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Siteman Cancer Center breaks ground in north St. Louis County

$26.3 million outpatient facility will be on Christian Hospital’s Northwest HealthCare campus

July 31, 2018

BJC HealthCare

Siteman Cancer Center's new facility on the Northwest HealthCare campus of Christian Hospital will feature state-of-the-art technology and patient-centered design. The site is at Interstate 270 and Graham Road in Florissant, Mo.

Siteman Cancer Center, based at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, begins construction July 31 in north St. Louis County on its newest outpatient facility. Completion of the $26.3 million project on Christian Hospital’s Northwest HealthCare campus is planned for December 2019.

The nearly 37,000-square-foot facility at Interstate 270 and Graham Road in Florissant, Mo., will feature state-of-the-art technology, including a new linear accelerator to deliver radiation therapy. Besides being high-tech, the patient-centered design will be warm, soothing and inviting. It includes paintings by noted local artists Cbabi Bayoc and Jessica Hitchcock, and a healing garden.

“Leading-edge cancer care encompasses highly trained doctors and the latest technology, and Siteman Cancer Center’s north St. Louis County facility at Northwest HealthCare will include both,” said Timothy J. Eberlein, MD, Siteman’s director and the Spencer T. and Ann W. Olin Distinguished Professor at the School of Medicine. “We are dedicated to making the best cancer care easily accessible in north St. Louis County.”

BJC HealthCare

The new facility will include a family lounge with a fireplace. Other amenities will include a community room for social and educational events and an outdoor healing garden.

The facility is a joint project of BJC HealthCare, which owns and operates Christian Hospital, and Washington University School of Medicine, whose physicians treat Siteman patients. The Northwest HealthCare campus is six miles west of Christian Hospital, where Siteman opened an interim location — its fifth outpatient site — in July 2017. The new facility at Northwest HealthCare will replace the interim site.

“Christian Hospital and Siteman Cancer Center have built a strong partnership founded on providing patients the very best care,” said Rick Stevens, who as president of Christian Hospital oversees both campuses. “We are pleased to continue offering that same level of exceptional care in a completely new facility.”

Medical oncologist Timothy Rearden, MD, will continue as medical director of Siteman’s north St. Louis County satellite. Mackenzie Daly, MD, a radiation oncologist, will continue as director of radiation oncology. Both are on the Washington University faculty.

Highly trained Washington University specialists provide team-based cancer care at all Siteman locations, including the main outpatient facility on the Washington University Medical Campus. Multidisciplinary care teams at Siteman include radiation oncologists, medical oncologists and surgeons, as well as dietitians, psychologists, nurses and other health-care providers. Siteman also offers more than 400 clinical trials evaluating investigational cancer therapies that are not widely available to the public.

New technology available at the north St. Louis County location will include a:

• Linear accelerator, a machine that creates high-energy radiation to treat cancer.
• CT, or computed tomography, scanner, which combines multiple X-ray images so tumors and their position in the body can be easily seen.

The patient-centered design of the new facility will complement the high level of medical care, said Louisa Hardwrict, BJC HealthCare design project manager. Design highlights include a family lounge with a fireplace, a conference room that also will serve as a community room for social and educational events, and a healing garden with outdoor seating.

“In designing our new cancer care center, we wanted to be sure patients and family members feel as comfortable as possible at what can be a difficult and stressful time,” Hardwrict said.

The new facility builds on the long-standing relationship between Siteman and north St. Louis County residents. Other Siteman community outreach programs in the area include:

• The Program for the Elimination of Cancer Disparities (PECaD), which works with community representatives to improve health outcomes in medically underserved areas.
• A mammography van that has offered appointments at grocery stores, YMCAs and other community locations for 30 years, to improve the convenience and availability of breast screenings.

Other Siteman facilities are located at the Washington University Medical Center in St. Louis, Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital in Creve Coeur, Barnes-Jewish St. Peters Hospital in St. Charles County, and near Interstate 55 and Butler Hill Road in south St. Louis County. The new Parkview Tower, also on the Washington University Medical Campus, aims to enhance the care and comfort of oncology patients who require hospitalization.

Appointments for any Siteman location may be made by calling 314-747-7222, or 800-600-3606 toll-free, 8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. weekdays, or by visiting siteman.wustl.edu.