The Prince of Wales Hospital Integrated Oncology Clinic was officially opened today (December 6) by Mr. Anthony Wu, Chairman of the Hospital Authority and Mrs Sally Lo, Founder and Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Cancer Fund. This marks another step forward in the hospital’s quality cancer care service.

 

The healthcare sector faces great challenges of increasing cancer incidence. According to the Hong Kong Cancer Registry, there were 25,977 new cancer cases in 2009. Last year, at the Department of Clinical Oncology of the Prince of Wales Hospital alone, there were 23,600 chemotherapy visits, 14,000 chemotherapy day ward admissions and 37,100 radiotherapy treatments.

 

The Integrated Oncology Clinic is supported by Hospital Authority funding and a generous donation of $ 4.75 million from the Hong Kong Cancer Fund. The redevelopment took ten months to complete. It serves cancer patients requiring multidisciplinary consultation and integrated treatment including surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. Oncologists, surgeons, radiologists and other specialists jointly devise the optimal treatment plan for patients with different cancers, including breast cancer, head and neck cancer, brain tumors and skin cancer.

 

The Clinic is equipped with five radiotherapy linear accelerators capable of delivering two forms of precision radiotherapy, namely Image-guided Stereotactic Radiotherapy and RapidArc Intensity Modulated Radiotherapy (IMRT). These technologies markedly shorten treatment time to improve patient comfort and waiting time. Besides, the Clinic’s spacious waiting area, cheerful colour scheme and open registration counter were designed to create a cozy and homey environment to help patients maintain a positive attitude in their fight against cancer..

 

The Clinic offers one-stop holistic service catering for the special needs of cancer patients. Along with doctors, nurse specialists and radiation therapists, the Clinic offers a wide range of patient support services including patient counselling, cancer education and care of treatment side effects. Patients and family members can also relax in the Radiotherapy Day Ward in between treatment procedures. 

 

Mr. Anthony Wu, Chairman of the Hospital Authority said, “The Hospital Authority is firmly committed to providing quality service to cancer patients whose illnesses entail high costs, treatment with advanced technology and multidisciplinary professional teamwork. Community supporters, like the Hong Kong Cancer Fund, have been valued partners in our efforts.”

 

Mrs Sally Lo, Founder and Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Cancer Fund said, “At Hong Kong Cancer Fund we are committed to helping make life better for people touched by cancer and increasing the overall quality of cancer care and the patient’s hospital experience is an important part of this commitment. Our collaboration with Prince of Wales Hospital will ensure even more cancer patients in this community will be treated, and with the growing rate of cancer diagnosis in Hong Kong, this is vitally important.”

 

Other guests attending the opening ceremony included Mr. Edward Ho, Chairman, Hospital Governing Committee, Prince of Wales Hospital; Dr. Fung Hong, Cluster Chief Executive, New Territories East Cluster; Mr. Robert Lo and Dr. Andrew Yuen, Co-Chairmen,  Hong Kong Cancer Fund; Prof. Fok Tai-fai, Dean, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong; Prof. Anthony Chan, Chairman, Department of Clinical Oncology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong; and Dr. Brian Yu, Chief of Service, Department of Clinical Oncology, Prince of Wales Hospital.