AHN Cancer Institute at Allegheny General unveiled in Pittsburgh
Share this post:
Allegheny Health Network and Highmark Health on Monday unveiled the new AHN Cancer Institute at Allegheny General, the centerpiece of AHN’s cancer care expansion.
The cancer center will provide cancer fighting technology and access to cutting-edge research and clinical trials, as described by AHN officials. The new facility in Pittsburgh’s North Side neighborhood will welcome its first patients Tuesday.
The facility boasts a Gamma Knife, which uses precisely focused radiation to shrink brain tumors. It also houses one of the nation’s first MRI linear accelerators, which “combines MRI imaging with the ability to deliver radiation,” said Dr. David Bartlett, chair of AHN Cancer Institute. This helps to treat solid tumors.
The cancer center will also use one of the world’s first Gamma Pod systems, which delivers precise, high doses of radiation to breast tumors. Bartlett said this technology could eventually allow doctors to cure breast cancer in as little as one treatment. Bartlett said the facility will also strive to improve genomics research and immunotherapy.
Bartlett joined AHN in May, after previously serving as UPMC’s vice chair for surgical oncology, while holding other leadership positions at UPMC. The expanding cancer center at AHN comes as UPMC and Highmark Health continue to compete with one another.
David Holmberg, president and CEO of Highmark Health, AHN’s parent company, sees that new cancer center as “bringing to bear the power of all the people who have great ideas, combining them with our patients and our members who have great needs, and really coming together to build something special that will serve this community for a very long time.”
“This is another example where patients can come from this community — and from other communities — to get the best of cancer care,” said Cindy Hundorfean, president and CEO of AHN. “Patients, when they arrive starting tomorrow, are going to feel very confident, very well taken care of. Rest assured they’re getting the best-of-the-best treatment.”
The AHN Cancer Institute will deepen the research collaboration with Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, a partnership that began in 2014.
“We see so much opportunity for growth, for more expanded research opportunities,” Dr. Kenneth Cohen of the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins said.
“Our goal is not only to provide excellent care, but also to move to national prominence,” Bartlett said. “My goal is to perform research to really make changes in the way we practice medicine.”
The facility will also offer services like a positive image salon for women undergoing cancer treatment, nutritional counseling, social services, financial counseling, valet services, and accommodations for family members.
“We’re going to make it as comfortable as possible,” Bartlett said. “It’s a one-stop shop for everything they may need.”
The new 90,000-square-foot, $78 million facility is the focal point of AHN’s $300 million investment to expand cancer care across Western Pennsylvania.
“We are treating not only cancer, but cancer survivors,” Bartlett said. ‘There are more than 17 million cancer survivors in the U.S. today. They continue to need our expert care throughout survivorship.”