The construction of a building of approximately 250,000 square feet (SF) of research space and an additional 200,000 SF of clinical space for 450,000 SF total

The National Institute of Standards and Technology awarded the University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute, Inc. $35.64 million on September 1, 2026, under the 2026 Congressionally Identified Construction Grants program (CFDA 11.071) to construct a new Kansas City cancer research and clinical facility.

The award funds construction of approximately 250,000 square feet of research space and 200,000 square feet of clinical space (450,000 square feet total) in a building adjacent to Cambridge North Tower and the Hemenway Research Building on the University of Kansas Medical Center campus. The project targets construction of basic research floors within the new KU Cancer Center building, designed to co-locate basic scientists, clinicians, and population health investigators to increase interaction and collaboration. The recipient anticipates adding 26 new investigators over the next ten years and expanding focus on immunotherapy and other cancer therapeutics.

Performance period runs from September 1, 2026, through August 31, 2029, with work performed in Kansas City, Kansas. This award is part of a congressionally directed construction funding initiative; a related grant (60NANB23D119) from fiscal year 2023 also supports this same project. The University of Kansas Medical Center Research Institute is a tax-exempt research organization and child entity of the University of Kansas with substantial recent activity in biomedical and clinical research, particularly through National Institutes of Health funding.

Activities

Achieving NCI comprehensive cancer center designation was not the end of our journey. For leadership of the university of kansas and the university of kansas health system, the work is ongoing to sustain our status as the premier academic medical center in our community, state, and region whose reputation is respected nationwide. The funding from this grant will be targeted toward the construction of one of our primary basic research floors in our new KU cancer center building.

Expected outcomes

This new home will put patients at the center of science and clinical care, making the KU cancer center a global destination for the best in cancer treatment. Cancer projections underscore our urgency to build a new centralized research facility. By 2040, the number of new cancer cases per year is expected to rise to 29.5 million and the number of cancer-related deaths to 16.4 million. In order to continue to grow our cancer center and expand our focus on immunotherapy and other promising new cancer therapeutics, we will need to expand our research and clinical teams. For example, with the construction of this building we plan to add 26 new investigators over the next ten years. This will be critical to our efforts to effectively serve our catchment area. IT is also important to note that a primary purpose of our new building is to CO-locate our basic scientists, our clinicians, and our population health investigators in a single building which will allow increased interactions and collaborations.

Intended beneficiaries

For the people in the kumc region, comprehensive designation means greater access to leading-edge treatments, including clinical trials, as well as the best and brightest minds in cancer. A facility containing nearly all basic, translational and population science faculty adjacent to our newly constructed oncology in-patient tower will be a significant catalyst for further growth and strengthening of our center. This will be particularly important for our diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility efforts as many of our population health researchers focus their work on underserved and marginalized population groups."subrecipient activities: none.