The Butler Health System and the UPMC CancerCenter have partnered to offer medical oncology care that will help patients have access to more cancer care close to home.

The new Butler Health System Medical Oncology Services began offering this enhanced service on July 8, according to a BHS news release.

It includes the addition of Dr. Rushir Choksi, an oncologist and hematologist who has been with UPMC since 2006 and who is joining BHS full-time.

The partnership is the latest joint project in oncology between BHS and the UPMC CancerCenter. In April, they announced an agreement for radiation oncology, called Butler Health System Radiation Oncology Associates.

Both of these services ensure that BHS physicians and their patients have access to UPMC experts, clinical trials, and the expertise of the region’s only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center.

“Our goal, as always, is to assure that the community has access to expert care, close to home,” said Ken DeFurio, BHS’s president and chief executive officer, in the release.

“The partnership between BHS and UPMC CancerCenter is an excellent example of collaborating with other providers who bring additional services, competency and expertise, while BHS maintains its independence.”