Cancer Hospital renamed Marc Basnight in September 19 ceremony
By Outer Banks Voice on September 19, 2022
UNC system president Peter Hans speaks at the renaming of hospitals. (UNC Health)
UNC Health issued this news release renaming the state cancer hospital the North Carolina Basnight Cancer Hospital after the late NC Senate President and Dare County luminary Marc Basnight.
North Carolina State Cancer Hospital will now bear the name of one of its most influential and dedicated supporters. In tribute to the legacy of the late Marc Basnight, the former protempore Senate President who passed away in 2020, the building was officially renamed the North Carolina Basnight Cancer Hospital in a ceremony Monday at UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill.
“UNC Health’s mission is to advance the health and well-being of the people of North Carolina,” said Wesley Burks, MD, CEO of UNC Health and Dean of the UNC School of Medicine. “Today was a great opportunity to come together to honor Senator Basnight, a man who has embodied that mission throughout his public service career.”
Basnight, the state’s longest-serving Legislative Leader, was instrumental in opening the hospital and was inspired by doctors, researchers, patients and nurses he met during his wife Sandy’s battle with cancer. UNC’s University Cancer Research Fund, the Biomedical Research Imaging Center and the hospital itself are all a direct result of his unwavering focus on improving the lives of the people of North Carolina.
During Sandy Basnight’s leukemia treatment, Marc Basnight recognized the need for expanded research capabilities, more advanced technology and equipment, and better healthcare facilities to fight the state’s deadliest disease. He pushed for government funding to build the cancer hospital, which would triple the area available for treatment. Today, residents of North Carolina and beyond make more than 270,000 outpatient visits to the Cancer Hospital, the clinical home of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center and its affiliated clinics, each year.
Speakers at Monday’s event included a number of state dignitaries, including Gov. Roy Cooper, UNC System President Peter Hans and State Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger, as well as Bill Roper, MD, MPH, former interim president of the UNC System, CEO of UNC Health and Erskine Bowles, Dean of the UNC School of Medicine and past President of the UNC System. Guests also heard from Shekinah Elmore, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor, UNC Radiation Oncology and Urology, and Janine Jones, a member of the hospital’s Patient & Family Advisory Council and cancer survivor.
“Whenever people faced challenges big or small, my friend Senator Basnight was willing to help,” Cooper said. “He had an unrelenting drive to make North Carolina the best, and this cancer hospital is part of his tremendous legacy in our state.”
