The Department of Health (DOH) unveiled Wednesday the Cancer Care Center at Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH) here, expanding the delivery of cancer treatment and related services in the Negros Island Region (NIR).

The two-story healthcare facility, which will formally open on Aug. 26, is equipped to deliver intravenous chemotherapy, bone marrow biopsies, lumbar punctures, intrathecal chemotherapy, child life services, and seamless referrals for radiotherapy.

In her message, DOH-Negros Island Regional Director Razel Nikka Hao said the center is not just a treatment site, but the apex of a regional cancer care network in the NIR.

“CLMMRH, as our regional apex hospital, must not only treat patients within its walls; it must also cultivate a network that ensures no cancer patient in Bacolod, Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, or Siquijor is left behind,” she said.

Hao said CLMMRH-DOH Cancer Care Center is also designed with financing systems to protect patients — that include the Philippine Health Insurance Corp.’s Z-benefit packages and the Cancer Assistance Fund– to “ensure that treatment is not only available but accessible.”

“From today forward, CLMMRH carries the mandate to lead, to train, to mentor, to set the pace for cancer care in Negros. We, as DOH-NIR, stand behind that mandate — aligning resources, building systems, and holding ourselves accountable to the patients who will walk through these doors,” she added.

Dr. Joan Cerrada, CLMMRH medical center chief, said the Cancer Care Center, headed by Dr. Adonis Guancia, provides a one-stop shop experience for the patients and their families.

The ground level serves cancer patients –from consultation to patient and family counseling, and the patient’s chemotherapy; while the second level houses the child life program clinic, survivorship/quality of life clinic, cancer research office, and conference room.

Also located in the upper level are the oncology pharmacy, DOH-PhilHealth access office, billing and medical social services stations, and staff office.

“While we now have more ‘weapons’ in our hands to fight cancer, we remain true to our mission, and that is to provide care and hope to our cancer patients and help them fight stronger. As our banner says, hope just transferred to a new home,” Cerrada said.

The CLMMRH started its own Cancer Care Center in 1994, with Guancia along with the Faces Foundation and the Andres Soriano Foundation, setting up the first Oncology Unit in Negros Island.

Meanwhile, Bacolod City Mayor Greg Gasataya, who advocated for the establishment of the Cancer Care Center when he was still congressman, said the national government allotted PHP35 million for the construction of the CLMMRH-DOH Cancer Care Center.

“The process we’ve been through was not easy, but today, this project is finally here to serve the people of Negros. This is part of our commitment to bring specialty health services closer to home,” he said. (PNA)