Promise Regional Medical Center – Hutchinson, a member of the Midwest Cancer Alliance, is part of the effort.
KANSAS CITY, Kan. – This week, the University of Kansas Cancer Center in Kansas City, Kan., will submit its application for National Cancer Institute (NCI) designation, which recognizes cancer centers for their scientific excellence. The submission of the 660-page application is a milestone marker on the statewide effort to improve the quality of cancer care in Kansas.
Although the KU Cancer Center is more than 200 miles from Promise Regional Medical Center, residents of Hutchinson have benefitted from the NCI designation effort because of Promise Regional’s membership in the Midwest Cancer Alliance (MCA).
“Our partnership with MCA brings resources to our patients that otherwise would not be possible,” said Kevin Miller, president and CEO at Promise Regional. “We’re proud to have been part of the effort from the beginning as a founding partner.”
Benefits of MCA membership enable Promise Regional to offer more treatment options for local residents diagnosed with cancer. Since joining the MCA in 2007, Promise Regional Medical Center now offers includes, participation in research studies on new potential cancer treatments, called clinical trials, expanded community service activities, including screening hundreds of residents for cancer at hospital’s annual Health and Wellness Expo and access to valuable second opinions from KU Cancer Center oncologists via telemedicine; and more.
“Our goal is to make sure Kansans can access the latest advancements in cancer care close to home,” said Gary Doolittle, medical director of the Midwest Cancer Alliance. “Promise Regional Medical Center shares this goal and many of these advancements are available in Hutchinson. Through Promise Regional’s MCA membership, the Hutchinson community now has more opportunities for valuable second opinions on cancer diagnoses and access to the latest cancer therapies in clinical trials.”
The pursuit of NCI designation at the University of Kansas Cancer Center has strengthened cancer care across the state and region, particularly for MCA members. Preparing to apply for NCI designation has required an enormous expenditure of human and financial resources, with extraordinary support from the people throughout the state of Kansas and western Missouri. University leaders estimate that since 2006, the NCI designation pursuit has created 1,123 jobs and contributed $453 million to the region’s economy.
NCI designation, a research affiliation, would continue to enhance the regional network through improved access to grants that allow innovators in cancer treatment to find lifesaving cures.