The Dell Medical School at The University of Texas announced Tuesday the creation of its Department of Oncology, according to a news release from the medical school. The opening marks the medical school’s ninth department, which will be chaired by S. Gail Eckhardt, the medical school’s associate dean of cancer programs and the inaugural executive director of LIVESTRONG Cancer Institutes. The department was created in an effort to advance cancer research and care in Travis County where cancer is the leading cause of death, according to the news release. The Austin Public Department reported there were 1,131 cancer-related deaths in Travis County in 2014. https://twitter.com/DellMedSchool/status/892383378338713600 “Our team at Dell Med is looking to streamline administrative support, improve efficiency and develop an enterprise strategy to advance cancer care—and improve health outcomes—for the people of Travis County and Central Texas,” Eckhardt said. “This effort is inherently collaborative, and we are working with a wide array of community partners on disease-focused, multidisciplinary care.” Along with the new department, Dell Medical School said it intends to offer more local clinical trials. “When Travis Country voters gave their support to create a new medical school in 2012, increasing access to high-quality cancer care was a major part of the discussion,” said Clay Johnston, dean of the medical school. “This gets us another step closer to realizing the community’s vision for better health, particularly for those who are most vulnerable, making Austin a model healthy city.”