Maryland will invest $216 million in a new initiative to expand cancer research and treatment in the state, Governor Hogan announced Wednesday.
The Maryland Cancer Moonshot Initiative will utilize the state’s public health facilities to advance care services, support research, and expand early detection, screening, and patient education.
“The reality is that cancer is a disease that has touched nearly every one of us, through family or loved ones,” Governor Hogan said in a statement.
“On the day I found out I was cancer-free, I pledged that as long as I am governor and long after, I will stand with all those who are fighting this terrible disease,” he said.
According to estimates by the American Cancer Society, nearly 35,000 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed in Maryland this year, and more than 11,000 deaths from cancer will occur.
The new funding includes $67 million for the creation of a new cancer center in Prince George’s County on the campus of the University of Maryland Capital Region Medical Center in Largo.
“This funding is essential in our efforts to combat disease and it will dramatically improve the quality of life for many residents who will no longer have to travel to another jurisdiction to receive high quality care,” Nathaniel Richardson Jr., president and CEO of University of Maryland Capital Region Health, said in a statement.
In addition to funding for a new center in Prince George’s, the state allocated $100 million for the expansion of the Greenbaum Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Maryland; $25 million for research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and Johns Hopkins University; $1 million for pediatric cancer research at the University of Maryland; $20.5 million for the Maryland Stem Cell Research Fund; and $2.5 million for the BioHub Maryland Initiative.
