New centre brings next-gen cancer care to Noosa

For the patient, a cancer diagnosis is the beginning of a long and difficult journey punctuated with many ups and downs followed by that initial shock. Tender care, a supportive community and cutting edge treatments are vital to a patient’s well-being as they navigate uncertain waters. Noosa’s brand new radiation therapy centre offers just this. 

Opened by GenesisCare last week, the $12 million comprehensive radiation treatment centre is equipped to treat 500 patients annually with modern radiation treatments for most cancer types, access to clinical trials for eligible patients and allied services which include counselling, nutrition, dietetics and physiotherapy. 

The new facility will also solve one of the biggest problems for Noosa cancer patients who currently have to travel to Brisbane, Buderim or Nambour for their radiation treatment. For many of them, this new service will save the average cancer patient an estimated 2000 kms over the course of their radiation therapy. 

GenesisCare Radiation Oncologist, Dr. Debra Furniss, explains why this new centre is such a boon for the community. “Radiation therapy isn’t a one stop visit. It’s not a case of going down for one treatment. It takes multiple visits, often daily, often over many weeks and it can be up to eight weeks for some patients,

“And it’s often a time when people really aren’t feeling at their best. You might have side effects from treatments that have been delivered or symptoms related to cancer. So having that journey just adds to the burden of what they’re going through,

“And there are a number of patients that won’t access radiotherapy because of that distance. They just don’t feel well enough to get to their treatment and unfortunately that’s a treatment that might actually help them and help with their symptoms. So having a centre like this close to home available for those patients is really important.”

Recounting her past experience with travelling for cancer treatment, former patient and Tewantin resident Laine Harry shared her story. “I primarily travelled to Nambour to have treatment, which is more than an hour of travelling there and back each day. This was more than 1000 km over the course of my treatment. Every day, I hear about someone locally who is going through cancer, and this new centre will make things easier for them.” 

While Noosa cancer patients will no longer need to travel to Nambour and other facilities, the new radiation therapy centre still provides a convenient bus service for locals and those further afield needing transport to the centre. 

Walking through the centre’s sparkling new doors is a soothing experience, exactly what a person undergoing treatment would need. Featuring earthy tones in ochre, green and grey, plush carpets, a variety of welcoming treatment and control rooms, the biggest murals of the Noosa everglades and supportive, caring staff, it’s impossible to not feel like you would be in good hands if you were walking the cancer treatment journey with them. 

On this fantastic new and convenient centre, Noosa mayor, Frank Wilkie commented, “It’s wonderful to see more healthcare and access to important services in the Noosa shire, especially cancer care options that minimise the need for patients to travel and bring treatment and technology directly to our doorstep.” 

Now open to the public, GenesisCare’s next-gen radiation therapy centre is changing the face of cancer care by focussing on the individual, not the condition.