Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center announced that its Gonzales clinic will undergo a $2.5 million renovation and expansion.  More than 6,000 square feet will be added to the existing building on La. 30, including a 2,500-square-foot infusion suite with 14 semi-private infusion bays and one private room, a chemotherapy mixing area, a retail pharmacy and a lab.  The announcement notes that the expansion comes as Ascension Parish continues to experience rapid population growth, resulting in an increased demand for services. While the Gonzales clinic, which opened in 2009, is currently designed to support around 100 patients a month, the additional space and expansion of services will nearly triple its capacity.  The Gonzales Area Foundation has pledged $500,000 toward the expansion, according to the announcement.  The investment into expanded offerings comes as the Capital Region cancer care market has become increasingly competitive in the past three years, due in part to the breakup of Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center and Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, the Lake’s $100 million investment in its own cancer center, and Mary Bird’s partnership with Baton Rouge General.  Read a cover package from Business Report from last year about the evolving and increasingly competitive cancer care market in the Capital Region.