VGH's new chemotherapy robots speed up cancer care
Two $3 million KIRO robots cut preparation time in half, prevent backlog, and reduce occupational hazards for pharmacy staff.
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Vancouver General Hospital has brought two sophisticated chemotherapy robots online to prepare cancer drug treatments faster and protect staff from hazardous exposure.
The KIRO oncology chemotherapy robots cost $3 million for the pair — funded through a VGH and UBC Hospital Foundation campaign that has raised over $39 million since 2024. Operating costs come from the hospital's regular budget.
Jason Park, a coordinator in pharmacy distribution, described the efficiency gain: "We're typically seeing around 12 preparations done in about 40 minutes, whereas, traditionally, doing these manually, it would take an hour or more to be able to do the same amount of work."
Staff supervise the robots, which are already running at full capacity. The impact is twofold: the machines prevent bottlenecks as demand for cancer treatments rises, and they shield pharmacy workers from hazardous drugs and needle-stick injuries — both occupational hazards of manual preparation.
Pharmacy director Nilu Partovi noted that cancer patient numbers across B.C. and Canada are rising steadily. "In order to meet that demand, we need to find automated solutions to be able to keep up with that demand. Instead of waiting for there to be a huge backlog, we're trying to keep ahead of that curve," Park said.
VGH already operates UV disinfection robots (used for over a decade) and robotic arms for cardiac and urological surgeries, as well as inventory-management robots that deliver medications to staff.
The chemotherapy robots represent the hospital's bet that automation can keep pace with growing patient need.