NJ’s First Freestanding Cancer Hospital Opens in New Brunswick

By Anthony Birritteri, Editor-in-Chief On May 13, 2025

Today, New Jersey’s first freestanding cancer hospital opened in New Brunswick. The 12-story, 520,000-square-foot Jack & Sheryl Morris Cancer Center is a partnership between the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, RWJBarnabas Health, DEVCO (the New Brunswick Development Corporation), the City of New Brunswick, and Middlesex County. 

According to Steven Libutti, MD, FACS, director, Rutgers Cancer Institute, and senior vice president, oncology services, RWJBarnabas Health, the $900 million facility is needed in the state. With 13 freestanding cancer centers in the country, such as Memorial Sloan Kettering in Manhattan, Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia, and MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, Libutti tells New Jersey Business Magazine, “It is well established that patients receiving cancer care in an environment where providers are completely focused [on oncology] with multi-disciplinary teams, in an institution that is designated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), have improved outcomes. 

“It was apparent to me that cancer care in the state was fragmented,” Libutti continued. “There wasn’t really one organized approach to providing exceptional care to people. Since the Rutger Cancer Institute is the only NCI designated Comprehensive Cancer Center in the state, it was our obligation to correct that, to look for ways in which we could have a coordinated and integrated approach to caring for cancer patients in New Jersey.” 

The Jack & Sheryl Cancer Center is a component of the 225,000-square-foot Rutgers Cancer Institute, and the two are connected by a skybridge. “The Jack & Sheryl Cancer Center will augment our research capabilities [at the Cancer Institute] as we shift clinical activities to the new facility, while existing laboratories [at the institute] will be retrofitted for additional cancer research activity,” Libutti said. 

Involved from the very beginning in the design and architectural plans of the new Cancer Center, Libutti said upon its completion, “I get goosebumps every time I walk into the building. I’m particularly pleased with how the project unfolded and how patient-focused the facility is. We tried our best not to have it resemble a hospital in any form or function within the building. It is designed to ‘wrap a blanket’ around the patient from the moment they encounter us.” On the inpatient care side, the Cancer Center has 96 beds on three floors, a dedicated floor with nine surgical and procedure rooms, a central sterile processing area and inpatient support spaces. 

Outpatient care offerings include 88 infusion bays, 80 exam rooms including clinic space featuring a “beach/boardwalk” theme for pediatric patients, advanced radiology including four linear accelerators, diagnostic equipment (CT, MRI, mammogram and other equipment with core lab), pharmacy facilities and outpatient urgent care. 

On the research side, it has wet lab facilities and equipment to support 10 research teams, clinical trial offices, and faculty offices. 

“I’m particularly pleased with the open-air design of the atrium,” Libutti said. “It’s also a smart building that leverages technology to assist in patient navigation and wayfinding.  

“One of the things, I’m particularly proud of is our outpatient pediatric wing. It’s an outpatient facility with a shore theme. When children and their families arrive, they walk down a boardwalk, with scenes of the Jersey shore. There is an arcade, a toy store, and the exam and infusion rooms are built like cabanas. So, it’s a disarming and warm feel for patients,” Libutti said. 

The Cancer Center is not the only commitment that RWJBarnabas Health is making in its quest to eradicate cancer. It has also made a commitment to a brand-new outpatient oncology facility – the 150,000-square-foot Melchiorre Cancer Center at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, and the planned five-story, 150,000-square-foot Vogel Medical Campus in Tinton Falls. “When you look at the entire capital investment [in new cancer care] facilities, it’s approximately $1.5 billion being invested by RWJBarnabas Health,” Libutti said. 

Today, RWJBarnabas sees 50,000 to 60,000 new cancer patients per year, and 150,000 overall. With the three new centers, it will increase its capacity to see cancer patients by 50%, Libutti said.  

He credits real estate developers Jack Morris and his wife Sheryl (founders of Edgewood Properties) for their philanthropy, compassion, and commitment to the health of New Jerseyans. “They have been unwavering and tremendously enabling in order for this project to be completed,” Libutti said. 

To access more business news, visit NJB News Now.

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