Messi-backed centre brings children’s cancer care under one roof

A specialist cancer centre in Barcelona brings diagnosis, treatment and family support together for children and teenagers, with capacity to care for around 400 patients a year. The SJD Pediatric Cancer Center Barcelona is part of Hospital Sant Joan de Déu and was built with support from the Leo Messi Foundation and other donors.

The project required an investment of about €30 million, funded by organisations, businesses and individuals. Messi’s foundation and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation helped complete the funding needed to get the centre running.

The 5,137-square-metre building includes facilities for research, clinical trials and specialised treatments. By gathering services in one place, it aims to reduce the need for children and their families to move between different hospital facilities.

The centre also has areas dedicated to supporting families during treatment, which can involve long periods in hospital. It receives children referred from elsewhere in Spain and abroad, extending its reach beyond the local community. Throughout, the aim is to combine specialist medical care with an environment designed around young patients and the people caring for them.