The University of Wisconsin System Board of Regents approved a request from University of Wisconsin-Madison on Sept. 18 seeking an additional $13.5 million to make space for a cancer research project.
Originally budgeted at $48.5 million, researchers at the Wisconsin Institute for Medical Research found the new structure requires significantly more complex infrastructure, adding $13.5 million to construction costs. The building will support a cyclotron particle accelerator, [brief definition], and will be ready in 2027 according to UW-Madison’s request.
The Regents’ approval helps sustain the university’s research capacity at a time when federal research funding is facing cuts.
Jonathan Engle, an associate professor in the Medical Physics and Radiology department, said the space will help researchers manage diseases like cancer.
A cyclotron is a versatile tool to make starting materials for a wide variety of different purposes, Engle told the Cardinal. “One of the main purposes is to supply materials for medical imaging and therapy in nuclear medicine,” he said.
The cyclotron will help various health research departments, such as Radiology or Human Oncology, and help connect the university’s international network of colleagues and collaborators. Engle said the project will also help influence public health and assist basic scientific investigations
“Ultimately, our goal is to be the preeminent site for preclinical and clinical theranostics research globally,” Anjon Audhya, senior associate dean in the School of Medicine and Public Health (SMPH), said in a statement. Theranostics are radiation treatments combining chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
According to SMPH, another goal of the cyclotron project is to produce several new isotopes needed for cutting edge medical diagnostic, therapeutic procedures and research.
“The [additional] floors have the potential to accelerate, diversify and expand the impact that we can have,” Engle said. “We need more capacity to use this machine to make these radioactive materials that can influence people’s health and also be very useful for basic science investigations.”
The project supports SMPH and UW Health’s shared mission to help patients with Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, cancer, chronic pain and other conditions. “The most fundamental reason is that we have a real opportunity to improve people’s quality of life,” Engle said.
