Special
Cancer Institute dedication Officials and dignitaries from throughout the state attended a ribbon cutting and dedication of Thibodaux Regional Health System’s new cancer institute last month. The ceremony included tours of the facility and a blessing of the chapel in the center. The four-story, 80,000-square-foot building will be a game changer for the area’s fight against cancer, says hospital officials. It will also shorten the amount of time from diagnosis to treatment by allowing doctors to identify cancer earlier and expand available treatments. The $40 million facility, which opened in December 2021, can treat 95 percent of cancers where patients don’t have to travel far from home, and it will increase the hospital’s staff by roughly 100 employees, officials said. The center includes radiation oncology, chemotherapy, clinic space for oncologists, education center, activity center, library, diagnostic center, conference center, laboratories and a chapel. Hospital CEO Greg Stock said the ribbon-cutting marked the culmination of years of hard work and dedication. The building was designed to inspire hope and spiritual healing. “The building is not patterned after any other cancer center anywhere,” Stock says. “The building itself puts out a feeling of being in a refuge, spiritually and emotionally. One of the key words of cancer care is hope.” Louisiana Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser was one of several dignitaries who attended the ribbon-cutting. BC
Photos by Lawrence Chatagnier
46 • Bayou Catholic • Diocese of Houma-Thibodaux • January 2022
