News Releases

The campaign to build the Regional Cancer Program at Southlake Regional Health Centre received a boost today with a $750,000 gift from BMO Financial Group.

“Our region is fortunate to have the support of a community leader such as BMO Financial Group who truly walks the talk of corporate responsibility,” said Neila Poscente, President and CEO of the Southlake Regional Health Centre Foundation. “It is clear to us that this is an organization that is very much a part of our community's fabric, and is committed to bringing advanced and accessible cancer care to the thousands of York Region and South Simcoe residents who will need it now or in the future.”

The Regional Cancer Program, scheduled to open in mid-2009, will provide a full range of cancer services including screening, assessment, surgery, chemotherapy, psychosocial and palliative care, clinical trials, and, for the first time in this region, radiation treatment. The spectrum of care will be a welcome change to cancer patients whose care has been fragmented, receiving some services at their community hospital and having to travel regularly to Toronto hospitals for other life-saving treatments such as radiation therapy.

In the tradition of a hospital that strives to deliver the best healthcare services its community needs and deserves, the Regional Cancer Program at Southlake will be a model for the most advanced cancer care available anywhere in Canada. “One of the most exciting aspects of our Regional Cancer Program is that it is being developed in partnership with Princess Margaret Hospital, (PMH) one of the top five cancer research hospitals in the world,” said Dan Carriere, President and CEO, Southlake Regional Health Centre. “New discoveries and innovative cancer therapies that are changing cancer care for patients around the world, are happening at Princess Margaret. For Southlake patients, our partnership will mean access to the newest discoveries the moment they become available.”

In addition to the mentorship of PMH, Southlake cancer patients can have the confidence that they will benefit from the very latest in medical technology including Image Guided Radiation Therapy (IGRT), the gold standard in radiation treatment today, which precisely targets the tumour while protecting healthy tissue, and from digital mammography which can detect 28 per cent more cancers than traditional film mammography.

“BMO's gift builds on our long-standing partnership with Southlake, dating back more than 75 years, and is another way for us to support the communities where we live and work,” said Alexandra Dousmanis-Curtis, Senior Vice-President, Greater Toronto Area Division, BMO Bank of Montreal. “I am particularly proud of the support our employees have provided to the hospital, donating more than $100,000 over the past few years through the BMO Employee Charitable Foundation.”

While the campaign's $60 million goal is now in sight, with incredible generosity from individuals and corporations like BMO, Southlake still has a challenge ahead. “We are confident that all of the communities to be served by the Regional Cancer Program, throughout York Region and south Simcoe County, will appreciate the value this life-saving service will bring to all of us,” said Ms. Poscente. “Given that almost one in two of us will receive a cancer diagnosis in our lifetimes, we should all want to ensure that we have the best cancer care right here, close to home.”

BMO serves customers through five locations in Newmarket and the surrounding community. In 2007, BMO contributed $42.6 million in corporate donations, sponsorships and events, supporting communities and thousands of charities and not-for-profit organizations across Canada.

Southlake Regional Health Centre is a full-service regional hospital located in Newmarket, and, because of its many specialty programs, serves an area from southern York Region to Muskoka. The only non-teaching hospital in Ontario to specialize in both cancer and cardiac care and to offer five regional programs, Southlake has earned a reputation as a healthcare leader by performing leading-edge procedures including a recent world-first cardiac treatment.

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