The number of people diagnosed with cancer is increasing at an alarming rate. In fact, 1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. With annual cancer cases around the world expected to increase to 29.5 million by 2040, the need for more breakthrough research and innovative treatments is greater than ever before.

To meet this challenge, The University of Kansas Cancer Center will break ground on a world-class patient care and cancer research building that will be a global–destination cancer center. It will transform cancer care and research, providing hope for curing all types of cancer. The new building will be located on the 39th and Rainbow campus, with construction slated to begin in spring 2025.

This 21st century cancer center will enable us, as the region’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center and 1 of fewer than 60 nationwide, to change and save more lives. It will also dramatically transform cancer patient care and research — and Kansas City as a regional and national destination for the most advanced cancer care. To make the biggest difference in patient’s lives, clinicians and researchers need to work together in real time, side by side to develop the treatments of tomorrow.

Cell Therapy: The Future of Cancer Treatment
Cancer research is advancing into a groundbreaking era with the progress of cellular therapeutics, innovative treatments that empower the body’s own cells to combat cancer. Leading the charge, KU Cancer Center is home to the region’s largest blood and marrow transplant and cellular therapeutics program. The team has performed more than 6,000 transplants and 500 CAR T-cell therapies since 1977, and more than 25 cell therapy clinical trials are currently open for recruitment. Our physician scientists are leading the nation and the world in the development of novel cellular therapies.

The cancer center’s Hematologic Malignancies and Cellular Therapeutics program will be the flagship program in our new facility, bringing together the strong research foundation and clinical care in this area. This includes a cellular therapeutics Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) laboratory, which will allow team members to create specialized cells on site. Today, critical cancer therapy processing capabilities such as those that take place in a GMP laboratory are not readily available in the Kansas City area. Patients must wait while custom treatments developed from their cells are sent to laboratories outside of the region. By bringing a cellular therapeutics GMP laboratory in-house, the costs and wait time for the creation of these specialized cells will be reduced.

The cancer center is the only in the region to offer 7 of the 7 FDA approved CAR T therapies and is in the process of onboarding the 7th. This foundation will be the basis for a revolution in the way we treat cancer in our new facility. Our goal is to streamline the patient experience and create a seamless experience for patients throughout their continuum of care. Patients will have ease of access from outpatient to inpatient settings by linking to the state-of-the-art inpatient HMCT units that were completed in 2021.

We need more support than ever from our community to ensure we can bring you the highest level of care, research, prevention, treatment and survivorship programs and services. Imagine a future beyond cancer, when fewer people develop the disease and more people become survivors. Your support will bring us closer to realizing that vision.