative disease, a blood disorder related to leukemia. Other funding for the project includes $35 million from bonds paid for with the state’s settlement with the tobacco industry.
The 300,000-square-foot building doubles the institute’s capacity for research, treatment and outreach. A unique design that combines natural light, balconies and a healing garden is meant to promote a comfortable environment for patients, while also promoting collaboration between clinicians and researchers. Research floors feature an “open lab” concept unique on the UAMS campus. Instead of individual labs, the floors feature “bays” housing multiple investigators.
The Seed of Hope sculpture, created by Little Rock artist and University of Arkansas at Little Rock professor Michael Warrick, is located in the institute’s 12-story atrium. Upon completing their active cancer treatment, all Cancer Institute patients will be given a token to place in the sculpture and one to take home with them as a remembrance of their healing process.
“The Cancer Institute has long been a vital part of the UAMS campus. This expansion will strengthen the institute’s research, education and clinical programs by providing an uplifting and modern facility that is sure to assist us in recruiting more top-notch scientists and physicians to UAMS,” Rahn said.
The expansion is connected to the institute’s Pat and Willard Walker Tower, which opened as a four-story building in 1989. In 1996, seven floors were added to the tower. Patient visits number more than 120,000 per year.
Information for this article was contributed by UAMS.