LEBANON, N.H. – Dartmouth Cancer Center recently celebrated the opening of a new, 32-bed inpatient oncology unit at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, expanding the capacity to provide complex cancer care, advanced cellular therapies, and clinical trials close to home for patients across northern New England.
The new unit, located on the second floor of the Patient Pavilion, is designed to support complex hematologic care; stem cell transplants; immune effector cell therapies, including CAR-T cell therapy; bispecific antibodies; and other emerging treatments. The unit also provides additional inpatient capacity for clinical trials involving novel cancer therapies.
Private patient rooms feature advanced, real-time monitoring and the ability to convert to intensive care when needed. Rooms can also provide positive airflow for patients whose immune systems require additional protection. The unit includes six dedicated infusion chairs to support the delivery of outpatient CAR-T cell therapy.
“Just as important, this unit gives Dartmouth Cancer Center essential inpatient capacity to participate in clinical trials, including trials initiated here and those developed with leading academic and industry partners,” said Dr. Roy Herbst, director of Dartmouth Cancer Center. “Until now, limited dedicated inpatient space has constrained our ability to offer some of these studies. This floor changes that. It creates a bridge between discovery and delivery.”
The unit is an important component of Dartmouth Cancer Center’s Integrated Multidisciplinary Program for Advanced Cell and Gene Therapies, or IMPACT, which brings together research, cell engineering, manufacturing, clinical trials, and patient care to advance emerging treatments. IMPACT will draw on expertise across Dartmouth Cancer Center, Dartmouth Health, the Geisel School of Medicine, the Thayer School of Engineering, and other Dartmouth programs.
This unit reflects Dartmouth Health’s commitment to bringing highly specialized cancer care closer to home for patients throughout northern New England, reducing the need for patients to travel to distant urban centers for complex treatments.