In a major milestone for cancer research in the Southwest, Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center recently opened a $1-million Investigational Cancer Therapeutics Research Unit on the Banner Gateway Medical Center campus, located in Gilbert, Arizona.
The specialized space will benefit cancer patients enrolled in first-in-human and early therapeutic trials requiring close monitoring during study treatments, and expands the capacity for conducting innovative clinical research. This research will further the promising field of personalized medicine, and shorten the time between discovery of new therapies and their application to patients who need them, which is critical to saving lives.
The project involved building out the new 2,852-square-foot unit in an existing shelled area at Banner MD Anderson. Construction, led by McCarthy Building Companies, included infusion bays, space for phlebotomy and tissue sample collection and processing, exam rooms, a minor procedure room and administration and support space.
Charitable support played an important role in making this unit possible, including a lead gift from the Hearst Foundations and ongoing fundraising efforts by the Canyon Vistas and Montesa RV Resort Communities. More than 500 community donors contributed. McCarthy provided pro bono construction services with in-kind contributions from trade partners, including TD Industries, AROK, Foothills Fire Protection, Norman S. Wright, Arizona Air Balance, Climatec and Premier Mechanical Insulation.
TriARC served as architect on the project.
Interior photos provided by McCarthy Building Companies
From left: Pamela Ballard, clinical administrative director; Lamont Yoder, CEO, Banner Gateway Medical Center & Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center; Darren McCollem, regional director of Radiation Oncology and Amanda Jarvie, R.N., associate director of infusion. 
