Cancer treatment to be offered in Bossier starting April 1
CHRISTUS Health Shreveport-Bossier is bringing cancer care closer to home.
Medical services will begin next month at the new CHRISTUS Cancer Treatment Center – Bossier site, located in the CHRISTUS Healthplex on Viking Drive in Bossier City. Cancer patients will now have the option of going to Shreveport or staying in Bossier to receive treatment.
Jennifer Varnadore, Director of the Cancer Treatment Center, said this is something completely new for CHRISTUS Health and the area.
“A lot of patients are traveling to Shreveport from outlying areas, but now we are excited to bring our services closer to them,” Varnadore said. “We are committed to reaching the growing areas of our community and that includes Bossier. This new center will allow us to increase our access and availability for more of our patients.”
The Bossier City site is part of an expansion effort by the CHRISTUS Health system. Last year, CHRISTUS Health announced a $55 million dollar expansion of the health system’s Highland campus and the transfer of all acute care services from the Schumpert St. Mary campus to Highland.
Physicians will begin seeing patients at the new Bossier City location on Tuesday, April 1. Dr. Scott Boniol, Hematologist/Oncologist and Medical Director for the Cancer Treatment Center, said the site’s central location and access to I-220 will make traveling to and from treatment more convenient and patient-friendly.
“The last thing patients want to do after treatment is ride in a car,” Boniol said. “The closer to home they are, the better it is for the patient.”
The CHRISTUS Schumpert Cancer Treatment Center in Shreveport treats upward of 150 patients per day. Varnadore said patients travel from all parts of the area, including Bossier, Benton and Minden, thus showing a great need for a Bossier City treatment facility.
“It may be a smaller clinic, but it will certainly still have the same personalized care that they would expect to get in Shreveport,” Varnadore said.
The Bossier treatment facility will include a hematology and oncology clinic, chemotherapy and infusion services, care for new and current patients and a designated lab. There will also be privacy room for patients wanting a more intimate environment during treatment.
A blessing of the space is scheduled for Thursday, April 10, at 12:30 p.m. For more information or to schedule an appointment, visit www.christushealthsb.org/CancerTreatmentCenter or call the one-call scheduling line at (318) 681-4138 or 1-888-681-4138.
Anyone looking for care can call to schedule an evaluation appointment without a referral from another doctor, Boniol said.
