The University of Texas announced on Monday that it would build two new hospitals on its flagship Austin campus in partnership with cancer care powerhouse, MD Anderson Cancer Center. The project will require an investment currently estimated at $2.5 billion.
MD Anderson, which U.S. News recently ranked first in the nation for cancer treatment, will expand its existing Houston footprint to Austin by constructing and operating a new, comprehensive cancer center. For its part, UT Austin will build and operate a new specialty hospital.
“The establishment of the University of Texas at Austin Medical Center, with UT MD Anderson Cancer Center adjacent to a new University hospital and access to all of UT Austin’s education and research assets, will undoubtedly result in transformative cancer care, provide students at the flagship campus with unmatched experiences, and benefit patients throughout the state and nation for all time,” said University of Texas Board of Regents Chairman Kevin P. Eltife, in the university’s press release.
Current plans call for the two hospitals to be built on the site of UT Austin’s Frank Erwin Center, which was the university’s former basketball arena, since replaced by the Moody Center. The Erwin Center will be demolished by fall 2024 with groundbreaking for the hospitals anticipated to begin in 2026 and completion projected by 2030.
The new UT MD Anderson hospital in Austin will be staffed by MD Anderson physicians. UT Austin’s new hospital will be constructed adjacent to the MD Anderson site and serve as a complement to the existing UT Dell Medical School.
According to the university, it already enjoys a strong collaboration with UT MD Anderson, involving research in cancer detection, diagnosis, and treatment. UT Austin and UT MD Anderson collectively conducted $1.8 billion in research last year.
Texas Governor Greg Abbott joined Eltife in making the announcement, along with UT System Chancellor James B. Milliken, UT Austin President Jay Hartzell, UT MD Anderson President Peter Pisters and UT Austin Dell Medical School Dean Claudia F. Lucchinetti.
Abbott suggested the new medical center would be one of the most important initiatives ever undertaken by a university system to serve the people of Texas.
“UT MD Anderson Cancer Center is ranked No. 1 for cancer care in America, with people across the world traveling to Houston to access care. But rather than having Texans travel to MD Anderson in Houston, we will now bring the world’s best treatment to them. Families across Central Texas who are affected by cancer every year can now stay close to home for that care. The key to building sustainable communities is a healthcare infrastructure that can meet the needs of a booming population. UT Austin and MD Anderson will help us meet those needs. The Texas of tomorrow will be shaped by what UT Austin and MD Anderson are building here today,” said Abbott.
University leaders touted the magnitude of the initiative. ‘The plans announced today by the Board of Regents will support an extraordinary expansion of the UT System’s education, health care, and research missions to serve Texas,” said Chancellor Milliken, in the announcement.
Milliken added, “As one of the nation’s largest comprehensive university systems, the UT System has fostered numerous collaborative opportunities across our institutions, and this latest one will include a relationship between UT Austin and UT MD Anderson that is an extraordinary demonstration of how this kind of synergy can positively and dramatically impact the lives of Texans.”
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