BULLITT COUNTY, Ky. — UofL Health plans to expand the reach of its Brown Cancer Center with a new $25 million regional cancer center and Center for Rural Cancer Education and Research on the campus of UofL Health – South Hospital in Bullitt County.
The facility will be located along the growing I-65 corridor , with a specific emphasis on increasing access to comprehensive cancer care in South, Central and Western Kentucky. The project is made possible with recent funding support from the Kentucky General Assembly.
University, UofL Health and state officials are holding a news conference to unveil details at 11 a.m. today on the front lawn of UofL Health – South Hospital at 1903 W Hebron Lane in Shepherdsville. Speakers on the agenda are UofL President Kim Schatzel, UofL Health CEO Tom Miller, state Sen. Mike Nemes, state Rep. Peyton Griffee, UofL School of Medicine Interim Dean Dr. Jeffrey Bumpous, Brown Cancer Center Chief Administrative Officer Dr. Jason Chesney, and patient Chris Sutton.
Subspecialty care with comprehensive clinical trials programs and multidisciplinary clinics has been proven to reduce cancer deaths. Currently, there are no comprehensive cancer centers outside of Lexington and Louisville that offer multidisciplinary subspecialist care, clinical trials, access to state-of-the-art screening, and educational and support programs for patients.
Kentucky has the highest death rate of cancer in the U.S. (182.8/100,000) and almost 10,000 Kentuckians die of cancer each year. Twice as many Kentuckians died of cancer than of COVID during the last three years, and rates are expected to increase by 50% in the next 20 years. Cancer healthcare costs in Kentucky are $2.74 billion per year, while productivity losses from morbidity and early deaths in Kentucky cost an additional $3.1 billion per year.
