The BC Cancer Agency has contracted Plenary Health to design, build, finance and maintain the new facility for 30 years. For more information about the construction phase, please visit Plenary Health's Centre for the North PROJECT WEBSITE.


The new, 5,000-square-metre (54,000-square-foot) Centre for the North will include two linear accelerators, which are used in the delivery of radiation therapy; one computerized-tomography (CT) simulator; a chemotherapy treatment unit; a pharmacy; general outpatient clinics; professional staff offices; and a parkade. The centre's construction is scheduled for completion in September 2012.

Supported by colleagues across the province, the team at the BC Cancer Agency Centre for the North will include:

• medical oncology;
• radiation oncology;
• pharmacy;
• psychosocial oncology;
• volunteer services; and
• supportive care.

Each of these elements is essential to provide patients with the various points of care necessary during their cancer experience. This core of professionals will also provide a critical mass to enable basic and clinical research into the causes and treatments for cancer, enhancing related scientific programs and studies at the University of Northern British Columbia.

Currently, a Community Chemotherapy Centre is supported by Northern Health and housed at the University Hospital of Northern BC (formerly PGRH), providing chemotherapy services under the direction of a community oncologist and with support from the BC Cancer Agency. With the opening of the new centre, this program will be housed at the BC Cancer Agency, along with a much-anticipated Radiation Therapy Program. Though the new BC Cancer Agency Centre for the North will be an entity separate from PGRH, integration and sharing of services – such as medical imaging, inpatient care, and electronic health records – will be essential for the cancer program to function well.