THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, March 17, 1995 TAG: 9503150093
SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER PAGE: 08 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: SPECIAL TO THE CLIPPER
LENGTH: Short : 45 lines
The newly constructed Cancer Treatment Center at Chesapeake General Hospital will be dedicated at 6:30 p.m. April 6.
The treatment center is home to a new state-of-the-art linear accelerator for radiation therapy treatment, the only conventional mode of cancer treatment not currently available within the city of Chesapeake.
The facility is a result of a partnership with DePaul Medical Center, which will remove the older of its two treatment units from service and provide some of the professional staffing required at the new facility.
``We are pleased to be part of this effort to make medical treatments more convenient to patients from Chesapeake,'' said Kevin P. Conlin, president and chief executive officer of DePaul Medical Center. ``Our expertise in delivering radiation therapy services is known through the community, and we are committed to enhancing patient access to this needed service.''
In 1991, there were 395 cancer patients admitted to Chesapeake General Hospital, and 185 required radiation treatments the hospital could not provide, Conlin said.
``Patients and physicians have been asking us to make this treatment available locally to ease the burden on those families who are dealing with cancer,'' said Donald S. Buckley, president of Chesapeake General Hospital. ``Chesapeake is a growing area, and we are filling a need that has also been growing.''
``It's difficult for patients who are sick or debilitated to travel to these treatments,'' said Dr. Mathew Sinesi, the radiation oncologist who has been named medical director of the facility. ``This is treatment that's given on a daily basis for many weeks. Currently, in-patients must be transported by ambulance to other hospitals.''
Chesapeake General Hospital currently offers chemotherapy, radioactive isotope therapy and surgery for cancer treatment, as well as family support services, including a full-time chaplain.
The new center, which cost $2.8 million to build, is expected to begin treating patients during May and will treat an estimated 270 patients during its first year of operation, hospital officials said. by CNB