Looking to the future, the center is establishing a new facility, the Hoʻōla Early Phase Clinical Research Center, on its campus, set to open in the first quarter of next year. Hoʻōla will be the first of its kind in Hawaiʻi. It will specialize in Phase 1 clinical trials treatments for cancer patients. This center will allow patients in Hawaiʻi to participate in the latest cutting-edge cancer treatments without needing to travel to the U.S. continent. Since Dr. Ueno's arrival about two and a half years ago, the focus has been on building this influential model, ensuring that every patient receives the best possible care by guiding them to the right resources and the latest advancements. The long-term vision for the University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center is profoundly personal and universally ambitious: to ensure that every individual in Hawaiʻi and the Pacific receives the highest quality of cancer care, regardless of their geographic location or socioeconomic status. Dr. Ueno, a two-time cancer survivor himself, uniquely imbues this vision with a deep understanding of the patient experience. “The staff at the National Cancer Institute once told me that we are the only NCI-designated cancer center led by a two-time cancer survivor. So, his perspective as a clinician and researcher, as well as someone who has been through treatment himself, has really made a difference in all the things that we're trying 103 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 12, ISSUE 07 THE UNIVERSITY OF HAWAIʻI CANCER CENTER
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTI5MjAx