A new investment aimed at strengthening cancer care in Mississippi is moving forward. C Spire announced a $5 million gift to help build the University of Mississippi Medical Center’s new Cancer Center and Research Institute.
The donation will support the construction of the state of the art facility, which will be built adjacent to the UMMC campus in Jackson. Leaders say the center will expand cancer treatment, research, and patient care.
“At C Spire, our mission is to improve lives through the power of technology,” Dr. Halt Crews, a C Spire board member and assistant professor of gynecology at UMMC, said. “We also recognize that none of this matters without quality, accessible healthcare.”
Mississippi has the highest cancer mortality rate in the United States. Nearly 16,000 Mississippians are diagnosed with cancer each year, and about 6,500 die from the disease.
UMMC officials say the facility will expand access to advanced therapies, clinical trials, and coordinate cancer care, allowing more patients to receive treatment close to home.
“Mississippi faces a cancer burden unlike any other state, and too many families feel the impact of this disease every day,” Dr. LouAnn Woodward, UMMC vice chancellor for health affairs, said. “C Spire’s extraordinary $5 million gift will help ensure Mississippians receive advanced cancer care close to home.”
UMMC is Mississippi’s only academic medical center and leads the state in advanced treatment, research, and medical training. In just over a year, more than $88 million has been raised towards the construction of the five-story cancer center.
The announcement was made during a ceremony at C Spire’s corporate headquarters in Ridgeland.