The Punjab government has announced that Pakistan’s first public sector hospital with cancer free treatment, the Nawaz Sharif Institute of Cancer Treatment and Research in Lahore will be opened on July 31, 2026.
Authorities informed Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Maryam Nawaz that Packages A and B of the hospital would reach completion by July 31.
The Punjab government approved the same date for the new hospital’s opening.
The Nawaz Sharif Institute of Cancer Treatment and Research is currently under construction in Valencia Town, Lahore.
The hospital’s location provides easy access to the motorway and Ring Road.
The Punjab government is expected to provide free treatment to cancer patients, especially stage three and stage four.
Patients from other provinces will also be able to receive treatment at the new hospital.
The new institute is expected to have a capacity of nearly 915 beds with the completion of the hospital costing around Rs75 billion.
The Punjab government has also begun looking for clinical and non-medical staff for the new hospital.
New positions include hospital staff including doctors in radiation oncology. The new institute may also operate with a digital paperless system.
Facilities at Pakistan’s first free cancer hospital
Earlier, Punjab Health Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique shared that the cancer hospital will feature pediatric oncology, operating theaters, 10 radiation therapy bunkers, an ICU, and a 30-bed emergency ward.
Additionally, a waiting area and 24 residential beds for patients will be constructed.
He explained that the main building in the initial phase will include a bone marrow centre, cancer care clinic, doctors’ quarters, and a mosque, while a new 300-bed building and parking plaza will be developed in the next phase.
The Minister added that radiation therapy, chemotherapy, endoscopy, and various other services will be available at the nation’s first government cancer hospital.
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