Cancer Charity Finds New Home and Plans Expansion
- The University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) is advancing its cancer care capabilities through the construction of a new world-class facility for the Cancer Center and Research Institute...
- The new building is designed as a five-story facility exceeding 250,000 square feet.
- The CCRI facility is intended to be an interdisciplinary space that combines patient care and family support with advanced research.
The University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) is advancing its cancer care capabilities through the construction of a new world-class facility for the Cancer Center and Research Institute (CCRI). This development is supported by a major gift from the H.F. McCarty Foundation, a Jackson, Mississippi-based organization.
The new building is designed as a five-story facility exceeding 250,000 square feet. According to the University of Mississippi Foundation, the project is part of UMMC’s largest capital campaign to date.
Facility Design and Patient Impact
The CCRI facility is intended to be an interdisciplinary space that combines patient care and family support with advanced research. The state-of-the-art infrastructure is designed to deliver high-level care and facilitate groundbreaking research, including the administration of clinical trials.
A primary goal of the new center is to provide Mississippi cancer patients with closer access to treatment that is supported by leading-edge research. The foundation noted that such access can result in more time for patients with their loved ones.
The Role of the H.F. McCarty Foundation
The H.F. McCarty Foundation was established in 1995 by Mary Ann and H.F. Mac
McCarty. The foundation’s mission, as described by secretary Leslie Baskin, focuses on science, medicine, education, and the arts.
My grandparents designed the foundation to be focused on science, medicine, education and the arts. We felt that this gift would touch all those points
Leslie Baskin
The gift to UMMC follows a long history of charitable support from the foundation. Other organizations supported by the McCarty Foundation include:
- Millsaps College
- St. Andrews Episcopal School
- The Methodist Rehab Research Center
- The YMCA in Blue Ridge, North Carolina
Broader Trends in Dedicated Cancer Care
The shift toward dedicated cancer centers is reflected in other major medical developments across the United States. For example, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is constructing a dedicated inpatient cancer hospital in the Longwood Medical Area. This project, funded by a transformational gift from Jonathan and Jeannie Lavine and Josh and Anita Bekenstein, is based on the premise that patients in dedicated cancer centers often experience better outcomes than those in general hospitals.
Similarly, other regions are expanding specialized oncology infrastructure. On September 17, 2025, Texas Tech Health El Paso celebrated the groundbreaking of the Fox Cancer Center.
These developments emphasize a trend toward creating seamless patient experiences, moving from outpatient care to inpatient services within specialized campuses. The Dana-Farber facility, for instance, is being located on the site of the Joslin Diabetes Center to create an interlocking campus adjacent to the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
The integration of research and clinical care remains a central theme in these expansions. By placing inpatient hospitals in close proximity to outpatient and research facilities, institutions aim to support a bench-to-bedside research model, accelerating the transition of laboratory discoveries into clinical treatments.