Welcome to Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center
Thank you for choosing Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center for your care.
We know it was a big decision, and we promise to do our best to assure you that you made the right one. To start, we at Holden are uniquely equipped to take care of you. Here’s why:
We’re Iowa’s only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center, and we’re one of only 53 NCI comprehensive cancer centers in the country. Studies have shown that patients treated at NCI-designated centers like ours have as much as a 25% greater likelihood of better outcomes.
We have teams of experts who specialize in specific types of cancer. This means our specialists have the necessary expertise and experience to care for you.
We offer more treatment options than anywhere in Iowa, and we will work with you to tailor your care plan to your specific treatment goals.
To help make navigating your new diagnosis easier, we’ve designed this binder to serve as a resource and guide.
While this binder can serve as a reference and help you manage your journey, you will still have a care team committed to being there with you every step of the way.
All of that is made possible by our dedicated team of specialists, researchers, nurses and staff who work every day to help advance cancer research, deliver new treatments and therapies, and provide care and support to help you get back to your life.
Below are some resources to help you manage your journey. While these materials can be used as a reference, you will still have a care team committed to being there with you every step of the way. We know there will be challenges ahead, but as a patient at Holden, you’ll never have to face them alone.
What to expect from your visit
Our goal is to make your visits to our cancer center as easy and stress-free as possible. The videos below will walk you through what you can expect at your first clinic and infusion appointments.
Learn more about how to navigate your way to our clinic and what to expect at your first appointment.
Discover the steps and safety checks that go into preparing your cancer medications and learn what to expect at your first infusion appointment.
Let us answer your questions.
Our clinic locations have nearby parking and offer valet parking services.
Valet parking is available right outside the Cancer Center for a minimal fee.
Self-parking for patients is available in nearby Parking Ramp 4 and is free at Medical Center University. Learn more about receiving a patient parking pass.
For patients needing to be hospitalized for their cancer care, parking passes are available for family members in three-day and seven-day options for consecutive parking days.
Those passes may be purchased at Guest Services near the hospital’s main entrance.
Your cancer team will tell you ahead of time where you should go to begin your clinic visit.
The location of your appointment also will appear in a letter you’ll receive before your visit. The letter notes the floor the clinic is located on and the nearest elevator.
Our elevators are named from A to M in alphabetical order, starting from the oldest part of the hospital to the newest, which is the part where you’ll find the cancer clinics.
If you need help getting to where you need to go, look for one of our staff members. We are happy to answer questions and direct you to your clinic.
Go to the clinic registration desk to sign in. You will be asked to update your medical history and insurance information. You also can do an express check in by updating your medical history and insurance information online using MyChart two or three days before your visit.
We do our best to keep all appointments on time. While you are in our comfortable waiting area, feel free to get coffee or other refreshments.
We also have free wi-fi if you want to use your smart phone or laptop computer. Whenever you want to leave the waiting area to get food or walk around, ask the registration desk for a pager.
We use the pager to notify you when your doctor is available or when results from tests have come in.
We’ll begin your visit by getting standard vital signs: weight, height, blood pressure, etc. If blood tests are needed, we do that, too, in our nearby lab. In some cases, imaging in the form of X-rays, MRIs, or CT scans is needed. We try to get these done on the same day.
You may have to wait between tests or for any results. We thoroughly review all the imaging and lab tests so we have the most precise information about your cancer to determine treatment options.
Nurses, nurse practitioners, and doctors are all part of your care team. Because we are an academic teaching hospital, a medical resident or fellow also may see you in the clinic.
Once your testing is complete, the cancer team goes over the results and discusses next steps with you. We may offer a recommendation right away on your course of treatment.
For more complex cases, your results may be presented to a team of cancer specialists to discuss all phases of your individualized care plan.
Ask your doctor if you qualify for any open cancer clinical trials. Because we are an academic medical center and an NCI-designated cancer center, we have access to some of the latest and most advanced clinical trials studying new treatments for a variety of cancers.
You have support during every step of your cancer journey.
We know being diagnosed with cancer is stressful and sometimes confusing. In addition to your care team, we have traditional and online support groups where patients and cancer survivors can discuss concerns and ask questions. We also offer counseling, spiritual care, and social services.
Please reach out and ask your cancer team if you would like more information about any of these services.
