Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes
- Groundbreaking for a new Huntsman Cancer Institute in Vineyard took place Tuesday.
- David Bearss, a donor, calls the project a "deeply personal endeavor."
- The center aims to open in 2028, reducing travel for Utah County and other cancer patients.
VINEYARD — One of the donors helping to bring a comprehensive cancer center to Utah County is a man who has spent his life working to cure cancer after losing a grandfather, mother and father-in-law to the disease.
David Bearss, also an entrepreneur and pharmaceutical innovator, said the future Huntsman Cancer Institute location in Vineyard is not just a new building for his family, it is a "deeply personal endeavor." A drug he developed was used to treat his wife's father, bringing the family a little bit of hope and more time together.
"I work every day to think about the next (treatment) that I take into people, how that's going to impact the world and how it's going to benefit people," he said at the groundbreaking for the cancer center on Tuesday.
Utah County patients, donors, community leaders, students and Huntsman Cancer Institute employees attended the event, and Bearss told them the groundbreaking gives his family hope.
"Our deepest hope is that this institute will be a place where families are spared the losses we've experienced, that so many more mothers and fathers and grandmothers and grandfathers can share long and healthy lives with their loved ones. Today, we break ground on more than just concrete and steel; we break ground on hope," he said.
Although the facility's groundbreaking was celebrated on Tuesday, site work to prepare the land began in November. The center is aiming to open to patients in the fall of 2028.
The new location will reduce travel time for thousands of patients, as well as expand the the hospital's ability to research and educate.
Utah County patients made over 40,000 trips to the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah in 2024 — about 3.5 million miles total— according to Mary Beckerle, CEO at the Salt Lake City research hospital. She shared the story of a Saratoga Springs mother of three who had an 80-mile round trip to receive care and created a spreadsheet to help her find child care so she could get to her appointments.
"We are coming to you," Beckerle told patients in similar situations. "We are getting closer to cures, closer to communities and closer to your families — and we're really thrilled for that," Beckerle said.
Innovation
University of Utah President Taylor Randall said the new location is a "bold step" toward a future with no cancer and expands access to cancer care and research, especially to rural communities. He said research is "the engine that drives transformative change."
The Vineyard location will have personalized care, with health care workers looking at genetic makeup to eliminate care options that will be less effective. "And along with that research, what I hope you will see are startups and innovation that will make this whole community blossom," Randall said.
Randall said there will be "remarkable collaborations" between the University of Utah, Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University — all partnering with the community to save lives. He said this is larger than any sports rivalry.
"This is why education exists. This is why we collaborate," he said.
Vineyard Mayor Julie Fullmer said her city is growing exponentially, which brings challenges and opportunities. She said the future cancer center being built in her city is an exciting moment for the entire state.
"Together, we're building a future that reflects Utah's very best, compassionate care, innovation and community-led solutions," she said.
Cancer is personal to everyone, Utah Senate President Stuart Adams said, noting that everyone has a family member or friend who has had cancer. He said Utah has the only federally designated comprehensive cancer center in the Intermountain West; the Vineyard facility will be the second.
"I believe that … the Huntsman Cancer Center and Utah can be the center of medical development for the entire world," he said.
Philanthropy
The first phase of the Huntsman Cancer Institute in Vineyard is estimated to cost $400 million, the largest investment in the institute's history. A $75 million matching donation from the Huntsman Foundation began the fundraising process in June 2023. The statement said other donations from Utah, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Flagship Companies Group, Woodbury Corporation and others have helped the institute reach 75% of the funding needed.
Peter Huntsman, CEO of the Huntsman Cancer Institute, said in a statement that the organization's vision will "help change cancer outcomes for a generation."
"This is new frontier. This is not going to be an addition to what takes place at the University of Utah; this is going to be a rapid expansion," he said.
Huntsman said the researchers at the new facility will be on the frontier of artificial intelligence and genetic codes, noting that breakthroughs could come in the next 10 years from scientists and those in other fields, not just those who are medically trained.
"As we look here in Vineyard, I believe there are children, young people sitting here, that may well see these buildings someday being redundant," he said.
He encouraged people to invest in the project, including the following phases, saying the building would not belong to his family but to the citizens of Utah. Huntsman said it's too late to invest in cancer when you have a diagnosis.
"This is the next frontier, this is our legacy, let's jump into it. ... "This is a moment of celebration, but also a moment of commitment," he said.
His mom, Karen Huntsman, talked about driving to cancer appointments saying she has experience worrying what the scan will say when she arrives — "your heart thumps a little bit harder." She thanked the researchers, donors and others who will help lessen that burden by creating a facility that is closer to many patients.
