MADISON, Wis. – The UW Health Eastpark Medical Center, a new hub for specialty care, including cancer, began welcoming patients today.
Eastpark will be the newest location for the UW Health | Carbone Cancer Center, the only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center in Wisconsin.
Patients can expect easy access to their cancer doctors, treatments and procedures that previously required a trip to downtown Madison, according to Dr. Lee Wilke, senior medical director of clinical cancer services, UW Health.
“Eastpark offers an opportunity to bring our specialists together while expanding support in mental health and financial counseling,” she said. “It’s designed to provide patients that vital wrap-around care they need.”
Medical, radiation and surgical oncology for all types of cancer will be available at Eastpark, including Mohs surgery for skin cancer removal, a procedure invented at UW–Madison in the 1930s, and gynecologic oncologists who will work closely with the integrated specialty care for women program.
Therapies such as chemotherapy and infusion therapy and novel treatments such as theranostics, will also be available at this location. Carbone launched the Initiative on Theranostics and Particle Therapy earlier this year to accelerate precision radiation therapy and imaging for patients.
Eastpark features a 73-chair infusion center for chemotherapy, the largest infusion center in Wisconsin, right across from the clinical research unit.
“The infusion center has a very thoughtful design,” Wilke said. “It has several options for patients who want anything from a communal to private experience when receiving their infusions.”
The close connection to the research and clinical trials teams is also a very intentional design for Eastpark, according to Wilke.
“We want to make it as easy as possible for our patients to access clinical trials,” she said. “For many, they offer new hope and early access to the latest treatments.”
Patients will have access to advanced imaging through radiology as well as specialists in interventional pulmonary diseases.
There will also be a cancer symptom management clinic at Eastpark, a vital service to support patients experiencing a wide range of side effects from their cancer therapy.
“This clinic will enable patients to get treated for symptoms in the same location as their cancer care team and help them potentially avoid an urgent care or emergency room visit,” Wilke said. “This clinic helps patients access specialists who can assess their unique needs.”
Finally, Eastpark will be home to proton therapy at UW Health, including one of the only upright proton therapy centers in the world and the only one in Wisconsin.
Offered to both adults and children, proton beam therapy limits side effects and more accurately targets the area to be treated, even for hard-to-reach tumors that may be close to vital organs and tissue. The ability to limit the effects on normal tissue is one reason the treatment is valuable for children who are still growing. Upright proton therapy will enable the treatment to be delivered to patients as they are sitting, offering better comfort, while enabling even greater accuracy. The proton therapy center aims to start treating patients in early 2026.
“Eastpark is going to combine state-of-the-art care with the most welcoming environment,” Wilke said. “We look forward to welcoming our patients to this incredible space.”
