Hope expands in hospital addition
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The event held on the northeastern rim of the University of Utah campus on Oct. 31 was more than a ceremony to break ground for the expansion of a cancer hospital: It was a testament of hope, faith and charity.
Not lost on many attending the ceremony is the aptly named street where the Huntsman Cancer Institute Hospital is located — Circle of Hope.
The ceremony marked the beginning of construction for an addition of 156,000 square feet to the existing hospital building and is scheduled for completion in 2011. The existing hospital was dedicated in 2004.
The theme for the groundbreaking ceremony, at which President Thomas S. Monson spoke, was "Doubling Our Space for Healing and Hope." A few dozen cancer survivors were among the several hundred people who attended the ceremony.
In addition to President Monson, speakers at the event were Jon M. Huntsman Sr. and Karen Huntsman, founders of the Huntsman Cancer Institute; Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.; U.S. Sen. Orrin G. Hatch; Mary Beckerle, executive director of Huntsman Cancer Institute; David Entwistle, chief executive officer, University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics; and University of Utah President Michael K. Young. Elder M. Russell Ballard of the Quorum of the Twelve offered the invocation.
Several General Authorities attended, among whom were President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor in the First Presidency; President Henry B. Eyring, first counselor in the First Presidency; President Boyd K. Packer, President of the Quorum of the Twelve; and Presiding Bishop H. David Burton.
President Monson recounted that several years ago he met up with a prominent physician he had known. He commented to the doctor, "You don't look very happy." The physician, in responding, said, "If I had only one wish it would be that no child would ever have cancer." The doctor, President Monson said, paused and then added, "Actually, I would wish that no one would ever have cancer."
The reality is that cancer touches everyone's life, either directly or indirectly, President Monson observed.
He told of one cancer patient who, with her parents, visited with him in his office after she had been diagnosed with a malignant tumor in one of her legs. The patient was 12-year-old Jami Palmer. President Monson kept in touch with her over the years, watching as she graduated from Brigham Young University, was named Miss Utah in the Miss America Pageant in 2000 and carried the Olympic torch in the 2002 Winter Games. In October 2007, President Monson said, he performed her temple marriage to Jason Brinton. Through the years, he said, Jami befriended other cancer patients, offering them her prayers and encouragement.
"The future is bright for Jami and so many others," President Monson said. "But it was very dark that day her parents brought her to my office and announced she had cancer.
"She had balloons on her wheel chair. A blessing was given. I said goodbye. I told my secretaries, 'Let the air out of the balloons and keep them because she will be back when she is free of cancer.' It took a little while but the day came when we heard that pronouncement. I told my secretaries to drop everything and blow up the balloons."
Speaking of the widespread reach of cancer, President Monson said that his parents and his wife's parents all died of the disease. His parents, he said, "were too young when they died. In the years that followed, cures have been found that would have taken care of their (cancers)."
He expressed gratitude for Jon and Karen Huntsman's role in the work being accomplished in the fields of cancer research, technology and treatments "that provide more years to many who have cancer." He noted the role of scientists, technicians and researchers who are making progress toward conquering "almost a catastrophic illness."
An Area Seventy, Elder Huntsman said, "We would not be here if it were not for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints....It was almost 40 years ago that records of the Church were turned over to early genetic scientists at the University of Utah. They were pioneers who began to dissect family history charts that they received. From that early work emanated what is now the largest database in the world for genetic researchers.
"Because of those family history charts and through understanding the history of families' health, our scientists have been able to go back and ascertain great information with respect to the population around the world of people who suffer not only from cancer but also other forms of diseases. We'll ever be grateful to the organization of the Church for these records, and other research institutes around the world whom we worked with and who have had access to this information will be forever grateful."
Turning toward President Monson, Elder Huntsman expressed gratitude for the Church's financial support, which comes "from businesses outside the tithing contributions of members."
Elder Huntsman said that his father died of prostate cancer and his mother died of breast cancer. After Elder Huntsman was diagnosed with prostate cancer, he said, he and his wife and children sat down together and decided what they wanted to do as a team. Contributing to cancer research and treatment, he said, was a family decision.
From that decision, made as a family, emerged the Huntsman Cancer Institute. In 1993, the Huntsmans donated $10 million to the University of Utah to establish a cancer institute, joining forces with the university's already established cancer center, which had an emphasis on genetics research as a way to understand, diagnose and treat cancer. The Huntsman Cancer Institute building, which includes the Cancer Care Center, was dedicated in 1999. In 2000, the Huntsmans pledged $125 million to fund ongoing cancer research and construct the Huntsman Cancer Hospital, which was dedicated in 2004.
Elder Huntsman spoke of a conversation he had with a woman who "sat with a needle in her arm," taking chemotherapy treatment in the hospital's infusion center. She said that her life might be ending soon, and asked why this was such a ravaging time in the nation and world, why the financial market was upside down, why "everybody is in such a fearful mode."
Elder Huntsman said he felt no one could answer better than she, so he asked her what she would answer if she were asked those questions.
"She thought for a minute and said, 'I would, first of all, reach out to my family and to my loved ones and, second, I would exercise my faith and my belief in God.'
"I said, 'You have just encapsulated what we must do when we have fear in our lives, when we have challenges, when we have uncertainty, when we have situations like we find all around us, and in every other country in the world. We must reach out first and foremost to our loved ones, our family and friends. They will bring us comfort and they will bring us joy and they will bring us through the heartaches of our lives. We must recognize that God did not put us here to fail. He has His arm around us. He is guiding us and leading the way and we must have faith in Him and know that He has put us here to give love and comfort to one another."'
He noted that one out of two men and two out of three women will have cancer in their lives. "There will be 550,000 people in the United States and almost 7 million throughout the world who will die this year of cancer. Every family will be touched by this horrifying and tragic disease. We must cancel cancer. We must convert this beautiful hospital into one of the classic Ritz Carlton Hotels. We must do everything in our power to ensure that families and children do not suffer from this disease."
Sister Huntsman spoke of the positive uplift she has witnessed among patients undergoing treatment at the cancer hospital, of their courage and optimism.
Of her husband, she said, "The ship that he sails does not sail through smooth waters.... He always reminds me that nothing good happens when life is going smoothly. We need the storms, we need the winds, we need the hard times in life to really create, to grow and to make a difference. It is true that in every adversity there is an equal or greater benefit that comes.
"I remember that day when Jon drove the car down the driveway. He never comes home during the day. I rushed out and jumped in the car. I saw tears in his eyes. He said, 'I have cancer....' Then he said, 'I am grateful for my life, for all the blessings I have received, for family, for business, for our love for our Heavenly Father and that my affairs are in order.'
"Then he switched and said, 'I am grateful for all of these things. I don't know how long I have to live, but I know one thing: we will start tomorrow to make a difference in the lives of people with cancer."'
Sen. Hatch described the Huntsman Cancer Institute Hospital as "the best cancer hospital in the country," and said it is "in a class of its own." He said that the Huntsmans "dreamed the impossible dream" when they began their fight against cancer.
Gov. Huntsman said that when the HCI building was dedicated, his father had said that was the beginning of a cancer research campus, "one whose every existence will reside on the Circle of Hope."
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