New building to fight cancer could cost $1 billion, Manitoba premier says

The Manitoba government says construction on a long-promised centre for cancer research and treatment will get underway next year.

“With the ultimate goal of being able to say: if you need to fight cancer, you’re going to get the best treatment in the world right here at home,” said Premier Wab Kinew.

The new headquarters for CancerCare Manitoba was cancelled by the former Progressive Conservative government in 2017, and the NDP promised in 2023 to build it if elected.

Premier Kinew says $11.5 million has been set aside this year for design work and a four-year construction project is expected to start next year.

The province says it’ll put patient care, new technologies, research, and support services together in one space.

“This expansion will allow us to meet increasing demand, modernize how we deliver care, and continue to improve outcomes for Manitobans,” said Dr. Donna Turner, the interim president and CEO of Cancer Care Manitoba.

The current building opened in 2003, and Dr. Dhali Dhaliwal, former CEO of CancerCare Manitoba, says a new, larger building with updated technology is needed.

“We temporized by taking over the library and converting spaces for clinical use, and this process has continued over the last two decades. The shortage of space continued to trouble me throughout my tenure,” said Dr. Dhaliwal.

They say the new centre will also help them attract world-class staff.

“We’re going to make sure that you go to work in a wonderful, amazing facility,” said Kinew.

Kinew says a very preliminary cost estimate is over $800 million, but that figure could rise to $1 billion.

The project is to be built near the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg.

The province is waiting on further news about a settlement from Canadian tobacco companies, which could aid in the funding, but the premier says the project will go ahead regardless of that outcome.