Today, 27^th November 2020 Icon Group’s second cancer centre in Mainland China was officially opened. The new Icon Cancer Centre in Chongqing, a megacity in southwest China will offer the latest in radiation therapy technology and techniques benefitting the millions of people living in Chongqing and surrounding regions.

Alongside experienced doctors and clinical teams, the centre, located inside Sanbo Chang’an Hospital (Sanbo), is equipped with a Varian TrueBeam linear accelerator which has the capability to deliver the most advanced cutting-edge treatment techniques for a wide range of cancers. It will also be the first in China to offer Varian’s HyperArc technology, an advanced treatment technique delivering pin-point radiation to multiple brain tumours rather than treating the whole brain with radiation.

Icon Group CEO, Mark Middleton said this centre is a milestone in the group’s rich history and commitment to pushing the boundaries of cancer care.

“Last year we became the first Australian healthcare company to bring cancer care into China, turning the tide of radiation oncology for the Jiangxian community in China’s Shanxi province. Today, we build on that commitment and utilise our long-standing expertise and innovation to bring another world-class level of care to the deserving people of Chongqing,” said Mr Middleton.

The centre’s state-of-the-art service is underpinned by Icon Group’s specialised remote functions based in Australia. This includes one of Australia’s most cutting-edge exports – radiation therapy planning. This service model sees a centralised team of dosimetry specialists work across all time zones to provide efficient turnarounds and the development of high quality, high complexity treatment plans.

“Radiation therapy planning is a very specialised skill and is often hard to secure, particularly in regional and developing locations. Our highly experienced team of experts are able to develop treatment plans for complex cancer cases and deliver them anywhere in the world, allowing us to bring more care where we couldn’t before,” said Mr Middleton.

The Icon centre is managed in partnership with Sanbo Brain Hospital Management Group bringing together a blend of international expertise and has the capacity to treat 900 patients annually. Icon is proud to partner with Sanbo, a large group of Chinese hospitals internationally recognised for delivering cutting-edge neurological services, including the treatment for brain cancer. The addition of Icon, including the latest in brain cancer radiation therapy technology to Sanbo Chang’an Hospital will further elevate specialised brain services in the region.

The official opening ceremony included special guests including leaders and official members of the Chongqing local government, Mr Graham Fletcher, Australian Ambassador to China, dignitaries from Sanbo group and Sanbo Chang-an Hospital including Mr Zhang Yang, Chairman of Sanbo Brain Hospital, Mr Qing Zhou, President of Chongqing Sanbo Chang’an Hospital, and Sanbo Vice Presidents, Mr Quankun Sun and Lixin Wei. The afternoon proceedings included a doctor seminar which saw China and Australia Radiation Oncologists collaborating and sharing the latest in radiation oncology. This seminar also recognised the 15-year anniversary of Brisbane and Chongqing as sister cities with the new Icon Cancer Centre a milestone in this ever-growing relationship.

Icon continues to expand services into Mainland China with another three centres set to open in China by mid-2021.

“For decades we have remained at the forefront of cancer care in Australia and Singapore. We are now bringing that same level of expertise to areas in need. Because where you live, should not determine if you live,” said Mr Middleton.