Innovative Healing

Cancer Center to Offer Latest Technology in Breast Health

by Nichole Altmix

Manhattan’s Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center continues its expansion on the Upper East Side with a 240,000-sq-ft imaging center on Second Avenue.

One of the world’s largest and most reputable cancer centers is on the verge of yet another expansion.

Memorial Hospital founded in 1884 and Sloan-Kettering Institute established in 1940 eventually unified in 1980 to form Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The newest addition is a $431 million breast and imaging center set to open in 2009.

The 240,000-sq-ft center on Second Avenue between 65th and 66th Streets will tower 15 stories above grade.Housed in the new center will be imaging and radiology, diagnostic and testing, medical and surgical oncology, infusion and chemotherapy, psycho-social programs, mechanical and environmental services and ground-floor retail. There will be no in-patient accommodations.

When completed in, the center will feature three MRI machines, 10 mammography machines, X-ray rooms, bone-density equipment and four different CT scan machines.

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MSKCC had to account for the leap technology would make during the five-year planning and construction period.

“The machines are being built especially for the center and tailored to its specific needs,” says George Mejias, director of design and construction at MSKCC, who, along with other project principals, declined to disclose the cost of the project. The new center will rely completely on digital imaging technology to avoid film and digital medical records to avoid clutter, he adds.

Constructing the New Center

Led by Turner Construction Company of New York City, work on the predominantly glass, brick, and stone facility began in November 2005, and topped out in March.

With the exterior almost completed, Turner has framed four floors and is focusing on the interior mechanical work, says Scott Hoyle, project manager for Turner.

“MSKCC typically goes high-end with its finishings, so we are also using Jerusalem stone on the floors and walls,” he says.

The interior of the building will include a mixture of wood panels most likely anegre ACT ceilings, porcelain-tiled elevators and lobbies and exam rooms with sheet vinyl. It will also feature walls with Venetian plastering. The building will have three passenger elevators and two service cars to accommodate the influx of patients and staff.

Hoyle says Turner is moving swiftly enough to stay on schedule, even with the shortage of steam fitters in New York. To alleviate the staffing problem, Turner had to pay its fitters double time.

Another challenge in construction was obtaining the Jerusalem stone for the façade, which was delayed because of strikes in the stone-cutting industry .

“We ran into a lot of political problems in getting it here on time,” Hoyle adds. “But we were able to build around and above it while we waited and are now trying to accelerate the fabrication of the retail space where the stone is used.”

Perkins Eastman Gets Involved

The design for the new center by New York City-based architects Perkins Eastman features a glass facade of Viracon VRE-59, a high-performance glass used in clear and simulated sandblast finishes. The glazing is low-e and allows light to infuse the interior yet also offers privacy.

“We also designed a tartan pattern of clear, translucent, shadow box and spandrel glass to create a visual signature for the institution,” says Duncan Reid, design principal at Perkins Eastman.

The architects had to adhere to the zoning laws for the area, which provided a significant challenge during the design stage.

“Because of the setback zoning requirement, the design team was not able to create a pure structural grid, so the design had to work around non repetitive bays,” Reid says. “The inclusion of MRI and CT scanning equipment challenged the team to come up with a structure that would allow the best clinical relationship with other functions.”

Privacy was also a major concern, says Mary-Jean Eastman, executive director of Perkins Eastman.

“To respond to its urban location while respecting the sensitivity of cancer treatment, [we] created an approach to ensure that patients are afforded maximum privacy,” she says. “The drive for patient pick up and drop off punctuates the ground floor of the building, concealed from the street and nearby buildings. The drive-through area allows patients to enter on 66th Street, stop at revolving doors while being welcomed by a concierge and drive under the building to exit on 65th Street.

Attempting to approach cancer treatment and prevention with an unconventional atmosphere, Perkins Eastman concentrated on creating a serene ambiance in lieu of the typical, unwelcoming, sterile surroundings.

The center will be patient-friendly in an effort to lower stress, says Mejias.
“The building will offer an environment that ensures convenience and comfort,” he says.

As a support system, patients in the diagnosis stage will sit with other diagnostic patients, and those visitors scheduled for chemotherapy will only interact with others receiving that type of treatment.

Preparing the Site

Turner Construction and Perkins Eastman worked closely with Community Board 8 to set up a logical traffic regulation as well as establish a plan to pacify nearby residents in the midst of construction noise.

“So far, we haven’t had many complaints from neighbors and we are tying to do our best to keep it that way,” Hoyle says.

In preparation for the Second Avenue subway development, the center will have a solid structure to handle the foundation disruption from the train that will cut directly underneath the building.

“Because the imaging equipment is sensitive to vibration, we are taking steps to minimize the effects by using vibration pads and strengthening the structure to handle the effects of a new subway construction,” Hoyle says.

The Power of MSKCC

The breast center portion of the project is being funded by Evelyn H. Lauder, who also is that section’s namesake. The imaging section has yet to secure a sponsor.

The last major project MSKCC launched was a 23-story research building and a seven-story laboratory, which were joined to create a single facility in 2006. The project was the recipient of the 2006 Chairman’s Award for the Most Outstanding Healthcare Project by the Greater New York Construction User Council.

“We decided to build this new center because of growth and demand," Mejias says. “The facility will accommodate an increasing number of breast cancer patients, while also expanding services for cancer screening and diagnostic services. Everyone involved in this project is incredibly dedicated to our goal of serving the comprehensive needs of women being screened or treated for breast cancer, which will strike an estimated 178,480 women in the U.S. this year."