"Patients are coming to the Huntsman Cancer Institute from Utah, the country and the world with hopes that the specialized technology and the latest developments from our research and clinical trials will save their lives," he said. "Expansion is critical to our having ample treatment rooms and hospital beds that will allow their hopes to be fulfilled."
The hospital will double its beds from 50 to 100, as well as double its imaging and radiation treatment facilities and operating rooms.
Executive Director Mary Beckerle said the space will allow Huntsman Cancer Institute to dramatically increase its program activities, including its new Blood and Bone Marrow Transplant and Myeloma program, and give the Cancer Learning and Wellness Centers room to grow.
The design is under way, with construction slated to begin by the end of this year, said Beckerle. When completed in 2011, the addition will extend from the northeast corner of the existing hospital.
The six-story, 120,000-square-foot hospital wing is tagged at $110 million and will be paid for with a combination of bonds and some $30 million in philanthropic funds, said Huntsman Cancer Foundation President and CEO Janet Bingham.
The expansion ''is long overdue and much needed,'' she said, "and we'll be able to provide the life-saving work of the Huntsman Cancer Institute to more cancer patients."
This is the third major construction phase for HCI. The first phase, a 225,000-square-foot facility for research labs and outpatient services, opened in 1999. The second phase, a 276,344-square-foot inpatient hospital, opened in 2004.
"Expanding the Huntsman Cancer Hospital was a carefully considered joint decision by the leadership of the University of Utah and the Huntsman family," said U. President Michael Young. "The need for better treatments for this devastating disease drives the urgency of this expansion, which will allow HCI researchers to develop more clinical trials and enroll more patients in those studies."
Jet-lagged from a flight from Saudi Arabia, Huntsman revealed his plans after walking Armstrong through HCI and visiting with patients getting chemotherapy in the hospital's Infusion Suite.
Armstrong, who battled testicular cancer that metastasized to his brain and lungs, autographed seven pages of a notebook for one woman, and a pair of Pearl Izumi biking socks for another.
"It's, of course, good to see a survivor," Debra Nees, a 53-year-old breast cancer patient from Evanston, Wyo., said after meeting the retired cycling champion. "They know what you're going through. They're your inspiration."
Armstrong, who said he was in Salt Lake City for another event and wanted to use the opportunity to visit HCI while he was here, lauded Huntsman for the time and money he has invested in cancer research and awareness.
"I heard so much about Mr. Huntsman and the institute here, but you really can't get a feeling for it" without visiting in person, he said. "This, in my opinion, is sort of the prototypical place."
HCI, he said, doesn't look or feel like a hospital.
"So many of them you almost feel like you were walking into a factory," he said. "It's not a great way to start the fight."
lrosetta@sltrib.com
