Mark Feighner survived two different types of cancer, so when UT Southwestern dedicated its new Cancer Care Outpatient Building recently, he wanted to be there as part of the celebration and was invited to speak at the dedication. “You guys saved my life,” he told UTSW executives, health care providers, and supporters gathered for the event.

Patient Mark Feighner, who spoke at the dedication ceremony, said he was certain the new facility would “positively shape the lives and the outcomes of thousands and thousands of patients through the years.” The survivor of two types of cancer said UTSW caregivers saved his life.

Then he turned his attention to the nine-story, 300,000-square-foot building itself, quoting Winston Churchill on the importance of such communal spaces: “We shape our buildings, and thereafter, they shape us,” the British Prime Minister said when arguing for rebuilding the House of Commons after it was bombed by the Nazis during World War II. In a similar vein, Mr. Feighner said the Cancer Care building will also prove important for its community. “I’m confident that this building at UT Southwestern will positively shape the lives and the outcomes of thousands and thousands of patients through the years.”

The Cancer Care Outpatient Building, the newest location for patients of the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center, opened to its first patients Nov. 7. A dedication and campus tours were held Oct. 18.

The tower replaces cancer treatment areas that were located in the Seay Biomedical Building, and stands adjacent to the new Peter O’Donnell Jr. Biomedical Research Building, which opened just a few weeks before.

The building includes the latest technology for cancer detection, such as this high-resolution, photon-counting CT.

The new tower is home to the same high-tech diagnostic and treatment equipment used before, including MRI and other sophisticated imaging machines. But the Cancer Care Outpatient Building’s equipment is integrated into a light-filled research and treatment facility that features soft blue and taupe furnishings, many floor-to-ceiling windows, and more than double the amount of previous treatment space.

“This new facility has been planned and designed with the total well-being of our patients in mind – a place where they and their families can not only count on the highest level of expertise delivered with compassion but an environment that promotes hope and healing,” said UTSW President Daniel K. Podolsky, M.D. “We expect that our caregivers and others working there will also experience those same attributes in making it a fulfilling place to work. Fittingly this place of clinical care has a direct physical connection to research facilities as we conceptually try to shrink the gap between discovery and better treatment for our patients.”

Because cancer can be so stressful on the lives of patients and their families, it’s crucial to keep their needs top of mind, said John Warner, M.D., Executive Vice President for Health System Affairs and Health System CEO.

“At UT Southwestern, the design of a facility, the initiation of a program, begins first with listening to patients,” he said, adding that the new building also facilitates UTSW’s multidisciplinary treatment approach, with all the various specialties a cancer patient might need all located in one building rather than scattered in different locations.

With the patient's comfort in mind, infusion rooms for chemotherapy have large windows.

Infusion rooms, where patients receive chemotherapy, were built with outside views. An on-site acute care center and second-floor pharmacy will spare many patients trips elsewhere.

“I think the patients are absolutely going to love the fact that they’re going to be able to get clinical care and support services in one place,” said Priscilla Vigliante, a UTSW physician outreach liaison, after taking an October tour. “Everything was designed with the patient in mind.”

Another new feature is a meditation room on the ninth floor, which offers restful blue artwork and floor-to-ceiling windows that look out toward the lawn of William P. Clements Jr. University Hospital.

Due to innovative research and discovery, cancer treatment is evolving rapidly, said Carlos L. Arteaga, M.D., Director of the Simmons Cancer Center, of which the new Cancer Care Outpatient Building is a part. Many cancers that were once life-threatening will be close to eliminated in the near future, at least in the developed world, he predicted. Of relevance to this, the new building will have a whole floor dedicated to cancer clinical trials.

Large pieces of art – such as this spiraling white sculpture called Infinite Energy of the Universe – provide calm and inspiration for patients and their families.

At the dedication in the main lobby, UTSW executives spoke under the glow of a large spiraling white sculpture that hung from the ceiling by Japanese artist Mariko Mori, titled Infinite Energy of the Universe. Other large pieces of art adorned walls throughout the building, providing calm and inspiration for patients and their families – important attributes to help patients stay optimistic and full of hope.

“Going through cancer care is both physically and emotionally intensive for our patients,” explained Sangeetha Reddy, M.D., Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine, “and I’m very appreciative that we have the support and the services to help them through this process.”