Israel's Shamir Medical Center (Assaf Harofeh) has been granted $8.8 million by the Helmsley Charitable Trust to rebuild and expand the hospital's cancer institute.
The funds will help transform the cancer institute into a cutting-edge facility, which will be renamed the Hemlmsley Multidisciplinary Oncology Center.
The current cancer institute is a one-story building built in the 1980s and is considered outdated, especially considering that cancer is one of the world's most widespread diseases.
This planned renovation will help it accommodate more patients and use innovative multidisciplinary cancer treatments. It will also be affiliated with Tel Aviv University.
The current ground floor will be turned into an outpatient center.
Two other floors will be added for a treatment clinic and palliative care facility. Further, a new level will be built underground to house the hospital's radiotherapy institute.
"I thank Helmsley for its tremendous support of our new Helmsley Multidisciplinary Oncology Center, which is at the core of our life-saving work," Shamir Medical Center director-general Dr. Osnat Levtzion Korach said in a statement.
"The Helmsley Multidisciplinary Oncology Center is part of our vision and a part of the extensive development plan for the medical center in the coming years. With the significant growth of the population around us and the massive housing and development plans for the area, we expect to become the largest medical center in Israel. With the growing, aging population, there is an urgent need for a broader, comprehensive oncology center that combines advanced forms of treatments under one roof. That new center will uniquely combine medicine, technology, and professionalism with palliative, humane, and personal care. This generous gift is a significant milestone in making Shamir Medical Center among the leading and most innovative hospitals in Israel.”
"We are grateful to the Helmsley Charitable Trust for its generous grant, which will enable us to provide the most advanced oncology care in a new facility that caters to our patients' needs," Shamir Medical Center's cancer institute director Dr. Raya Leibowitz explained.
"It is important for us to provide visitors to the multidisciplinary cancer center not only the best medical and nursing care available, but also a broad range of holistic treatments and services, including emotional and psychological support, and social assistance – all in a spacious and pleasant space that creates a warm and comfortable atmosphere.”