Hudson Valley Hospital Unveils New Cancer Center

After years in the making, Hudson Valley Hospital Center unveiled its new Comprehensive Cancer Center Thursday, offering cancer patients a place where they can get all services in one convenient location.

“An average of 1,000 people in our area are diagnosed with cancer each year and each of them will make an average of 100 trips during the course of their treatment,” said John C. Federspiel, president of Hudson Valley Hospital Center. “Our new Cancer Center will provide everything they need in one place, making treatment less stressful for them and their families.”

More than 150 people, including local dignitaries, attended a ribbon cutting ceremony, which was followed by tours of the $12 million Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The Center brings a new and unique way of treating cancer to the Hudson Valley. It locates all services in one building, bringing together infusion and radiation services, a women’s health imaging center, as well as an experienced team of doctors and medical professionals who will work together to treat the patient as a whole person. The center’s design, with adjoining conference and office space, encourages communication and clinical consultations between physicians.

“This is a very special day for the Cortlandt Community and Hudson Valley hospital,” said Cortlandt Town Supervisor Linda Puglisi. “Cancer has affected all of our lives,” Puglisi said, adding that her father died of cancer 20 years ago, right after he retired. “This brings treatment closer for people and offers a very serene setting. Everyone at the hospital is extremely compassionate….that is what you need.”

The center will initially treat breast, prostate, melanoma, colorectal and lung cancers. It is the only Cancer Center in the region to offer the cutting-edge radiation therapy called Tomotherapy, which uses advanced technology to more accurately pinpoint cancer and eradicate it while sparing healthy tissue.

Peekskill’s Mayor Mary Foster said: “It is really spectacular to have quality care so close to home.”

At the event the Cancer Center welcomed an extensive team of physicians, including Asim Aijaz, MD and Kiran Yalamanchili, MD of Westchester Oncology and Hematology; FACS; Andrew Ashikari, MD, FACS; and Pond Kelemen, MD, FACS, of the Ashikari Breast Center; and C. Andrew Salzberg, MD, and R. Michael Koch, MD, of New York Group for Plastic Surgery and Michael Wesson, MD. Chad DeYoung, MD and Chika Madu, MD of Hudson Valley Radiation and Oncology Services.

At Thursday’s ceremony, Bruce Lindenbaum, a longtime supporter of the Hospital and President of Frank & Lindy Plumbing and Heating Inc. of Peekskill, gave a moving speech about the family’s decision to endow the Cancer Center and name it after his wife, Cheryl R. Lindenbaum, who died of breast cancer in 2005.

Lindenbaum said his wife “loved this hospital and would have been very happy to and proud to see it named after her.’’

Lindenbaum said he and his wife had to “travel all over creation” for her treatments when she was diagnosed and appreciated that the hospital created a place where all support services are in one place. Lindenbaum said he was happy to now have a “lasting legacy in her name.”

Sue Andersen, a nurse in the Emergency Room at HVHC and a breast cancer survivor, said the opening of the cancer center would help reduce stress for families in the community.

“Having to drive at least an hour and rely on family was very difficult,’’ said Andersen. “If there were a facility like this when I was undergoing treatment I know it would have made a big difference in my life to have a place that offered this quality of care right in my community.

NYS Sen. Greg Ball, 40th district, said he was impressed at the Hospital’s transformation into a medical center for the Hudson Valley. He said that the state of New York had a serious problem with the loss of medical specialists in recent years, and the Hospital’s ability to attract such a high caliber of medical professionals was a tremendous asset to the community.

“What they have done here is truly amazing,’’ said Ball. “The administration and the staff of this hospital should be commended for opening this center during these difficult times. It will be an economic engine for the community.’’

In addition to showing off the new Cancer Center, Hospital officials today celebrated the 36th Annual Great American Smokeout with an announcement that HVHC is now tobacco free, prohibiting smoking on the Hospital campus. To support employees and members of the community in ending their dependence on tobacco, the Hospital continues to offer a variety of smoking cessation programs and today also unveiled the remodeling of its Wellness Club at its new location on the Hospital campus. The Hospital hopes the changes will make it more convenient for employees and patients to take advantage of the many wellness programs offered by the club.

While the cancer center was unveiled on Nov. 17, the various services being offered will be phased in over the course of the remainder of the year.

The Hospital hopes to raise $5 million to help offset the $12 million cost of the center and has launched a major fundraising campaign. For information about naming opportunities, contact the Hospital’s Foundation at 914-734-3526 or visit www.hvhc.org.