This month, the Princess Máxima Center for pediatric oncology gave the go-ahead for a new and large construction project: two extra floors will be built on top of the existing research building of the research hospital in Utrecht. Preparations for the building works started this week. Board member Gita Gallé: ‘This expansion gives further shape to the integration of care and research in the Máxima Center.'
In the Máxima Center, the best healthcare professionals and researchers work closely together on better treatments and new perspectives on a cure and quality of life for children with cancer. The expansion of the research building gives further substance to the role as a national pediatric oncology center and the mission to cure every child with cancer, with optimal quality of life.
Prof. dr. Alexander Eggermont, Chief Scientific Officer of the Princess Máxima Center: ‘Since we opened our doors in 2018, our research hospital has grown considerably. This growth is still continuing, particularly in the field of neuro-oncology and immunology, two strategic priority areas for the Máxima Center. The concentration and integration of all care and research into childhood cancer has given us real momentum: we are increasingly attracting national and international talent. With the expansion of the research building, we offer room for that growth.’
Cell therapy
The expansion of the research building will contribute to innovations in immuno-oncology. To this end, a cell therapy facility (CTF) will be built on the new sixth floor. The seventh floor will house facilities for the research departments and additional meeting rooms. The CTF, set up as a so-called clean room, will be used to produce CAR T-cells. Research into CAR-T and other innovative cell therapies will also be expanded further, in collaboration with UMC Utrecht.
Drs. Gita Gallé, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the Princess Máxima Center: ‘With this expansion, we give further shape to the integration of care and research, enabling new perspectives and better treatments for children with cancer. Our thanks go out to Kika, who made this expansion of our research activities financially possible. The quotation process with the contractor and installer also gives us the confidence that we will be able to realize the construction within the budgetary frameworks and the planned time frame, despite the difficult period in which the construction world finds itself in these times of scarcity.’
Timeline
In the next two months, the plans will be further elaborated and construction activities will start. The roof construction will start after the summer. If everything progresses according to plan, construction will be completed in October 2023 and the new floors can be taken into use at the end of 2023 or early 2024.
The month of June is all about new perspectives at the Princess Máxima Center. This means that in the coming weeks we will tell you all about the developments in our research hospital. In the Máxima Center, care providers and researchers work closely together to constantly improve treatments. Our mission: to cure every child with cancer, with optimal quality of life.