Cancer care environments have a demanding brief. They must support rigorous infection control, safe treatment and efficient clinical workflows, while recognising patients may spend many hours receiving care at a physically and emotionally difficult time.
The new Systemic Anti-Cancer Therapy (SACT) unit being built at specialist cancer care provider GenesisCare’s state-of-the-art centre in Guildford, will continue the organisation's commitment to this care pathway.
With the build phase well underway and on track to open in December 2026, the new SACT unit will extend the existing GenesisCare centre on Rosalind Franklin Close on the Royal Surrey County Hospital campus. The project will transform previously unused space in the purpose-built facility, which opened in 2024.
GenesisCare sees interior design as an integral part of cancer care, not just an aesthetic layer added after clinical planning is complete, but as an important environment that can influence patient well-being, helping to reduce anxiety and create a calming presence.
Privacy and comfort are key, and treatment spaces should feel calm and welcoming rather than clinical. Lighting, acoustics, temperature, ambience, layout and seating all contribute to this. Materials need to meet demanding standards for infection control, durability and cleanliness, without making things feel harsh or impersonal.
Navigation for patients within their units and centres is also key. Patients arriving for treatment will find free parking, a welcoming reception area, and easy, softly decorated routes between reception, consultation, treatment and support spaces.
A degree of personal choice is essential
It’s important to translate these design considerations into patient benefits, and one example is the treatment setting itself.
Patients receiving systemic therapies may spend a considerable amount of time seated, so comfort, access to natural light and a degree of personal choice are essential. Treatment room layouts are intended to provide connection and reassurance for patients who prefer a more open setting, alongside quieter and more private options.
In this way, the environment supports individual preferences while maintaining safe clinical observation.
The same planning consideration is given to the clinical teams with well-positioned support spaces, accessible equipment and efficient routes between treatment areas can reduce unnecessary movement and allow colleagues to devote more time to patients. Patient experience and staff effectiveness are closely connected, and the GenesisCare interiors support both.
Patients receiving systemic therapies may spend a considerable amount of time seated
Continued delivery of a high standard of build depends heavily on contractor selection. Building a SACT unit calls for more than general construction expertise.
The contractor must understand healthcare compliance, infection-prevention requirements, specialist building services and the coordination of clinical equipment.
For the new Guildford unit, the work is also being managed within an established and busy cancer centre, where disruption, noise and dust need to be carefully controlled.
GenesisCare selected DD Porter Construction (DDP) to deliver this project, having worked with them previously on projects including the Nottingham Linac project, the Milton Keynes Linac and CT replacement programmes as well as other Linac and MedTech projects across the GenesisCare estate.
DDP were chosen as an experienced healthcare construction specialist because they understand not only how to build the space required, but why each element matters to the patients and staff who will use it. DDP ensure the clinical and design intent are maintained throughout construction, and work in close collaboration with GenesisCare’s own experienced project delivery team, alongside clinical and operational teams and specialist suppliers.
Note on the GenesisCare SACT network in 2026
GenesisCare’s investment in this additional SACT unit in Guildford Surrey is part of their wider commitment to expanding access to advanced cancer services in patient-centred environments across the UK. Progress towards the SACT service opening in December 2026 can be followed on GenesisCare's social channels.
GenesisCare operates a network of 14 specialist outpatient centres in the UK, with additional centres opening in Leeds and Royal Tunbridge Wells in 2026, and in Poole, Dorset in 2027. This new suite will be their eighth SACT unit in the UK, and provide treatments including chemotherapy, immunotherapy and cellular therapy. By introducing these services in Guildford, Genesis Care are expanding access to specialist systemic cancer treatment and bringing more elements of cancer care together in one location for patients across Surrey and the surrounding areas.
