The UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine will receive a $2.5 million tomotherapy center, due to a bill that passed the state Legislature Thursday.

Senate Bill 456 easily passed the Assembly and state Senate, with Gov. Jim Doyle needing to sign it to become law. The bill allows the school of veterinary medicine to accept millions of dollars in grants to build the addition.

The construction will not cost the state government anything because the center is solely funded by gifts to the school. The Legislature’s approval was needed before the school could proceed, according to Veterinary Medicine Dean Daryl Buss.

Tomotherapy uses precise doses of radiation on cancerous tumors, according to Veterinary Medicine Communications Specialist Tania Banak.

Banak said tomotherapy was initially developed and researched at UW-Madison on tumors in the nasal passages of dogs. The tests were successful and tomotherapy is now used on humans, she said.

The new addition could give veterinary students valuable experience with tomotherapy equipment before they enter the workforce, Banak said.

The bill was authored by state Sen. Fred Risser, D-Madison, and state Rep. J.A. Hines, R-Oxford. Hines is a veterinarian.

Hines said in a statement the addition could also lead to advances in treatments used on humans.

“Oftentimes advancements in oncology treatment for animals have a positive effect on the health care of humans,” Hines said, “because many diseases in animals, including cancer, are analogous in humans.”

The new center will be located on the northeast side of the current veterinary medicine building. The school is located at 2015 Linden Dr.