Antigua and Barbuda's long-awaited Cancer Centre is expected to reopen in June 2026, Prime Minister Gaston Browne confirmed on Saturday. According to Antigua.news, the facility has been fully refitted with new medical equipment under the private ownership of a US-based investment group.
The centre has remained closed since April 2023, when financial difficulties forced its shutdown. Browne expressed confidence that the June timeline would hold and outlined an ambition to position the facility as a regional medical tourism hub, drawing patients from across the Caribbean.
The centre originally opened in June 2015 as the first of its kind in the Eastern Caribbean, offering radiotherapy, chemotherapy, and oncology services to patients across OECS member states.
The road to reopening has been protracted. Lengthy negotiations with former majority shareholder Dr. Conville Brown collapsed after his asking price of US$30 million far exceeded the government's valuation of EC$6 to $9 million. The government ultimately resorted to compulsory acquisition, and the facility was sold to US-based investors for EC$13 million, with the building and equipment handled as separate transactions.
Disputes over the equipment purchase caused further delays. By October 2025, investors had publicly targeted a first-quarter 2026 reopening. That window has now passed without the centre resuming operations, making June 2026 at least the third publicly committed deadline.
Cancer support groups, including Breast Friends, have repeatedly called on the government to move beyond promises. Spokesperson Eunetta Bird previously described the closure as placing patients in an impossible position, forcing them to leave jobs, children, and families for six-week treatment stints abroad. While the Medical Benefits Scheme covers treatment costs, travel and accommodation expenses are not always included.
