The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens Officially Opens the New ‘Athina I. Martinou’ University Oncology Centre at Attikon General University Hospital – A Landmark Facility for Academic Medicine and Public Health

The new ‘Athina I. Martinou’ University Oncology Centre was officially opened at Attikon General University Hospital. The facility is part of the 2nd Clinical Department of Propaedeutic Internal Medicine of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. It was created thanks to the generous donation of Athanasios Martinos and Marina Martinou, who fully funded the construction of the state-of-the-art unit, through the Non-profit Civil Company for Culture and Welfare AEGEAS.

In attendance at the ceremony were: the Prime Minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis; the Minister and the Alternate Minister of Health, Adonis Georgiadis and Eirini Agapidaki; the Deputy Ministers of Health, Marios Themistocleous and Dimitris Vartzopoulos; the Deputy Minister of Education, Religious Affairs, and Sports, Professor Nikolaos Papaioannou; the Rector of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Professor Gerasimos Siasos; the Dean of the School of Health Sciences, Professor Pagona Lagiou; the Chair and the Vice-Chair of the School of Medicine, Professors Nikolaos Arkadopoulos and Konstantinos Tsioufis; the Director of the 2nd Health District of Piraeus and the Aegean, Christos Roilos; the Manager of Attikon General University Hospital, Spyridon Apostolopoulos; the Secretary General for Health Services at the Hellenic Ministry of Health, Lilian Vildiridi; members of the Administration Council, Vice-Rectors, and members of the Senate at the University of Athens; the Director of the 2nd Clinical Department of Propaedeutic Internal Medicine, Amanda Psyrri; faculty members at the School of Medicine and various other Departments of the University of Athens; and many doctors and nurses at Attikon General University Hospital. Their presence underscored the importance of the initiative for public health and academic medicine in the country.

The ‘Athina I. Martinou’ University Oncology Centre aspires to become a model of excellence in oncology care, clinical research, and teaching. It aims to provide comprehensive care for patients with cancer, foster innovative clinical studies, and promote interdisciplinary collaboration among doctors, researchers, and students at the University of Athens.

The oncology unit is the first of its kind to be housed in a standalone building within a public hospital and covers a total area of 1,097 square metres. It intends to treat more than 20,000 patients a year, a 41% increase over 2019, and thus enhance the hospital’s capacity to deliver cutting-edge, comprehensive cancer care.

The Centre supports patients from diagnosis through to recovery, offering personalized care tailored to the characteristics of each tumour. It is already pursuing European certification as a specialist unit for lung cancer treatment, with the goal of becoming a Comprehensive Cancer Centre.

The unit was designed in accordance with modern international standards to meet the growing needs of patients undergoing chemotherapy. It features first-class facilities, purpose-built treatment areas, and fully equipped spaces for the medical and nursing staff.

Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, who was shown around the Centre, said among other things: ‘Allow me to begin by expressing, on behalf of the Government—and I believe the entire Greek people—my heartfelt thanks to Mr Athanasios Martinos. Not only for the facility we had the opportunity to visit today, which is already fully operational and to which I will shortly refer, but also for his overall contribution, characterized by modesty and a deep sense of duty. This represents, I would say, a different approach to how citizens with financial means take part in advancing the public good—working in close partnership with the state within the context of a broader alliance involving the public sector, private enterprise, and civil society. Thanasis’s efforts have been truly extensive and impactful. Many of his donations and contributions go unnoticed by us, as he himself chooses to remain exceptionally discreet. Yet, some must be widely celebrated—like this oncology treatment centre: a comprehensive cancer care unit envisioned by Amanda just a few years ago, and now being brought to life through an exceptional partnership between the Ministry of Health and the University of Athens. Indeed, it gives our fellow citizens living with cancer the chance to receive care not only of the highest quality, but—most importantly—in conditions that respect their dignity.

I believe this is something we can all relate to—many of us have had family members who have faced their own battles with cancer—and we know that, while the clinical aspect of care is essential, equally vital is the confidence we place in a healthcare system to provide treatment in conditions that uphold both quality and dignity.

That is precisely what we are offering today with this new Oncology Centre—a facility that will also place us at the forefront of cancer research, a field currently driving truly groundbreaking developments.

You spoke about precision medicine and what it means to move beyond one-size-fits-all therapies—which are administered to all patients with a particular type of cancer—towards specialized ones tailored to the unique genetic profile of each tumour we are tasked with treating. We must also be at the forefront of these innovations’.

The Prime Minister also mentioned the ‘Prolamvano’ programme, describing it as ‘perhaps the most pioneering preventive healthcare and screening project across Europe. Our fellow citizens have embraced it. We are gradually changing the culture of what it means to take care of ourselves and look after our health; to care for ourselves, not just by following a healthy lifestyle, but by making those essential screenings part of our lives—because they can save lives’.

Addressing the ceremony, the Minister of Health Adonis Georgiadis said among other things: ‘As the son of a mother who passed away while undergoing chemotherapy for leukemia—and knowing firsthand what it means for a patient to endure such intensive treatments—I can tell you that this space, which exists thanks to Mr Athanasios Martinos and his family, in memory of his late mother, will operate for many years to come. Dear Thanasis, it will treat many people every single day, and it will make their lives, at the most difficult moment, just a little bit better. And for that, we are truly grateful to you’.

Athanasios Martinos remarked: ‘It is a genuine pleasure to welcome Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis today, and I wish to convey my deep appreciation for his presence. My thanks go to the Ministers of Health, the hospital’s leadership team, and all our distinguished guests for honouring us with their attendance on this significant occasion.

I would like to express my particular gratitude to the Rector, Professor Gerasimos Siasos, and to Professor Amanda Psyrri, Director of the 2nd Clinical Department of Propaedeutic Internal Medicine here at Attikon, for the great honour they have bestowed upon my family by naming this remarkable Centre after our mother, Athina. I am also grateful to our friend here, the Metropolitan of Nikaia—known as the “Metropolitan of Shipping,” a nod to his father’s seafaring background and his own roots in Cephalonia—His Eminence Alexios, for his blessing.

Finally, I would like to highlight the outstanding collaboration we have consistently enjoyed with the Minister of Health, Adonis Georgiadis, and the Deputy Minister, Marios Themistocleous, across all matters and initiatives in the field of public health.

Yesterday, I told Mr Georgiadis something that I wanted to share with you, Mr President: at some point, it would be useful to put together all of the government’s work in the field of health. I believe such an overview would provide valuable information for the entire Greek public.

I should not fail to mention the excellent collaboration we had with the Manager, Mr Apostolopoulos, and the technical services of Attikon General University Hospital. Please allow me to congratulate our colleagues, the Technical Director of our Foundation, Dimitris Kalakos, the mechanical engineer Kostas Keramaris, and the constructors of this great building, Dimitris Balis and Konstantinos Andreou, for their outstanding work. You have always made us proud.

I wish the doctors, nurses, and all staff at the hospital continued success in their important work’.

Statement by the Rector of the University of Athens, Professor Gerasimos Siasos

‘The launch of the “Athina I. Martinou” University Oncology Centre marks a milestone for the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and our country. It is a project of national importance, one that combines excellence in science, innovation, and service to society. We express our sincere gratitude to Mr Athanasios Martinos and Ms Marina Martinou, as well as to AEGEAS, for their generous and visionary contribution. The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, with its long-standing tradition in medical education and research, continues to invest in facilities that support people, enhancing both public health and academic progress. This new Centre is part of the University’s broad effort to upgrade health infrastructures and will work as a magnet for young scientific talent, actively contributing to the nation’s brain gain’.

Photographs: Dimitris Konstantinidis