Corporate Body

Cancer Institute, Melbourne (1949 - 1986)

From
27 April 1949
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
To
1986
Functions
Medical Care Provider and Medical Research

Summary

The Cancer Institute, Melbourne was established in 1949 in a single room at the Queen Victoria Hospital, Melbourne. It was an outcome of the Cancer Institute Act 1948 (No. 5341), s4 passed by the Parliament of the State of Victoria. This followed active lobbying by Professor R.D. Wright and Peter MacCallum from 1943 for the establishment of a specialist cancer hospital. A body called the Cancer Institute Board was formed to manage the Cancer Institute which was established. In 1986 its name was formally changed to the Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute.

Details

Chronology

1948
Operational event - Cancer Institute Act 1948 (No.5341), s.4, Parliament of Victoria
27 April 1949
Operational event - The Queen Victoria Hospital sets up the Cancer Institute in a room on Melbourne's William Street.
1950
Operational event - Physics Department established with appointment of J.H. Martin
1950
Operational event - The clinical arm opens known as the "Peter MacCallum Clinic"
1950
Operational event - Visiting Nursing Service established
1952
Operational event - Medical staff, radiographers and support teams start travelling further afield, including cancer clinics in Geelong, Bendigo, Hobart and Launceston.
December 1955
Research - Hosts the First Australasian Conference on Radiation Biology
1956
Operational event - 4-million-volt linear accelerator commissioned, one of the first of its kind in Australia offering treatment of tumours lying deep within the body
1958
Research - Supports the Second Australasian Conference on Radiation Biology, Univeristy of Melbourne
1960
"Institute was the second largest organisation of its kind in the world" [J.H. Martin]
1986
Operational event - Name changed to Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute
1986
Operational event - Occupied eleven different sites in Melbourne

Timeline

 1949 - 1986 Cancer Institute, Melbourne
       1986 - Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute

Related People

Published resources

Conference Proceedings

Journal Articles

Resource Sections

  • 'Peter MacCallum Cancer Institute (known as the Cancer Institute 1949 - 1986): Agency entry VA 4001', in Online Collection Service, Public Record Office Victoria, Public Record Office of Victoria, Melbourne, Victoria, 2024. https://prov.vic.gov.au/archive/VA4001. Details
  • 'Cancer Institute Board, Peter MacCallum Cancer Clinic [1968.0003.00116]; Series UMA-SR-000000125', in Collection discovery service, University of Melbourne Archives (Recollect), University of Melbourne Archives, Melbourne, Victoria, 2024. https://archives.library.unimelb.edu.au/nodes/view/71508. Details

Ken McInnes

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