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St. Mary's Hospital and Medical Center, the largest and most advanced medical center between Denver and Salt Lake City, serves as a premier regional medical center recognized for its collaborative approach to improving health, providing care and pursuing excellence. In 1895, Sisters of Charity Balbina Farrell and Louisa Madden left Leavenworth, Kan., on a mission to establish a hospital in the new western town of Grand Junction, Colo. St. Mary's, a small, 10-bed, wooden frame hospital, opened in May 1896. Throughout its history, the generosity of western Coloradans has enabled St. Mary's to grow to meet health care needs. Contributions of land, funds, time, and talent allowed it to keep pace with an expanding population and medical advances. St. Mary's latest project is a 440,000 square-foot Patient Tower and remodeling approximately 120,000 square feet of existing hospital space. Since the early 1940s, St. Mary's Regional Medical Center has played an integral part in the detection and treatment of cancer for thousands of patients. In June 2003, St. Mary's Advanced Medicine Pavilion became the new home of St. Mary's Regional Cancer Center. The state-of-the-art facility brings together medical oncology and radiation oncology services, and the supporting services of the Regional Blood Center and Pavilion Imaging. St. Mary's opened its first cardiac catheterization lab in 1986. The first open heart surgery was performed in 1988. St. Mary's is a Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations accredited facility.