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History/Growth
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When the Regional Cancer Center opened in 1999, its mission was to deliver world-class cancer care in a community setting. That goal has been realized over and over again.
By virtue of New Milford Hospital's (NMH) unique partnership with NewYork-Presbyterian Healthcare System (NYP) and Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, vital cancer resources have become a local fixture. Patients no longer have to commute to large urban centers to get their cancer treatments, The airy and soothing atmosphere of our Regional Cancer Center complements the sophisticated technology and advanced equipment that has helped us elevate the region's level of cancer care to that of a university hospital.
Half of cancer cases occur in people 67 years or older; but, at any age, it takes strength to be courageous in the face of a cancer diagnosis. With all of the unknowns that accompany this life-altering news, a patient needs as much support and familiarity as possible in order to maintain optimism and hope. That's why developing the Regional Cancer Center was such a high priority from the very start of NMH's formal affiliation with the NewYork-Presbyterian Medical Center in 1995.
From Ribbon-Cutting to Leading-Edge
The first year, NMH treated 180 cancer patients from 50 different communities with comprehensive care that included diagnosis, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, surgery, clinical evaluations, therapeutic decision-making and services such as counseling, support groups and hospice care. The greatest service we offer the community is having the comfort and convenience of an outstanding cancer facility closer to home. NMH can perform 95% of the same services as its partner's world-renowned facility in New York, minus the one and one-half-hour commute. The relationship also provides the Regional Cancer Center with the considerable expertise, education and research resources of NYP, one of the leading academic health systems in the country. To ensure that local knowledge and methodologies are current as the latest science, NMH routinely connects with its New York colleagues for continuity in communications and education.
State-of-the-art radiation technology is one of the best weapons in the battle against cancer. NMH's more impressive tools include a diagnostic simulator, computer planning system, and a CT scanner that together create a 3-dimensional image of the tumor and surrounding tissue, and HRT equipment enabling both radiation oncologists and medical physicists to "see" with extreme precision the area of the target site. This helps them design the best treatment path for maximum safety and effectiveness. Another technical powerhouse in NMH's arsenal is the dual-energy linear accelerator used for radiation treatments that destroy cancer cells and their ability to reproduce.
NMH was among the first three hospitals in the state to provide high dose-rate radiation (HDR) therapy, which brings the radioactive treatment closer to or within the tumor to better fight diseased cells, and the first in Connecticut to provide intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), which allows doctors to more accurately target tumors with higher, more effective doses of radiation while reducing radiation exposure for nearby normal tissues. In 2003, NMH was the first center in Connecticut to introduce radiopharmaceuticals for lymphoma. Radioactive isotopes are injected into the bloodstream with medication called monoclonical antibodies. After these antibodies attach to the cancer cell, the radioactive isotope enters the cell and causes the cancer cell to die.
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