South Snohomish County cancer patients will now be able to receive outpatient chemotherapy close to home, with Swedish/Edmonds announcing plans to open a 17,102-square-foot cancer care center on Highway 99 April 1.

The center responds to the growing need for medical oncology and infusion (chemotherapy) services in the south Snohomish and north King County area, a news release from Swedish Health Services said. The new two-story, 17,102-square-foot facility is anticipated to care for as many as 175 patients each day.

“The number of people turning to Swedish/Edmonds for their cancer treatment has grown over the last decade,” said Richard McGee, M.D., one of five Swedish Cancer Institute medical oncologists who will practice at the new center. “This new facility will allow us to offer enhanced care to a growing population.”

The center, which is located at 21632 Highway 99 in Edmonds, will provide high-quality and comprehensive medical oncology services to patients through an infusion unit, laboratory, pharmacy, and access to Swedish’s electronic medical record system. As a hospital-based department, patients will also have access to other resources, including social work, support groups, financial counseling and cancer-specific patient education classes.

The Swedish/Edmonds center is the newest addition to the Swedish Cancer Institute’s comprehensive network of community-based cancer centers located throughout the Puget Sound area. Other SCI sites include downtown Seattle (First Hill and Cherry Hill), Ballard, Bellevue, Issaquah and Burien.

“Providing excellent care starts with improving access,” said Thomas D. Brown, M.D., MBA, executive director of Swedish Cancer Institute. “New centers such as this one at Swedish/Edmonds will help ensure patients in our communities have continued convenient access to the highest quality cancer care available.”

As a nonprofit health-care provider, Swedish has welcomed support from the community to help fund a portion of the $10.9 million center. Many generous community and business leaders have united to expand cancer services at Swedish/Edmonds, raising $220,000 for the project. Philanthropy will continue to play a key role in helping ensure local patients facing a cancer diagnosis have access to the highest quality of care, the best technologies, and a broad spectrum of support services.

The new cancer center at Swedish/Edmonds will be open for community tours Wednesday, April 17 from 4-7 p.m.

Design-build firm, RAD Technology Medical Systems – a specialty modular health-care contractor – collaborated with design architects Perkins + Will to develop the modular building comprised of 29 factory-built units, which were erected on the site over just two days in December of last year. Skanska USA was responsible for the site development.

“This project is exciting for numerous reasons. One of those is that later this year Swedish will enhance cancer-care services at the Edmonds campus by starting construction on a vault to house a new $4.95 million linear accelerator for radiation therapy that will go into use in late 2013,” said David Jaffe, chief executive of Swedish/Edmonds. “Another huge advantage of the new center is that it will bring state-of-the-art cancer care closer to home, which makes a real difference for patients and their families.”