BACOLOD City – The Department of Health (DOH) inaugurated on August 20 the newly constructed P35-million two-storey Cancer Care Center at the Corazon Locsin Montelibano Memorial Regional Hospital (CLMMRH).
DOH–Negros Island Region (NIR) director Dr. Razel Nikka Hao, in her keynote message, emphasized that the Cancer Care Center is “not just a treatment site” but the apex of a regional cancer care network.
As the regional apex hospital, CLMMRH is tasked not only with providing specialized services but also with mentoring provincial hospitals, supporting early detection at the primary care level, ensuring seamless referrals, and setting the standard of cancer care across Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor.
“CLMMRH must not only treat patients within its walls; it must also cultivate a network that ensures no cancer patient in the region is left behind,” Hao stressed.
She noted that while the inauguration marks a milestone, the fight against cancer remains a continuing challenge.
The Cancer Care Center is equipped to deliver intravenous (IV) chemotherapy, bone marrow biopsies, lumbar punctures, intrathecal chemotherapy, child life services, and referrals for radiotherapy.
It also provides financing support through Philippine Health Insurance Corporation’s (PhilHealth) Z-benefit packages and the Cancer Assistance Fund (CAF), ensuring that treatment is not only available but accessible.
Hao said the DOH–NIR stands behind CLMMRH’s mandate “to lead, train, mentor, and set the pace for cancer care” in the region by aligning resources, building systems, and holding itself accountable to patients.
In her welcome message, CLMMRH Medical Center Chief Dr. Joan Cerrada reported that the Cancer Center caters to around 180 pediatric and 1,500 adult cancer patients annually.
Of these, about 500 patients received assistance from the Cancer Supportive-Palliative Medicines Access Program (CSPMAP), while 1,000 patients benefited from the Cancer Assistance Fund (CAF), each receiving up to P150,000.
Since March 2025, around 100 patients have also been enrolled in the PhilHealth Z-benefit package for breast cancer.
“These collective efforts have resulted in no balance billing for cancer patients in basic accommodation,” Cerrada said.
Cerrada recalled that CLMMRH’s cancer care services began in 1994 when Dr. Adonis Guancia, Faces Foundation, and the Andres Soriano Foundation set up the first Oncology Unit on Negros Island.
In 2024, then Medical Center Chief Dr. Julius Drilon and Guancia, with funding from the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) upon the recommendation of then Bacolod Lone District’s Rep. Greg Gasataya, initiated the construction of the Cancer Care Center.
Originally planned as a one-storey facility, it became a two-storey building after additional DOH funding was secured through Gasataya’s request.
Now as the city mayor, Gasataya expressed pride in seeing the project realized, noting that it aligns with the law he authored in Congress that increased CLMMRH’s bed capacity from 400 to 1,000.
He reaffirmed the city’s support for CLMMRH, citing the recent memorandum of agreement between the city government and the hospital for the establishment of the Bagong Urgent Care and Ambulatory Service (BUCAS) Plus Center in Barangay 14./PN
