JACKSON, Miss. (WTVA) – Ground was broken on a facility aimed at changing the fight against cancer in Mississippi.

State leaders met at University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson to see work begin on its Cancer Center and Research Institute.

Sen. Roger Wicker’s office said the facility is step towards the long-term goal of having a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated facility in Mississippi.

The designation would fill a void in the U.S. Southeast, as there are none in Mississippi, Louisiana, or Arkansas.

The cancer death rate is 25 percent higher than the national average in Mississippi. Wicker’s office said this title from the federal government can open the door to becoming a place that can see better patient outcomes, like other NCI facilities.