CHRISTUS Health Opens $36 Million Cancer Center in Longview to Address East Texas Cancer Burden
核心洞察
CHRISTUS Health is launching a new $36 million cancer (搜索) center in Longview, Texas, with Dr. Steven DiBiase serving as incoming medical director.
The facility aims to eliminate the need for East Texas residents to drive 2-3 hours for sophisticated cancer (搜索) treatment by keeping care local.
A 2025 Texas Department of State Health Services report places Gregg County above the 90th percentile for cancer (搜索) incidence rates statewide.
A new cancer (搜索) center in Longview, Texas, has recruited a physician from New York City to serve as its medical director, as CHRISTUS Health works to bring sophisticated oncology care closer to home for East Texas residents. Dr. Steven DiBiase, who spent the last 7 1/2 years practicing medicine in New York, will lead the new CHRISTUS Health Cancer Center, a $36 million facility designed to reduce the travel burden many patients currently face.
"Starting a new program from the ground up is really, very exciting," Dr. DiBiase said. The mission, he noted, is what brought him nearly 1,500 miles across the country from the Big Apple to the Lone Star State.
Addressing a Regional Cancer Burden
The facility aims to close the gap in cancer (搜索) incidence rates across the region. A 2025 report from the Texas Department of State Health Services names Gregg County specifically above the 90th percentile for cancer incidence rates in all of Texas.
"East Texas has a lot of cancer (搜索) out there," DiBiase said. "So, there's a huge need for this. It's not just the treatment, it's all the stuff upstream, like screening, outreach, education...We really wanna run with that here so we can catch things early rather than when it's a little bit tougher to treat."
Keeping Care Local
A central goal of the new center is to spare patients from long-distance travel for treatment. "We don't want people to have to drive 2-3 hours to get the best and most sophisticated care. We want them to stay local where they be with family and friends and still get state of the art sophisticated treatment, but closer to home," DiBiase said.
The new facility is equipped with infusion therapy areas, advanced mobile PET and CT imaging, laboratory testing, and several other services that will support the creation of personalized treatment plans for each patient.
Leadership and Timeline
DiBiase described his new role as an honor in his profession. "This opportunity was really, really special for a physician to go into a program that's bringing in the best physicians, the best nurses, the best help. It's really fulfilling to start it from the ground up," he said.
The cancer (搜索) center's ribbon cutting is set for September 30th, with the first patients expected to be scanned around October 5th.