Duncan Cancer Center gets new home at McNair

Baylor College of Medicine is consolidating its NCI-designated Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center clinics and services into one location on the McNair Campus.

The campus, located at 7200 Cambridge St., is adjacent to the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

The opening of the Duncan Cancer Center clinics, set for Tuesday, Jan. 22, provides Baylor patients and clinical faculty and staff a central location for cancer-related services. The majority of outpatient cancer care facilities will be located on the seventh floor, delivering a spectrum of services associated with cancer treatment, from risk assessment, screening, prevention, diagnosis and therapy to survivorship and support services, in one location.

“This new multispecialty space for our cancer clinics is great for patients,” said Dr. Paul Klotman, president and CEO of Baylor College of Medicine. “The Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center now has a clinical home that can provide integrated care in a single location.”

The seventh floor will house 54 new clinic rooms dedicated to cancer appointments, including four mammography units. Cancer clinics located on the seventh floor will include bone and soft tissue sarcomas; gastrointestinal, liver, pancreas and gynecological cancers; leukemia and lymphoma; endocrine tumors; and the Lester and Sue Smith Breast Center. Infusion services for all cancers will be delivered in an expanded infusion center on the seventh floor. Radiation oncology consultations also will be conducted in the center, with radiation oncology treatment facilities remaining at Kirby Glen.

Genitourinary cancer services will be located in the urology clinic on the 10th floor. Skin cancers and head and neck cancers will be treated in the neighboring Jamail Specialty Care Center. The Lung Institute and associated services will remain at Baylor Clinic, 6620 Main St. Pediatric cancer will continue to be treated through Texas Children’s Cancer and Hematology Centers.

The seventh floor will enhance the existing collaborative nature of cancer care at Baylor, allowing physicians and patients to easily access specialists and appointments across disciplines.

“The move to the McNair Campus has been the vision of the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center for more than a decade. Housing these services in one location will enable us to provide cohesive, multidisciplinary care for our patients and allow us to care for the patient and their families as a whole, beyond their cancer and into healthy survivorship or supported end-of-life care,” said Dr. Kent Osborne, director of the Duncan Cancer Center. “It makes a huge impact on the patient experience to be able to visit with their entire care team, undergo infusion and consult with a nutritionist, social worker or other support services all without leaving the seventh floor.”

With this transition, the College has increased its presence on the McNair Campus to outpatient clinics on four floors of the main building, as well as in the Jamail Building.