The University of Chicago proposes $633 million cancer center

The University of Chicago Medicine is planning to construct a $633 million, 500,000-square-foot cancer center.

The facility is intended to serve cancer patients and will have 128 beds, the university says in a news release. It would be built on land owned by the university on its campus in the city's Hyde Park neighborhood.

The cancer center will focus on prevention and early detection of cancer and be a hub for research into the more aggressive forms of cancer.

Other planned features include 100 exam rooms, outpatient services, a full suite of imaging and diagnostic solutions, a clinical trials unit and research clinic, stem-cell treatment and processing facilities, genetic testing and counseling, radiation oncology and infusion services, and an urgent care.

If approved, construction of the new facility would begin in 2023 and open in 2026.