BALTIMORE — The University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) celebrated the groundbreaking of a nine-story patient care tower – the Roslyn and Leonard Stoler Center for Advanced Medicine – that will become the new home of the University of Maryland Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Comprehensive Cancer Center (UMGCCC).
The $219 million tower will enable UMGCCC to provide the most technologically advanced, integrated care to cancer patients throughout Maryland and the region well into the future.
The structure will feature a distinctive metal and glass façade built onto the front of UMMC’s existing downtown campus at 22 S. Greene Street, transforming the face of the academic medical center and creating a new main entrance.
The expansion will enhance clinical care and research and position the National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated comprehensive cancer center to meet the growing need for complex cancer care, including cutting-edge cellular immunotherapies and personalized treatments tailored to a patient’s individual cancer and genetic profile.
“Our new building, which was designed from the ground up with the patient experience in mind, will enable us to provide state-of-the-art cancer care to the next generation of Marylanders,” said Kevin J. Cullen, MD, UMGCCC’s director and the Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Distinguished Professor of Oncology at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM). “We are confident that the Stoler Center for Advanced Medicine also will serve as a platform for the discovery of cutting-edge cancer treatments that will have a significant impact on the lives of people across the state, across the country and around the world.”
The 198,000-square-foot building, expected to be completed in mid-2025, will more than double the cancer center’s footprint. It will be constructed with $100 million from the state of Maryland, along with private donations and UMMC capital funds.
Six floors of the new building will be devoted to inpatient and outpatient care, and there will be a separate dedicated entrance for the cancer center. The project will include 198,000 square feet of new space and 42,000 square feet of renovated space in the medical center.
New Urgent Care Center for Cancer Patients
New services include an urgent care center that would provide access 24/7 access for cancer patients, who could be treated and released without a hospital stay and an outpatient area where patients can have bone marrow transplants and other cellular therapies.
Advances in Cancer Treatment
UMGCCC has pioneered advances in cancer treatment, including the development of aromatase inhibitors to treat breast cancer by the late Angela Brodie, PhD [u7061146.ct.sendgrid.net]; the invention of the GammaPod™, a radiation treatment option for early-stage breast cancer that can reduce the number of treatments and spare healthy tissue from radiation; and the development of promising new drug compounds and immunotherapies, including next-generation CAR T-cell therapies.
Patient-Centric Design
The patient rooms in the new building are located on exterior walls and will have large glass windows that provide for the maximum amount of light and views of the park across the street, although the windows can be shaded. The rooms are designed to provide a comfortable environment for patients and their families, with sleeping accommodations for caregivers to stay overnight and built-in features to minimize disruption from food delivery and trash collection.
